1

Usha Antony

Professor

Centre for Food Technology

Department of Biotechnology

Anna University, Chennai 600025, India

Research interests

Millet fermentation, bacteriocins, prebiotics, probiotics, polyphenols, fermentation and sensory studies on

stevia, recombinant vaccine in Infectious Bursal Disease Virus (IBDV)

Educational Qualifications

Ph D 1998, Biochemistry Division, Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology, Madras

M. Phil. 1986, Foods and Nutrition, Quaid-et-Millat College for Women, University of Madras

M. Sc. 1979, Foods and Nutrition, Women’s Christian College, University of Madras

B. Sc. 1977, Nutrition and Dietetics, Queen Mary’s College, University of Madras

Employment

14.08.2014 till date Professor, Centre for Food Technology, Anna University

29.10.2008 to 13.08.2014 Associate Professor, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University

23.02.2005 to 28.10.2008 Assistant Professor, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University, Chennai

01.12. 2003 to 31. 01 2005 Chief Technical Officer, Centre for Research and Applied Food

Technology, Chennai

17.08. 1998 to 31.06.2003 Reader, SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai

03.07.1981 to 04.08.1998 Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Women’s Christian College, (Autonomous),

Chennai

Professional Experience

Teaching and Evaluation at UG and PG Levels: 35 years

Research and Consultancy: 33 years, sponsored projects from national and international funding

agencies and industry

Research guide for M. Sc, B. Tech, M. Tech, M. Sc. and Ph. D. students

Industry: 1 year

RESEARCH GUIDANCE COMPLETED

40 M. Sc students – completed, 1981-2003

40 B. Tech students – completed, 2008 – till date

23 M Tech students – completed, 2007 – till date

2

M. S. (By Research)

Shalini R October 2011

Fructan distribution in Indian foods and its composition during ripening and processing of selected fruits

Chithra A V September 2014

Screening, purification, characterization and application of bacteriocin from lactic acid bacteria (LAB)

Abirami A October 2014 Stevia processing for food and beverage applications

N A Anbuvahini January 2016

A study on heat resistant spore forming micro organism as probiotics and its application in food products

Ph. D.

Satya Narayan Pradhan July 2012

Development of recombinant subunit vaccine and monoclonal antibody based diagnostic test for Infectious

Bursal Disease in chickens

Shankar I June 2015

Molecular and functional characterization of potential probiotic bacteria from traditional millet fermented

food koozh and their microencapsulation for food applications

Devasena K July 2015

Purification, immobilization and potential application of Bacillus pumilus DGLU12 lipase

Kayalvizhi V May 2016

Application of Pulse Electric Field in food industry

PATENTS

Novel vegetable preserves- vegetable conserves, slices and marmalade

Usha Antony, N. Ramasubrmanian, R. Padmavati, M. Gopika Pandy

Application No: 891/CHE/2010

Date of filing of Application: 31/03/2010

Publication Date: 30/04/2010

Process for making low calorie fruit and/or vegetable drink

S. Dharanii, Usha Antony, J. Saibaba

Application No: 890/CHE/2010, 31/03/2010

Publication Date: 23/04/2010, Journal No. - 17/2010

Sugar free/low calorie Indian traditional sweets

Usha Antony, N. Ramasubrmanian, Bhuvaneswari E, Revathi S.

3

Application No: 892/CHE/2010, 31/03/2010

Publication Date: 23/04/2010, Journal No. - 17/2010

A new method to ensure shelf life enhancement and biofortification of idli batter

Ramachandran C, Sudha Rani R, Usha Antony

Application No: 354/CHE/2014, 26/12/2014

A new method to incorporate lactobacillus reuteri in millet fermentation as a probiotic for enrichment

with vitamin B12

Ramachandran C, Sudha Rani R, Usha Antony

Application No: 3785/CHE/2014, 14/08/2015

PUBLICATIONS

Refereed International Journals

1. Usha Antony, Sripriya G. and Chandra, T. S. (1996) The effect of fermentation on the primary

nutrients in foxtail millet (Setaria italica), Food Chemistry, 56 (4), 381-384.

