Khalifa Center for Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology
Overview
The Khalifa Center for Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology (KCGEB) was inaugurated
in 2014 by His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister
and Minister of Presidential Affairs. Research at the KCGEB is focused on exploring
flora of the arid region to generate scientific knowledge to address the global challenges
in the food security and sustainable agriculture practice through genomics, genetic
engineering and biotechnological innovations. Our work is supported by strategic funding
from the Ministry of Presidential Affairs.
Vision
“To channel the genetic system of plants to transform agriculture in UAE”
Mission
“Achieve leadership in the field of plant genetic engineering and biotechnology through
discovery and innovative research...
Research
The research at the KCGEB is primarily involved in the development of crops tolerant
to abiotic stresses through knowledge generation and translational research. The Center
is also focused on developing crops with enhanced agronomic traits to expand value
chains of existing industrial crops.
KCGEB presents exciting short-term research hands-on training for undergraduate and
postgraduate students of the UAEU, to build on essential skills and expertise to become
a professional researcher.
Director, Khalifa Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology
Khalifa Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology has come a long way since
its inauguration in 2014. His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy
Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, directions have been instrumental
for the success of the center.
Martin Kottackal, Ph.D
Senior Research Associate
Dr. Martin is graduated from University of Calicut, Kerala, India in 2001. He is a
recipient of the prestigious UKEIRI-India research fellowship, and he performed his
research to enhance the production of pharmaceutical compounds in medicinal plants
using molecular tools in De Montfort University, Leicester, UK.
Ling Li, Ph.D
Senior Research Associate
Dr. Ling joined the Khalifa Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology as a
Senior Research Associate in 2014. She received her Bachelor of Science degree from
the Ohio State University (Ohio, USA). She completed her doctoral degree in Molecular
Genetics under the supervision of Professor Harald Vaessin at the Ohio State University
in 2000.
Dr. Manish Roorkiwal
Research Assistant Professor
Dr Manish Roorkiwal joined the Khalifa Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology
(KCGEB) as a Research A. Professor - Genomics Breeding. Dr Roorkiwal is also associated
with the Institute of Agriculture, the University of Western Australia as an Adjunct
Associate Professor.
Suja George,PhD
Research Assistant Professor
Dr. Suja obtained PhD in Biotechnology from University of Madras in 2008. Her doctoral
work involved understanding the molecular mechanisms of abiotic stress tolerance in
the drought tolerant plant Prosopis juliflora.
Khaled Hazzouri, Ph.D.
Research Assistant Professor
Dr. Hazzouri earned his Ph.D. in evolutionary genomics from the University of Toronto
in 2012. In his doctoral research he worked on mating system evolution in the flowering
plants (Capsella and Collinsia) and its genomic consequences. He joined as a senior
research scientist at the Purugganan laboratory in the New York University Abu Dhabi
(NYUAD), working mainly on the genomic diversity and origin of the perennial Date
palm fruit tree as well as mining genetic variants in the green algae Chlamydomonas
reinhardtii.
Ajay Kumar Mishra, PH.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Dr. Ajay Kumar Mishra started his research group at Khalifa Centre for Genetic Engineering
and Biotechnology (KCGEB) in 2022.
Naganeeswaran Sudalaimuthuasari, PH.D.
Laboratory Specialist
Dr. Naganeeswaran Sudalaimuthuasari is a bioinformatician with over 15 years of experience
in Genomics and Next-Generation sequencing (NGS) data analysis.