Balakumaran Chandrasekar is Assistant Professor at the Department of Bioscience and Bioengineering, IIT Jodhpur. His lab (The Microbial and Plant Glycobiology Laboratory, MPG Lab) focuses on dissecting the molecular signalling and cross talks events occurring in apoplast, the battle ground for plants and invading microbes. The lab employs cutting edge technologies such as glycomics, chemical proteomics, plant genetics and other molecular biology techniques for the investigation. Balakumaran completed his bachelor degree in Biotechnology at Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India (2007-2011). He received a prestigious scholarship ‘Scholarship Plus-Award’ from the German government to pursue his master’s degree in Plant Sciences at the University of Bonn, Germany, Under Prof. Dorothea Bartels (2011-2013). He started his Ph.D. research at the Max Planck Institute for Plant Breeding Research, Germany (2013-) and as a recognized student he has conducted his Ph.D. research at the department of plant sciences, University of Oxford, UK under Prof. Renier van der Hoorn (2014-2017). During his Ph.D. research, he has employed activity-based protein profiling, a chemical proteomic approach to monitor the activities of plant glycosidases during bacterial infections. His work has identified a new plant immune enzyme and novel inhibitor. His Ph.D. research period introduced him to the world of ‘Glycobiology’. An immense fascination towards the structure of glycans motivated him to pursue his postdoctoral research at the University of Duesseldorf, Germany Under Prof. Markus Pauly (2017-2020). During his postdoctoral research, he has employed synthetic biology approaches to produce complex cell wall polysaccharides in yeast (Pichia pastoris) and plant-based systems (Arabidopsis). After his first postdoctoral period, he has received CEPLAS postdoctoral fellowship to pursue his research at the University of Cologne, Germany under Prof. Alga Zuccaro (2020-2021). During this period, he has structurally characterized and investigated the biological function of a β- glucan fragment derived from Piriformospora indica during colonization of barley roots. From June 2021-December 2025, he worked at BITS-Pilani, India as an Assistant professor and joined IIT Jodhpur as an Assistant Professor.

The research program at the MPG lab will provide avenues for tackling serious fungal pathogens by understanding crucial mechanistic insights combined with applicable sustainable approaches. Therefore, the MPG lab works in the interface of basic and applied science to achieve their goals.