2. Usha Antony, Sripriya G. and Chandra, T. S. (1996) The effect of fermentation on the primary

nutrients in finger millet (Eleusine coracana), Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 44 (9),

2616-2618.

3. G. Sripriya, Usha Antony and Chandra T. S. (1997) Changes in Carbohydrate, free amino acids,

organic acids, phytate and HCl-extractability of minerals during germination and fermentation of

finger millet (Eleusine coracana), Food Chemistry, 58 (4) 345-350.

4. Usha Antony and Chandra T. S. (1997) Microbial population and biochemical changes in

fermenting finger millet (Eleusine coracana) World Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology,

13, 533-537.

5. Usha Antony and Chandra T. S. (1998) Antinutrient reduction and enhancement in protein

starch and mineral availability in fermented flour of finger millet (Eleusine coracana),

Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 46 (7), 2578-2582.

6. U. Antony, George Moses, L. and Chandra T. S. (1998) Inhibition of Salmonella typhimurium and

Escherichia coli by fermented flour of finger millet (Eleusine coracana) World Journal of

Microbiology and Biotechnology, 14, 883-886.

7. Usha Antony and Chandra T. S. (1999) Enzyme treatment and use of starters for the nutrient

enhancement in fermented flour of red and white varieties of finger millet (Eleusine coracana),

Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 47 (5), 2016-2019.

4

8. Satya Narayan Pradhan, Prabhu Rajaiah Prince, Jayaprakasam Madhumathi, Parimal Roy,

Rangarajan Badri Narayanan and Usha Antony (2012) Immune responses of recombinant

VP2 subunit antigen of Infectious Bursal Disease Virus in chickens, Veterinary Immunology

and Immunopathology, 148, 293– 301, DOI: 10.1016/j.vetimm.2012.06.019.

9. Ayyappan P and Usha Antony, Production of prebiotic Xylooligosaccharides (XOS) from

rice bran and finger millet, Journal of Food Processing Technology, 2013, 4 (10), 79.

10. Shankar Ilango and Usha Antony (2014), Assessment of the microbiological quality of

koozh, a fermented millet beverage, African Journal of Microbiology Research, 8 (3), 308-

312.

11. Sudha Rani R and Usha Antony (2014) Effect of germination and fermentation on

polyphenols in finger millet (Eleusine coracana), International Journal of Food and

Nutritional Sciences, 3 (1), 65-68. e-ISSN 2320 –7876 www.ijfans.com.

12. Ramachandran C, Nivetha S, Lavanya K and Usha Antony (2014), Moringa olifera: a plant

with multiple medical uses and food preservative, International Journal of Food and

Nutritional Sciences, 3 (1), 69-72, e-ISSN 2320 –7876 www.ijfans.com.

13. Anmar Nazar, Ramachandran C, Vajiha Afrin and Usha Antony (2014), Extraction and

characterization of protein from Vigna mungo and its application in food, International

Journal of Food and Nutritional Sciences, 3 (1), 73-79, e-ISSN 2320 –7876 www.ijfans.com.

14. Satya Narayan Pradhan, Prabhu Rajaiah Prince, Jayaprakasam Madhumathi, Chakkaravarthy

Arunkumar, Parimal Roy, Rangarajan B Narayanan and Usha Antony (2014) DNA

vaccination with VP 2 gene fragment confers protection against infectious bursal disease

virus in chickens, Veterinary Microbiology, 171 (2014) 13–22.

15. Kayalavizhi V and Usha Antony (2014) Microbial and physico-chemical changes in tomato

juice subjected to pulsed electric field treatment, African Journal of Microbiology Research,

8 (37), 3382 – 3391.doi: 10.5897/AJMR 14.6728.

16. Ramachandran Chelliah, Sudha Rani Ramakrishnan, Suramanjari Anbarasan, Usha Antony

(2014) Reduction in fermentation time of idli batter by process modification, Journal of

Biochemical Sciences 1(5), 106-117.

