I am working as a Professor in Botany & Microbiology Department, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia. I have earned global recognition by being listed among the Top 2% of Scientists Worldwide by Stanford University and Elsevier. I received Ph.D. degree in Botany with special emphasis in Plant Tissue Culture and Biotechnology from the Aligarh Muslim University, India. I was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Biological Research Centre (CIB-CSIC), Madrid, Spain, under the Program of Ministry Science & Innovation, Spain and at the Botany Department of AMU, India under the DST Fast-track scheme for Young Scientist by the DST, Govt. of India. I also spent time as a Visiting-Fellow at the Kangwon National University, South Korea, to learn some advanced techniques in in vitro culture and genetic engineering.
My research integrates Plant Biotechnology and Environmental Ecology to develop in vitro regeneration–based biotechnological systems and nanotechnology-enabled strategies that enhance plant resilience, improve productivity, and promote environmental sustainability. I focus on tissue culture-driven regeneration, conservation, and micropropagation of endangered and medicinally valuable plants using advanced TC systems such as organogenesis, somatic embryogenesis, and synthetic seed technology, optimizing responses through growth regulators, PEG, and nanoparticle-mediated signaling. I also assess the effects of engineered nanoparticles and heavy metal toxicity and accumulation on plant physiology, metabolism, and ecological health. My work focuses on their influence on photosynthetic performance, antioxidant metabolism, nutrient homeostasis, and stress signaling, along with bioaccumulation, trophic transfer, and food chain risks under wastewater irrigation. By integrating tissue culture, nanotechnology, and ecophysiology, my research contributes to crop resilience, biodiversity conservation, and environmental sustainability.
I've published over 180 research articles in globally esteemed, peer-reviewed journals, accumulating nearly 7748 citations for my works with an h-index of 45. I hold memberships of several academic bodies/societies including International Association of Plant Biotechnology, USA. I serve in editorial boards of several peer-reviewed journals in the area of plant biology including Plant Cell, Tissue & Organ Culture of the Springer Nature and Plant Biotechnology Reports, Elsevier Sciences. I actively participate in disseminating knowledge in my research area. In addition to peer reviewed journal publications, I have edited 07 books published by the Springer Nature in the area of plant tissue culture and related biotechnologies. Recently, my team and I achieved success in translating two books titled "Plant Biotechnology and Genetics: Principles, Techniques, and Applications" and “Environmental Sustainability: Role of Green technologies” into Arabic, officially published by the KSU Press.
I have been honored with multiple awards in recognition of my accomplishments and contributions, including Research Excellence Award-2025 by the AFTEFS, Excellence of Research Award-2023 by the ISAHRD, Outstanding Scientist Award-2021 by VDGOOD Professional Association, SESR Fellow and Plant Biotechnologist Award-2017 by the Society of Scientific and Educational Research (SESR), and Scientist of the Year Award-2015 by the National Environmental Science Academy. I was recently elected as the Fellow of the Linnean Society of London, UK. Currently, I serve as an International Panel Expert of the Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS), Czech Republic and external faculty assessor in several Universities.