Research Activities

Natural Products

The Natural Products group has collected microbes and plants from a wide variety of habitats and climatic zones from the far corners of India, ranging from tropical to alpine (Himalayas). This includes microbes from plants, high altitude ( 18000 ft ) , meteorite crater, hot spring, river bed, caves, mines from fresh water and marine environment (animals, sponges , corals, coelenterates, mollusks and mangroves plants).

Our microbial culture library of contains over 40,000 microbes comprising of actinomycete, bacteria, rare fungi, myxobacteria and mushrooms. The collection includes industrially important strains which produce high value bioactive compounds such as concanamycin, bafilomycin, borrelidin, actinomycin-D, and caerulomycin. The metabolite library has 6,000 plant extracts and 29,000 fermented and partially purified microbial extracts.

Scientists from NPRC have participated in the Antarctica expedition to explore the flora and fauna of Antarctica for NCEs.

Our research partners include National Institute of Oceanography, Goa, National Center for Antarctica and Ocean Research, India, Bhartidasan University Trichi, IICB, Kolkata Indian Institute Of Science Bangalore and Oncotest Germany.

Currently working on a lead antibiotic derived from marine bacteria and has potency against Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

We have expertise in biotransformation of molecules using enzymes and whole cells.