Technologies in Plant Biotechnology and Breeding of Field Crops

This edited book is a comprehensive compilation of principles, conventional and molecular approaches used to develop improved varieties and hybrids of major crops in light of their origin, evolution, taxonomy, production and productivity and need by human civilization. The book covers breeding prospects of all important food and commercial crops. It highlights the importance of breeding tools and techniques in ensuring food security. This book is of interest to teachers, researchers, agriculture scientists, capacity builders, and policymakers. Also, the book serves as additional reading material for undergraduate and graduate students of agriculture, soil science, and environmental sciences. National and international agricultural scientists and policymakers will find this book useful.

Dr. Kamaluddin is an associate professor in the Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding, Banda University of Agriculture and Technology, Banda, India. He obtained his Ph.D. degree from BHU, Varanasi. He has expertise in plant breeding and molecular breeding. Dr. Kamaluddin has published original research articles, review articles, book chapters, and abstracts in different journals of national and international repute. Presently, he is involved in the development of heat and drought stress tolerant pulse cultivars, using marker assisted selection. He has published Plant Biotechnology: Principles and Application (Springer) and others in the capacity of coeditor.

Dr. Usha Kiran is currently working as director, Vanercia Institute of Technical Education, Gautam Buddh Nagar, UP, India. She obtained her Ph.D. in biotechnology from Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, India. Her research is focused on signaling modulators used by plant cell to evoke protective cellular response, especially proline biosynthesis and degradation during stress conditions. Her work involves extensive use of bioinformatic tools for analyses. Her research articles, review articles, book chapters, and abstracts have been published in journals of national and international repute. In her pursuit to bring technologies and their application to fellow scientists and research scholars, she has published books on applications of biotechnology in plant science such as Plant Biotechnology: Principles and Application, Springer.

Dr. M. Z. Abdin is currently working as head of the Department of Biotechnology, School of Chemical and Life Sciences, Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, India. He has published four books in the capacity of editor/co-author. Dr. Abdin has been working in the field of plant biotechnology with focus on metabolic engineering of medicinal plants and crops for better yield, quality, and tolerance to abiotic/biotic stresses. Heis also working on the modulation of secondary plant metabolites synthesis employing RNAi technology. Further, he is also working for the development and use of DNA fingerprints for authentication of herbal/Unani drugs. Dr. Abdin has published extensively in journals of national and international repute.