17. Hasan AN, Aafrin BV and Usha Antony (2015) In vitro evaluation of functional properties

of protein from pigeon pea (Cajanus cajan) and its application in food, Asian Journal of

Microbiology, Biotechnology & Environmental Science, 17 (1), 181-187.

18. Devasena Kannan, Baddireddi Subhadra Lakshmi and Usha Antony (2015), Purification

and biochemical characterization of lipase from Bacillus pumilus DGLU12, Asian Journal

of Microbiology, Biotechnology and Environmental Science, 17 (3), 631-638.

5

19. Devasena Kannan, Ramachandran Chelliah, Emili Vinolya Rajamanickam, Raman

Srinivasan Venkatraman and Usha Antony (2015) Fermented batter characteristics in

relation with the sensory properties of idli, Croatian Journal of Food Technology,

Biotechnology and Nutrition, 10 (1-2), 37-43.

20. Shalini R and Usha Antony (2015) Fructan distribution in banana cultivars and effect of

ripening and processing on Nendran banana Journal of Food Science and Technology, 52

(12) 8244–8251.

21. Kayalavizhi V and Usha Antony (2015), Preservation of chocolate milk and rose milk by

pulse electric field, OR227 International Conference on Electrical, Electronics, Signals,

Communication and Optimization (EESCO) – 2015.

22. Ayyappan P, Abirami A, Anbuvahini NA, Tamil Kumaran PS, Naresh M, Malathi D and

Usha Antony (2016) Physicochemical properties of cookies enriched with

xylooligosaccharides, Food Science & Technology International, 22 (5) 420-428,

23. Ilango S, Pandey R and Usha Antony (2016), Functional characterization and

microencapsulation of probiotic bacteria from koozh, Journal of Food Science and

Technology, 53(2):977–989.

24. Kayalavizhi V, Pushpa AJS, Sangeetha G and Usha Antony (2016), Effect of pulse electric

field (PEF) on sugarcane juice, Journal of Food Science and Technology, 53 (3) 1371–1379.

25. Ramakrsihnan Sudha Rani, Chelliah Ramachandran and Usha Antony (2016) Changes in

polyphenols during fermentation of Eleusine coracana and its antimicrobial activity on

bacteria normally implicated in clinical infections, Research Journal of Chemistry and

Environment, 20 (5) 20-23.

26. Chelliah Ramachandran, Ramakrishnan Sudha Rani, Usha Antony (2016), Evaluation of

safety, antimicrobial activity and probiotic properties of Escherichia coli Nissle 1917

isolated from idli batter. Research Journal of Biotechnology, 11 (7) 42-49.

27. Ramachandran Chelliah, Sudha Rani Ramakrishnan, Divya Premkumar and Usha Antony,

(2016), Biofortification and shelf life extension of idli batter using curry leaves (Murraya

koenigii), Journal of Food Science and Technology, 53(6), 2851–2862, DOI

10.1007/s13197-016-2264-2, published on line on 4 July 2016.

28. C. Ramachandran, R Sudha Rani, K Lavanya, S Nivetha and Usha Antony (2016)

Optimization of shelf stability of sugarcane juice with natural preservatives: shelf stability of

sugarcane juice, Journal of Food Processing and Preservation, ISSN 1745-4549, June 2016,

DOI: 10.1111/jfpp.12868

6

29. Ramachandran Chelliah, Sudha Rani Ramakrishnan, Prince R. Prabhu and Usha Antony

(2016), Evaluation of antimicrobial activity and probiotic properties of wild strain Pichia

kudriavzevii isolated from frozen Idli batter, Yeast, Accepted for publication.

Refereed National Journals

1. Pallavi P Kharade and Usha Antony (2002) Nutritional status and outcome of pregnancyin young

and older mothers in Mumbai, The Indian Journal of Nutrition and Dietetics, 39, (1) 26-30.

