Recent Advances in the Diagnosis and Management of Plant Diseases

Prof. L.P. Awasthi is a distinguished scientist who has made significant contributions to the field of Plant Pathology in general and Plant Virology in particular. He did his PhD in Botany (Plant Pathology/Virology) from Lucknow University, Lucknow. Prof. Awasthi’s professional experience includes more than 40 years of teaching and research in Plant Pathology. He has guided 77 M.Sc. (Ag.) and 35 PhD students. The major areas of his research interest include:

• The diagnosis and characterization of viral diseases of important crop plants.
• Molecular characterization and the mode of action of resistance inducing defensive antiviral proteins from plants.

The work has demonstrated for the first time that the inducible plant defense system(s) against viruses can be switched on after treatment with certain highly specific basic phytoproteins and has opened a new field of ‘ plant immunology’. This more recently developed novelstrategy of immunizing plants using the phytoproteins shows great promise as it is versatile, non specific and entirely risk free, and a meaningful virus disease control technology. Immunization by plant products that stimulate the plant’s natural disease resistance mechanism may provide a new strategy for crop protection against viruses. Thus, a modest beginning towards successful virus control has been made. This strategy of defense in plant, in outcome, but not mechanism is comparable to the inducible defense system in animals.

Prof. Awasthi has published more than 350 research papers in foreign and Indian journals of repute, many popular articles in Hindi and English in Agriculture journals/bulletins, laboratory manuals and has a lot of contributory chapters in edited books.

Prof. Awasthi v isited Karl-Marx University Leipzig, University of Berlin, Institute of Plant Pathology, Ascherslavan, and Haale University, Germany. Prof. Awasthiis working as an Editor/Referee in the editorial boards of many Indian and foreign journals. Apart from this he is a member of several national, state level committees and many professional societies. He has been conferred Plant Pathology Leadership Award by Indian Phytopathological Society, India for his outstanding contributions, scientific excellence and distinguished services for the cause of Plant Pathological Research, Education and Technology dissemination, which has impacted Science of Plant Pathology in the country.