Kanagasabapathi Sathasivan

Post-Secondary Education

Louisiana State University A & M College
Doctor of Philosophy
Plant Health

Teaching Experience

TEACHING EXPERIENCE

Adjunct Professor, Biology, Austin Community College. 1996 to present: Teaching BIO 1406L Cell and Molecular Biology, Open campus course, and BIOL 1408 Unity of Life on campus courses. 

Associate Professor of Instruction Since 1998 to present. Department of Molecular Biosciencesa,  Biology Instructional Office, The University of Texas at Austin. Teaching BIO 311c Introductory Cell Biology I. Developed and used interactive class room performance system, Squarecap and Quest Learning and Assessment system for introductory biology classes. Trained other faculty on classroom response systems and Quest Learning and Assessment system.

Lecturer  August 1992 – 1998.Department of Botany and Division of Biological Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin. Taught BIO 302 (Cellular and Molecular Biology), BIO 301L (Introductory Biology to Non-Majors), BIO 205 (Cellular and Molecular Biology Lab for majors) and BIO 331L/395 Laboratory Studies in Molecular Biology). 

Taught  cell and molecular biology lecture and lab courses. Developed two laboratory manuals on molecular biology and two course guides on cellular and molecular biology. Actively participated in discovery learning projects and in incorporating technology and multimedia tools in teaching.

Independent Research Study Supervisor 1992 to present. Supervised over 120 undergraduate students doing independent research in cell and molecular biology and algal biofuels.  Many of the undergraduates joined M.D. or graduate schools. Currently, supervising 16 undergraduate students in independent research.

 

AWARDS AND HONORS

HONORS AND AWARDS

 

  • Board of Regents Outstanding Teaching Award: 2013 The University of Texas System at the State level.
  • Gold Award for the best instructional innovation at UT Austin for Quest – Learning and Assessment System, along with 7 other Faculty and Staff members, 2009. Division for Instructional Innovation and Assessment (DIIA),The University of Texas Austin
  • Faculty Service Award, 2007:Natural Sciences Council,College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas Austin.
  • TexasExes Teaching Award, 2006:College of Natural Sciences, The University of Texas Austin.
  • Dad’s Centennial Teaching Fellowship Award, 2005. The University of Texas Austin
  • Teaching Excellence Award, 1999:School of Biological Sciences. The University of Texas at Austin.
  • United StatesPatents awarded for the mutant ALS gene which could confer 100-fold resistance to imidazolinone herbicides. 1998 and 2000.
  • Prentiss E. Schilling Award for the Outstanding Dissertation in the College of Agriculture, Louisiana State University.  1992.
  • Edgerton award for the outstanding contributions made as graduate student in Crop Physiology during Ph.D. program. 1990.
  • Plant Pathology and Crop Physiology Department Head's Award for excellence in research and course work in Ph.D. program. 1986.
  • Achievement Award from Monsanto Singapore for developing a research data base management system in personal computers.1985.

Professional Publications

RESEARCH PUBLICATIONS

  • Sabharwal, Tanya & Sathasivan, Kanagasabapathi & C. Mehdy, Mona. 2017. Defense related decadienal elicits membrane lipid remodeling in the diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum. PLoS ONE. 12. 10.1371/journal.pone.0178761.
  • L Britton Jr, George & S Islam, Ahmad & Xuan, Yue & Sathasivan, Kanagasabapathi. (2009). Procedure to Identify and Submit cDNA Sequences to GenBank. Plant Tissue Culture and Biotechnology. 17. 10.3329/ptcb.v17i2.3236.
  • C. Mehdy, Mona & K. Sharma, Yogesh & Sathasivan, Kanagasabapathi & Bays, Nathan. (2008). The role of activated oxygen species in plant disease resistance. Physiologia Plantarum. 98. 365 - 374. 10.1034/j.1399-3054.1996.980219.x.
  • Novel ESTs from a Jute (Corchorus olitorius L.) cDNA Library, 2007. Mohamad W. Wazni, Ahmad S. Islam, J. Matthew Taliaferro, Nabila Anwar and K. Sathasivan. Plant Tissue Cult. & Biotech. 17(2): 177-186.
  • Procedure to Identify and Submit cDNA Sequences to GenBank. 2007. Britton GL, Islam AS, Xuan Y and Sathasivan K , Plant Tissue Cult. & Biotech. 17(2):165-176.
  • Preliminary Progress in Jute (Corchorus species) Genome, 2005  IslamAS, Taliaferro JM, Lee CT, Ingram CI, Montalvo RJ, Van der Ende G, Alam S, Siddiqui J and Sathasivan K. Analysis. Plant Tissue Cult. & Biotech. 15(2): 145-156.
  • A rapid method for high quality RNA isolation from jute: Corchorus capsularis andC. olitorius. 2004 Farhan Khan, Ahmad Islam and K. Sathasivan. Plant Tissue Cult. 14:63-68.
  • RNA interference and its applications in crop improvement. 2004. Matt Williams, Gregory Clark, K. Sathasivan and Ahmad Islam. Plant Tissue Cult. 14:79-99.
  • Clark, G.,K. Sathasivan and A. S.  Islam, 2003. Valuable Internet Resources for Plant Molecular Biology Research. Plant Tissue Cult. 13: 85-97.
  • Mehdy, M., Y.K. Sharma, K. Sathasivan and N.W. Bays, 1996. The role of activated oxygen species in plant disease resistance. Physiol. Plantorum 98:365-374.
  • Mehta, N., K. Sathasivan and R.M. Brown. 1996. Characterization of a full length annexin cDNA from Arabidopsis thaliana. Plant Physiol. 111:148.
  • Shet, M., K. Sathasivan, M.A. Arlotto, M.C. Mehdy and R. Estabrook.1993.  Purification, characterization and cDNA cloning of cytochrome P-450 reductase from mung bean .Proc. Natl Acad. Sci.U.S.A. 90: 2890-2894.
  • Sathasivan, K., G.W. Haughn and N. Murai. 1991. The molecular basis of imidazolinone herbicide resistance inArabidopsis thaliana var.  Columbia. Plant Physiology.  97:1044-1050.
  • Sathasivan, K., G.W. Haughn and N. Murai. 1990. Nucleotide sequence of a mutant acetolactate synthase gene from imidazolinone-resistant Arabidopsis thaliana. Nucleic Acids Research. 18:2188.

