Dr Niyam Dave

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Biotechnology
Institution: Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal, Karnataka, India
Duration: 2017 – 2021
Thesis Title: Production of Bioethanol from Marine Macroalgae
Research Focus: Production and optimization of fermentative bioethanol from indigenous marine macroalgal biomass (Ulva prolifera), including biomass pretreatment, reducing sugar extraction, yeast fermentation, and process optimization using ANN-GA and bioprocess engineering approaches.

Master of Science (M.Sc.) in Biotechnology

Institution: Institute of Science, Nirma University, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India
Year of Completion: 2014
Dissertation Title: Role of Non-target Antigens in Determining Immunogenicity of Target Antigen to Induce Protective Immunity.
Core Subjects: Molecular biology, immunology, microbiology, genetic engineering, fermentation technology, bioinformatics, and healthcare biotechnology.

Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) in Biotechnology

Institution: N.V.P.A.S. College, Sardar Patel University, Vallabh Vidyanagar, Gujarat, India
Year of Completion: 2012
Major: Biotechnology
Minor Subjects: Microbiology, Biochemistry, Genetics, and Chemistry.

• Bioprocess Technology & Biofuel Production
Development and optimization of sustainable bioprocesses for fermentative bioethanol and biohydrogen production using renewable biomass resources, particularly marine macroalgae and agricultural residues.

• Marine Biotechnology & Macroalgal Biorefinery
Exploration of indigenous marine macroalgal biomass, especially Ulva prolifera, for value-added bioproducts, renewable energy generation, and integrated biorefinery applications.

• Industrial Biotechnology & Fermentation Technology
Optimization of microbial fermentation processes, biomass pretreatment strategies, reducing sugar extraction, and downstream processing for industrial-scale bioproduct development.

• Environmental Biotechnology & Sustainable Waste Utilization
Application of biotechnology approaches for biomass valorization, biosorption, pollutant remediation, and sustainable utilization of agricultural and algal waste resources.

• Molecular Biology & Recombinant Protein Production
Molecular cloning, recombinant protein expression and purification, antibody engineering, Fab fragment construction, and development of recombinant biomolecules for healthcare and research applications.

• Immunology & Healthcare Biotechnology
Investigation of antigen immunogenicity, monoclonal antibody purification, immunoassays, and translational applications in infectious disease diagnostics and therapeutic biotechnology.

• Microbial Biotechnology & Microbial Process Engineering
Cultivation, maintenance, and metabolic utilization of microbial systems including bacterial, fungal, and yeast strains for industrial fermentation and applied microbiology research.

• Molecular Diagnostics & Clinical Biotechnology
Application of qualitative and quantitative real-time PCR, molecular detection platforms, and cytogenetic techniques for infectious diseases, cancer diagnostics, and clinical biomarker analysis.

• Biostatistics, Process Optimization & Artificial Intelligence Applications
Integration of Design of Experiments (DoE), Artificial Neural Networks (ANN), Genetic Algorithms (GA), and statistical modeling for optimization of bioprocesses and biotechnological systems.

• Genomics & Proteomics
Utilization of molecular approaches for genomic analysis, proteomic investigations, and systems-level biological interpretation in biotechnology and healthcare research.

• Patent Analytics & Intellectual Property Research
Analysis of biotechnology patents, innovation landscapes, and intellectual property strategies related to healthcare biotechnology, industrial biotechnology, and sustainable technologies.

Bioenergy, Bioprocess Technology & Marine Biotechnology

1. Dave N, Pathan S, Prabhu A. Biological production of sustainable hydrogen using a renewable substrate: A systematic review. Int. J. Hydrogen Energy. 2026; 201:152809. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2025.152809
2. Dave N, Hebbale D. The prospect of bamboo and non-fodder rice husk for sustainable bioethanol production. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. 2025; 32(14):9236–9249. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-025-36271-0
3. Dave N, Varadavenkatesan T, Selvaraj R, Vinayagam R. Modelling of fermentative bioethanol production from indigenous Ulva prolifera biomass by Saccharomyces cerevisiae NFCCI1248 using an integrated ANN-GA approach. Sci. Total Environ. 2021; 791:148429. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148429
4. Dave N, Varadavenkatesan T, Singh RS, Giri BS, Selvaraj R, Vinayagam R. Evaluation of seasonal variation and the optimization of reducing sugar extraction from Ulva prolifera biomass using thermochemical method. Environ. Sci. Pollut. Res. 2021; 28(42):58857–58871. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-14890-3
5. Dave N, Selvaraj R, Varadavenkatesan T, Vinayagam R. A critical review on production of bioethanol from macroalgal biomass. Algal Res. 2019; 42:101606. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.algal.2019.101606

