CUSAT

Dr. Sayuj Koyyappurath
Assistant Professor

Department of Biotechnology

Email: sayujcusat@gmail.com, sayuj@cusat.ac.in
Phone: Office: 9497314183

CUSAT IQAC Profile: https://iqac.cusat.ac.in/Web/profile_view/415/Dr.SAYUJSayuj

Sayuj Koyyappurath obtained his PhD in Plant Biology with a specialization in Plant pathology from the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development, La Reunion. After his PhD in 2016, he joined as a Research Associate at Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology, Kerala where he was focused on plant-pathogen interaction studies, mostly in the realm of elucidating the Zingiber- Pythium pathosystem. In 2018, he joined Dr. Sarojam Rajanis Lab at Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory (TLL) affiliated with the National University of Singapore as a Post-Doctoral fellow. At TLL he was largely involved in developing spectral signatures for abiotic and biotic stress responses for leafy vegetables using Raman Spectroscopy. Besides, he investigated and unraveled the key metabolic pathways that were altered during the compatible interaction of leafy vegetables with
Xanthomonas campestris. In 2021 he was appointed as Assistant Professor at the Department of Biotechnology.

Research Interests
1. Genome assembly and Transcriptome sequencing
2. Plant-pathogen interaction
3. Developing diagnostic markers for plant disease detection
4. Hormone signaling in plants

Publications
1. Koyyappurath, S., ConÃ©jÃ©ro, G., Dijoux, J. B., Lapeyre-MontÃ¨s, F., Jade, K., Chiroleu, F., ... &
Grisoni, M. (2015). Differential responses of vanilla accessions to root rot and colonization
by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. radicis-vanillae. Frontiers in plant science, 6, 1125.
2. Koyyappurath, S., Atuahiva, T., Le Guen, R., Batina, H., Le Squin, S., Gautheron, N., ... &
Grisoni, M. (2016). Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. radicisâ€vanillae is the causal agent of root and
stem rot of vanilla. Plant Pathology, 65(4), 612-625.
3. Geetha, K. A., Koyyappurath, S., Augustine, L., & Thomas, G. (2019). Transcriptional analysis
and histochemistry reveal a dominant role for cell wall signaling in mediating Pythium
myriotylum resistance in Zingiber zerumbet. Physiological and Molecular Plant
Pathology, 106,
4. Cyriac, A., Chandrasekhar, A., Jose, C., Suraby, E. J., Sayuj, K. P., Sabu, M., & Babu, K. N. (2015). Development of EST SSR markers and analysis of genetic diversity in Zingiber species. International Journal of Innovative Horticulture, 4(2), 96-106.
5. Chung, P. J., Singh, G. P., Huang, C. H., Koyyappurath, S., Seo, J. S., Mao, H. Z., ... & Chua, N. H. (2021). Rapid detection and quantification of plant innate immunity response using Raman spectroscopy. Frontiers in Plant Science, 12, 746586.
6. Nath, V. S., Koyyappurath, S., Alex, T. E., Geetha, K. A., Augustine, L., Nasser, A., & Thomas, G. (2019). Transcriptome-based mining and expression profiling of Pythium responsive transcription factors in Zingiber sp. Functional & integrative genomics, 19, 249-264.
7. Satheesh, G. R., Koyyappurath, S., Varghese, L., & Thomas, G. (2022). Genome and transcriptome sequence resources and effector repertoire of Pythium myriotylum Drechsler. Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions, 35(8), 715-718.
8. Menon, D. R., Saidumohamed, B. E., Johnson, S., Koyyappurath, S., & Vengellur, A. (2023). An investigation on the role of differentially expressed genes in thyroid cancer under the influence of hypoxia. Advances in Cancer Biology-Metastasis, 7, 100084.
9. Chackochan, B. K., Johnson, S., Ansari, H. J. T., Vengellur, A., Sivan, U., Koyyappurath, S., & PS, B. C. (2024). Transcriptomic analysis of CNTF-treated mouse subventricular zone-derived neurosphere culture reveals key transcription factor genes related to adult neurogenesis. Heliyon, 10(19).
10. Viswam, A. S., Johnson, S., Koyyappurath, S., & Mujeeb, A. (2024). Non-invasive laser bio-speckle technique for the study of optical irradiation on plant leaf lamina: Application to monitor salicylic acid modulated response in Zamioculcas zamiifolia. Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 739, 150955.
11. Johnson, S., Philip, S., PP, S., & Koyyappurath, S. (2025). PEG seed priming enhances drought tolerance in ginger through physiological and molecular modulation. Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology, 28(4), 531-550.
12. Trivedi, M., Kavini, V., Sayuj, K. P., & Unni, S. N. (2025). Machine learning integrated visible diffuse reflectance spectroscopy for in-situ analysis of phosphorus status in Arabidopsis plants under soilless culture. Spectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy, 127321.

