OUR Research

The lab mainly focuses on the pigment melanin. The pigment that protects living cells from UV radiation. The potential of the pigment in a wide variety of applications remains unexplored. The laboratory mainly now working on exploring the biology of melanin production in bacteria and fungi. We aims to find better melanin producers, which will help the cosmetic industry make sunscreen lotions, etc. We are also trying to explore applications of the pigment in environmental management, which makes life sustainable in this place.

We focus on every aspect of melanin pigment from plants and animals to microbes, from genetics to its role in cancer, and from environmental to cosmetic applications. 

Our team consists of enthusiastic budding researchers from different parts of India. We also have collaborations with international labs at various levels of research. The principal investigator of the laboratory is Dr. Noble K. Kurian, one of the leading melanin researchers from India. He has been involved in bacterial melanin research for more than a decade and has published more than 10 international publications in melanin research The laboratory has guided more than 25 PG students and 4 PhD students in different stages of their research. 

Kumar, V., Pandey, R. P., Rahman, S., Panesar, G. S., Kurian, N. K., & Izah, S. C. (2026). Biosensors for Rapid and On-Site Detection of Food Contaminants. In M. Ogwu & S. Izah (Eds.), Detection, Identification, and Monitoring of Food Contaminants (pp. 323-354). IGI Global Scientific Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3373-3982-5.ch010

Jalili, S., Pandey, R. P., & Kurian, N. K. (2022). Recent Insights in Melanin Research: From Extraction to Immense Applications of The Pigment. Journal of Survey in Fisheries Sciences, 8(2), 140-146.