Biographical note

Dr Vijai G. Gupta is an Assistant Professor of Biotechnology at MITS University of India. Currently he is working as Research Scientist at National University of Ireland in Galway. Dr. Gupta’s present work is focused on the development and optimization of novel Enzyme-based bioconversion systems for biorefining and bioenergy. He has been honored with several awards, including the prestigious Indian ICAR Senior Research Fellowship and Indian Young Scientist Award. He has submitted 33 new fungal nucleotide sequences and deposited 147 fungal strains in International databases. His work with Fusarium spp., Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Penicillium spp. and Trichoderma spp. is augmented by contributions to biotechnological development, molecular diversity, secondary metabolites and industrial applications Dr. Gupta is the editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Plant Pathology and a regional editorial board member of 8 other respected journals. He is the author of 40 journal articles and 27 book chapters. Gupta has also written and edited books and series from reputed publishers, including CRC Press, Taylor and Francis, USA; Springer, USA; Elsevier, USA; Nova Science Publisher, USA and LAP Lambert Academic Publishing, Germany. Prof. Helen Treichel is a Research Productivity Scholar at level 1C in Environmental Sciences. She holds a degree in Food Engineering from the Federal University of Rio Grande (1999), a Master's and a Ph.D. in Food Engineering from the State University of Campinas (2001 and 2004, respectively). She is currently a Professor and Researcher at the Federal University of Fronteira Sul (UFFS)-Campus Erechim. She works in undergraduate courses in Environmental and Sanitary Engineering, Biological Sciences, and Agronomy and is a Permanent Professor in the Graduate Programs in Environmental Science and Technology (UFFS-Campus Erechim), Food Science and Technology (UFFS-Campus Laranjeiras do Sul) and Biotechnology and Biosciences (UFSC). She coordinates the Laboratory of Microbiology and Bioprocesses (LAMIBI) at UFFS (Erechim), working mainly on the following topics, design of experiments and statistical optimization of processes; production, purification, immobilization, and application of enzymes; use of microorganisms and enzymes in the treatment and/or recovery of effluents and residues; bioherbicides; biofuels. She acts as the leader of the Agroenergy research group. Ramesh Chander Kuhad is a Distinguished Professor at Maharshi Dayanand University, Rohtak, Haryana; Sharda University, Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh and the Director, at the DPGITM, Gurugram, Haryana. His areas of research include plant biomass biotechnology, biorefineries for sustainable production of biofuels, and other bio-based products. Susana Rodríguez-Couto (female) got her B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Chemistry (Industrial Chemistry) from the University of Santiago de Compostela in 1992 and her Ph.D. in Chemistry in 1999 from the University of Vigo, obtaining the maximal grade (magna cum laude) and, in addition, she was awarded with the Extraordinary Prize for Doctoral Thesis in Chemistry. She worked as an Associate Professor and an Isidro Parga Pondal Senior Researcher at the University of Vigo (2000-2004), as a Ramón y Cajal Senior Researcher at Rovira i Virgili University (2004-2008) and as an Ikerbasque Research Professor (2009-2019). She has also worked as an Invited Researcher at the Institute from Environmental Biotechnology, Graz University of Technology (Austria) and at the Department of Biological Engineering, University of Minho (Portugal). In 2008, she received the I3 Professor from the Spanish Ministry of Science and Education to the recognition of an outstanding research activity. In March 2021 she is joining LUT School of Engineering Science at Mikkeli, Finland, as a Full Professor in biological water treatment. She has published more than 140 articles in highly reputed international journals (h index 42). She is editor of several journals (3Biotech, Frontiers) and 14 Elsevier books.