RESEARCH EXPERIENCE AND GRANTS RECEIVED

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT EXPERIENCE

Associate Program Coordinator: UT Austin, 2012. UT Biology Intebsive Orientation Session (UT BIOS) to prepare incoming freshmen to success in biology and in college.

Lead Faculty: Introductory Biology Course Transformation Project: UT Austin. 2010 till 2013. Develop learning outcomes based instructional resources and assessment to improve student engagement, retention and critical thinking skills.

Research Fellow: Summer 2009 to April 2010. Lead PI in the DARPA Algal Biofuel project. Lead PI on the DARPA project at UT Austin.

Research Fellow: Summer 2007, Summer 2008 and spring 2009.Quest Learning and Assessment System. Biology Coordinator and member of the user group.

Research Associate June  1992 to 1996. Department of Botany, The University of Texas at Austin.  Co-Principal Investigator of a Department of Energy grant to investigate cellulose biosynthesis in Arabidopsis.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow Department of Botany , The  University of   Texas at Austin. August 1990-May 1992. 

Graduate Research AssistantDepartment of Plant Pathology  and Crop Physiology, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge. August 1985- July 1990.         

Product Manager, Acetanilides (South Asia)

      Monsanto  Singapore Private Limited, Singapore. August 1983-July 1985.    

Product Development Executive (South India)

      Monsanto Chemicals of India Limited, Coimbatore. April 1980- July 1983

 

PATENTS

 

K. Sathasivan and N. Murai, Louisiana State University. Patents issued; one in 1998 and another in 2000 for a mutant acetolactate synthase gene from Arabidopsis thaliana conferring imidazolinone herbicide resistance. 

 

CURRENT RESEARCH

 

Developing an end to end process of generating biofuels from algae starting from algal strain selection, harvesting, oil extraction, economics and life cycle analysis. Defense mechanisms and evolutionary changes in algae. My research group had been primarily made up of undergraduate students for the past 18 years. I have trained many students who went on to medical schools for MD or DO and graduate schools for Ph.D.

 

GRANTS

  • Introductory Biology Course Transformation project funded by Provost office, University of Texas at Austin. 2011 till 2013.
  • Research grant for algal BIofuel development by DARPA. 2009 to 2010, Lead PI with a total award of $ 2.4 M to UT Austin.
  • FAESP collaborative grant with University of Sao Paulo, ESALQ at Piracicaba, Brazil on the effect of herbicides on the soil microorganisms. 2002-2010.
  • Collaborative USDA grant with Dr. Haseena Khan, University of Dhaka. 2007-2008 on jute genome project.
  • FastTex grant for developing interactive teaching resources for biology faculty and students 2004-2005. Developed an online resource for Biology teachers “BIO-DOC” comprised of Biology - Digital Online Contents.
  • Undergraduate research Fellowships for over 25 of my students from the University of Texas and University CoOp Society. 2004-2008.
  • Support Grant from McGraw-Hill publications to develop biology home work service data bank for introductory biology major course 2004.
  • Information Technology grant at UT-Austin to upgrade PAI 3.02 with multimedia facilities to enhance teaching effectiveness in this general purpose class room.  July 1998 – 2003.
  • Awarded a Department of Energy Grantfor $ 261,000 for a period of 3 years to study cellulose biosynthesis in Arabidopsis thaliana. as a Co P.I. with Dr. R. Malcolm Brown, Jr. (1994 - 1997).
  • Obtained $ 40,000 to Louisiana State University by the licensing of the mutant ALS gene cloned and characterized during Ph.D. research. 1992.

PATENTS AND COPYRIGHTS

PATENTS

K. Sathasivan and N. Murai, Louisiana State University. Two patents issued; one in 1998 and another in 2000 for a mutant acetolactate synthase gene from Arabidopsis thaliana conferring imidazolinone herbicide resistance.

CELL AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY - AN INTRODUCTION by K. Sathasivan

Third Edition, 2019 Published by Kendall Hunt Publishers, DuBuque, Iowa

Fourth Edition 2021, Sentia Publishing Company

Fifth Edition 2023, LT Writing Publishing Company

 

Published: September 05, 2024