Research Team

Varsha Jayasankar

Sinoy Johnson

View Faculties

Dr. Sayuj Koyyappurath

Dr. Sreekanth P M

Dr. Rajesh P P

Dr. Bhavya Balan Chandrika

Dr. Sreeja Narayanan

Dr. Sarita G Bhat

Dr. M. Chandrasekaran

Dr. Ajith Vengellur

Dr. Baby Chakrapani P. S.

featured courses

MSC BIOTECHNOLOGY

4 Semester | Full time | Qualification: CAT

M.Sc Biotechnology course is designed to cover the comprehensive theoretical and practical knowledge to equip graduates with the necessary proficiency to become the next generation of bioscientists to lead new innovations in academia, industry and healthcare. This Masters course includes subjects such as cellular and molecular biology, rDNA technology, genetic engineering, immunology, bioprocess technology, enzymology and bioinformatics. In addition there are elective subjects which the students can choose based on their interests such as environmental biotechnology, animal biotechnology, nano biotechnology, medical and industrial Biotechnology. Students usually do their Masters project work (Semester 4) either in CUSAT or in other prestigious institutes such as IIT, IISc, NIIST and IISER. Career opportunities available for Biotechnology post-graduates includes positions in research institutes, biotechnology companies, pharmaceutical & nutraceutical sectors, pharmacovigilance, fermentation industries, food and dairy industries and bioenergy sector. The department has a team of highly efficient and well qualified teaching faculty with a good experience in teaching and research. There is a breadth of research expertise among the faculty members, with each of them specializing in different thrust areas.
Eligibility: B.Sc Life science Subjects/ Biotechnology from recognised University/Institution.

Syllabus

Mentor-Mentee

PO-PSO

MSC MICROBIOLOGY

4 Semester | Full time | Qualification: CAT

Microbiology, a classical discipline in Biological Sciences, is an extremely diverse field. The Masters course includes basic and application level subjects such as cell and molecular biology, microbial biotechnology, genetic engineering, immunology, bioprocess technology, rDNA technology and marine microbiology. Students usually do their Masters project work (Semester 4) either in CUSAT or in other prestigious institutes such as IIT, IISc, NIIST and IISER. Ample career opportunities are available for Microbiology post-graduates in diverse areas including research institutes, pharmaceutical & nutraceutical sectors, hospitals, analytical laboratories, fermentation industries, food and dairy industries, catering industries, bioenergy sector and in biotechnology companies/start-ups. The department has a team of highly efficient and well qualified teaching faculty with a good experience in teaching and research. There is a breadth of research expertise among the faculty members, with each of them specializing in different thrust areas.
Eligibility: B.Sc Life science Subjects/ Microbiology from recognised University/Institution.

Syllabus

Mentor-Mentee

PO-PSO

PhD in Biotechnology

Full time | Qualification: DAT

PhD degree provides the research fellow advanced and specialized training in a particular area of research. The research areas a PhD student can focus include microbiology, cell & molecular Biology, neurobiology and cancer biology. The choice of research area will depend on the project/faculty that he/she joins. The student has to complete course works (in relevant subjects) during their PhD tenure. Students get an opportunity to participate in national/international conferences and internships during the tenure of PhD program.
Eligibility: Post graduation in Life Science Subjects from a recognised college/ university or M. Phil. Degree in the relevant discipline.

Syllabus

Integrated M.Sc in Biological Sciences

10 Semester | Full time | Qualification: CAT

The Department of Biotechnology offers a five-year Integrated MSc in Biological Sciences. Eligible candidates must have a minimum of 50% in their qualifying examination, with Biology, Physics, and Chemistry as subjects.This interdisciplinary program is designed to immerse students in a research-intensive environment, combining rigorous theoretical coursework with extensive hands-on laboratory training in fields like Genomics, Proteomics, and Molecular Biology. Beyond the classroom, the curriculum emphasizes industry readiness through mandatory internships and a terminal research project, facilitating a direct transition into global PhD programs or high-level roles in the biotech industry.

Syllabus

Mentor-Mentee

PO-PSO

Internship and Dissertation

Both internships and dissertations offer incredible opportunities to deepen your academic knowledge, develop practical skills, and explore potential career paths. If you're interested in undertaking an internship or dissertation, please reach out to a faculty member whose expertise matches your area of interest.