Environmental Biotechnology & Nanobiotechnology

1. Vinayagam R, Dave N, Varadavenkatesan T, Rajamohan N, Sillanpää M, Nadda AK, Govarthanan M, Selvaraj R. Artificial neural network and statistical modelling of biosorptive removal of hexavalent chromium using macroalgal spent biomass. Chemosphere. 2022; 296:133965. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.133965
2. Vinayagam R, Ganga S, Murugesan G, Rangasamy G, Bhole R, Goveas LC, Varadavenkatesan T, Dave N, Samanth A, Devi VR, Selvaraj R. 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) adsorptive removal by algal magnetic activated carbon nanocomposite. Chemosphere. 2023; 310:136883. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136883
3. Selvaraj R, Murugesan G, Rangasamy G, Bhole R, Dave N, Pai S, et al. As (III) removal using superparamagnetic magnetite nanoparticles synthesized using Ulva prolifera—optimization, isotherm, kinetic and equilibrium studies. Chemosphere. 2022; 308:136271. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.136271
4. Bhole R, Gonsalves D, Murugesan G, Narasimhan MK, Srinivasan NR, et al. Superparamagnetic spherical magnetite nanoparticles: synthesis, characterization and catalytic potential. Appl. Nanosci. 2023; 13(9):6003–6014. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13204-021-02146-8

Industrial Biotechnology & Fermentation Technology

1. Shetty AVK, Dave N, Murugesan G, Pai S, Pugazhendhi A, et al. Production and extraction of red pigment by solid-state fermentation of broken rice using Monascus sanguineus NFCCI 2453. Biocatal. Agric. Biotechnol. 2021; 33:101964. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bcab.2021.101964

Molecular Diagnostics & Clinical Biotechnology

1. Dave N, Singh S. Comparative analysis of microscopic and real-time polymerase chain reaction-based methods for the detection of multidrug resistance in Mycobacterium tuberculosis. J. Prev. Diagn. Treat. Strateg. Med. 2024; 3(2):71–75. https://doi.org/10.4103/jpdtsm.jpdtsm_5_24

Immunology & Healthcare Biotechnology

1. MohanKrishnan A, Patel H, Bhurani V, Parmar R, Yadav N, Dave N, et al. Inclusion of non-target antigen in vaccination favors generation of OVA specific CD4 memory T cells. Cell. Immunol. 2019; 337:1–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cellimm.2019.01.004

Assistant Professor – Department of Life Sciences, School of Science (SoS)

GSFC University, Vadodara, Gujarat, India
2026 – Present

• Teaching undergraduate and postgraduate courses in biotechnology, microbiology, and allied life science disciplines.

• Mentoring students in research methodology, scientific writing, project development, and laboratory-based experimental techniques.

• Contributing to curriculum development, academic activities, departmental coordination, and interdisciplinary research initiatives.

• Guiding students in biotechnology-based innovation, bioprocess technology, molecular diagnostics, and healthcare biotechnology applications.

Assistant Professor – Department of Life Sciences, Parul Institute of Applied Sciences (PIAS)

Parul University, Vadodara, Gujarat, India
2022 – 2023

• Delivered lectures and practical training in microbiology, biotechnology, molecular biology, and fermentation technology for undergraduate and postgraduate students.

• Mentored students for academic projects, laboratory research activities, presentations, and scientific communication.

• Supported departmental academic activities including curriculum planning, laboratory management, and student evaluation.

• Integrated research-oriented teaching approaches in molecular diagnostics, microbial biotechnology, and healthcare biotechnology.

Areas Taught

B.Sc. Microbiology/Biotechnology

• Microbial Aspects of Biotechnology

• Medical Microbiology

• Medical Biotechnology

• Bioethics and Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)

• Genetic Engineering and Fermentation Technology

• Food and Dairy Microbiology

• Stem Cell Technology

M.Sc. Biotechnology/Microbiology

• Molecular Virology

• Advanced Cell and Molecular Biology

Ph.D. Coursework

• Research and Publication Ethics

Research Contributions

• Over 8 years of research experience in biotechnology, with major contributions in marine biotechnology, industrial biotechnology, environmental biotechnology, and healthcare biotechnology.

• Research focused on sustainable biofuel production, particularly fermentative bioethanol and biohydrogen generation using renewable biomass resources including marine macroalgae and agricultural residues.

• Conducted extensive research on indigenous marine macroalgal biomass (Ulva prolifera) for reducing sugar extraction, fermentation optimization, and integrated biorefinery applications.

• Expertise in microbial fermentation technology, biomass pretreatment, downstream bioprocessing, recombinant protein production, and molecular biology techniques.

• Contributed to molecular diagnostics and clinical biotechnology through real-time PCR-based detection of infectious diseases, multidrug resistance analysis, and cytogenetic investigations.

• Worked on recombinant protein purification, monoclonal antibody purification, Fab fragment construction, and antibody-related molecular biology applications.

• Applied Artificial Neural Networks (ANN), Genetic Algorithms (GA), and Design of Experiments (DoE) for process optimization and predictive bioprocess modelling.

• Published multiple peer-reviewed scientific articles in reputed international journals including International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, Science of the Total Environment, Chemosphere, Environmental Science and Pollution Research, and Algal Research.

• Research interests include marine biorefinery, microbial biotechnology, molecular diagnostics, recombinant protein production, environmental remediation, genomics, proteomics, and patent analytics.

Consultancy and Industry Collaboration

• Worked as a Freelance Microbiology Consultant for onsite and remote R&D projects related to biotechnology, microbiology, scientific writing, and research documentation.

• Associated with industrial biotechnology projects involving scale-up bioethanol production from agricultural biomass residues and marine macroalgal biomass.

• Contributed to biotechnology-based industrial and healthcare research projects in collaboration with academic institutions, diagnostic laboratories, and industrial organizations.

• Experience in scientific writing, research proposal preparation, technical documentation, and biotechnology-related consulting assignments.

• Delivered academic mentoring, research guidance, and laboratory training for undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral students in biotechnology and microbiology disciplines.

• Participated in interdisciplinary research collaborations involving environmental biotechnology, healthcare biotechnology, molecular diagnostics, and industrial fermentation technology.

Research Management and Technical Expertise

• Experienced in handling multidisciplinary biotechnology research involving molecular biology, microbiology, immunology, bioprocess technology, and environmental biotechnology.

• Managed laboratory-based research activities including microbial culture maintenance, fermentation studies, molecular diagnostics, recombinant protein purification, and analytical experimentation.

• Skilled in operation of advanced research instruments including AKTA-FPLC, Real-Time PCR systems, fermentors, UV-Vis spectrophotometers, Gel Documentation systems, and GC systems.

• Expertise in experimental design, statistical optimization, data interpretation, and research workflow management for biotechnology and healthcare-related projects.

• Trained in quality management systems and internal auditing for NABL-accredited medical testing laboratories as per ISO 15189:2012 standards.

• Certified IP (Patent) Analyst with interest in biotechnology innovation management, patent analytics, intellectual property research, and technology commercialization.

Certifications & Professional Training

• Certified IP (Patent) Analyst – Indian Institute of Patent and Trademark (IIPTA), New Delhi (2026).

• Certified Internal QMS Auditor for NABL-accredited medical testing laboratories as per ISO 15189:2012 standards (2022).

• Completed Environment Management Course from Centre for Continuing Education, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, Karnataka (2023).

• Completed Biotechnology Skill Enhancement Programme in Cellular and Molecular Diagnostics from The Oxford College of Science, Bengaluru, Karnataka under KBITS and DBT, Government of India (2014–2015).

Research Projects

• Scale-up of bioethanol production from agricultural biomass residues.

• Fermentative bioethanol production from indigenous marine macroalgal biomass (Ulva prolifera).

• Molecular cloning and sequencing of antibody heavy and light chain genes for Fab fragment construction.

• Large-scale induction and purification of recombinant Protein-G for affinity resin development.

• Recovery and purification of anti-interleukin-6 receptor monoclonal antibodies using affinity chromatography.

Workshops, Seminars & Conferences

• Participated in IP Analyst Training Program (JOPAT) conducted by Indian Institute of Patent and Trademark (IIPTA), New Delhi (2025).

• Attended Quality Management System and Internal Auditor Course as per ISO 15189:2012 organized by Quality and Accreditation Institute (QAI) (2022).

• Participated and presented research work at conferences and symposiums related to biotechnology, environmental biotechnology, molecular diagnostics, and marine biotechnology.

Technical Skills & Instrumentation

• Molecular biology, microbiology, immunology, fermentation technology, recombinant protein purification, and molecular diagnostics.

• Chromatographic techniques including affinity chromatography and ion-exchange chromatography.

• Real-Time PCR, ELISA, western blotting, molecular cloning, microbial fermentation, and antibody purification techniques.

• Hands-on experience with AKTA-FPLC systems, Real-Time PCR systems, Gel Documentation systems, fermentors, UV-Vis spectrophotometers, and GC systems.

• Statistical and experimental design software including Minitab and Design-Expert.

Languages

• English

• Hindi

• Gujarati

Computer & Analytical Skills

• MS Office and Internet Applications

• Scientific Writing and Technical Documentation

• Patent Analytics and Intellectual Property Research

Personal Interests

• Scientific Writing and Research Communication

• Environmental Sustainability and Marine Biotechnology Research

• Academic Mentoring and Research Training

Honors and Awards

• Certified IP (Patent) Analyst – Awarded upon successful completion of the JOPAT Program by the Indian Institute of Patent and Trademark (IIPTA), New Delhi (2026).

• Certified Internal QMS Auditor – Certified by Quality and Accreditation Institute (QAI) for NABL-accredited medical testing laboratories as per ISO 15189:2012 standards (2022).

• Rapid Fire Presentation Competition – Awarded 2nd Prize at the ISW21 International Webinar jointly organized by Indian Institute of Technology Delhi and University of Moratuwa (2021).

• Sahyadri Ecologist Award and Best Oral Presentation – Awarded 3rd Prize at LAKE-2020 and LAKE-2024 Conferences conducted by Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, Karnataka.

• Best Oral Presentation Award – Awarded 1st Prize at the National Level Symposium SYMBIOT-2019 organized by the Department of Biotechnology, Manipal Institute of Technology, MAHE, Manipal, Karnataka.

• Dr. T.M.A. Pai Scholarship – Awarded by Manipal Academy of Higher Education for Ph.D. research work (2017–2021).

• Biotechnology Skill Enhancement Programme Fellowship/Stipend – Awarded by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India under the Biotechnology Skill Enhancement Programme (2014–2015).