2. Kaushik Ramakrishnan, Pradeep Narayanan, Vamshi Vasudevan, Geetha Muthukumaran, Usha

Antony, Nutrient composition of cultivated stevia leaves and the influence of polyphenols and plant

pigments on sensory and antioxidant properties of leaf extracts, Journal of Food Science and

Technology, 2010, 47(1), 27-33.

Invited Articles

1. Usha Antony (1987) Nutrient inter-relations – A review, Diet, Digestion, Diabetes,

Workshop Manual, Madras.

2. Usha Antony (1999) Millet based weaning foods- an effective alternative, Manual of the II Regional

Workshop on Planning Diet for Health, March 1999, pp. 51-54.

3. Udipi, S. A., Ghugre, P. and Usha Antony (2000) New concepts in Nutrition: Conditionally

essential nutrients, Quarterly Medical Review, 51 (1), 3-40, January-March 2000, Raptakos Brett &

Co. Ltd. Mumbai.

4. Udipi, S. A., Ghugre, P. and Usha Antony (2000) Nutrition in Pregnancy and lactation, Journal of

Indian Medical Association, September 98 (9), 548-57

5. Usha Antony (2004) Nutrition in HIV/AIDS iJM Diet and Nutrition, 7 (2), 12-18.

Other Journals/ Proceedings

1. Usha Antony and Rajeswari Rowlands (1979) Changes in acidity, thiamine, amino-

nitrogen, digestibility and flavour in Cold Rice (Pazhaya satham) consumed by the rural and

urban population in Madras, A Decade of Research, Department of Home Science,

Women’s Christian College, Madras.

2. Padma Magunta and Usha Antony (1987) Effect of solid and semi-solid preparations of

bajra cereal on 30 newly detected diabetics and 10 normal subjects, Diet, Digestion

Diabetes, Workshop Manual, Madras.

7

3. Lilian Basil and Usha Antony (1987) Effect of two different viscosities of ragi and bajraon

the blood glucose response of 35 newly detected diabetics and 10 normal subjects, Diet,

Digestion, Diabetes, Workshop Manual, Madras.

4. Usha Antony (2007) Bacteriocins as Bioprservatives, Biospectrum 2007, International

symposium on Advances in Food Biotechnology and Nut6rition, pp 41-43.

5. B. Gayathri, M.R. Sangeetha, R Shalini and Usha Antony Fructan Content of tapioca and

arrowroot, International Conference on Food Technology (INCOFTECH 2009), Indian

Institute of Crop Processing Technology, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, 28-30 August 2009,

Proceedings pg10.

6. R Shalini and Usha Antony Fructan Content of selected Indian Fruits and n millets,

International Conference on Food Technology (INCOFTECH 2009), Indian Institute of

Crop Processing Technology, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, 28-30 August 2009, Proceedings

pg11.

7. Devasena Kannan and Usha Antony Microbial Lipases for Food Technology Applications,

International Conference on Food Technology (INCOFTECH 2009) Indian Institute of Crop

Processing Technology, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, 28-30 August 2009.

8. S. Ilango and U. Antony, Microbiological quality of koozh - millet based traditional Indian

fermented food marketed in South India, National Seminar on Millets – 2010, Directorate of

Sorghum Research, Hyderabad, p136.

9. Shankar Ilango and Usha Antony, Production of bacteriocins-like compounds and its

antibiotic resistance, National Seminar on Recent advances in the Development of

Fermented Foods, Centre of Food Science and Technology, Banaras Hindu University,

Varanasi, 8-9 April 2011, p120.

10. Sudha Rani R and Usha Antony, Studies on the analysis and optimization of bioactive

components during fermentation of finger millet ( Eleusine corcana), National Seminar on

Recent advances in the Development of Fermented Foods, Centre of Food Science and

Technology, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, 8 -9 April 2011, p177.

11. Abirami A and Usha Antony, Process optimization of enzymatic extraction from stevioside

from Stevia rebaudiana leaves, Comm. Appl. Biol. Sci. Ghent University, 2013, 78 (1), 60.

12. Ayyappan P and Usha Antony, Characterization of Xyloologosaccahrides from rice bran

and millets, Comm. Appl. Biol. Sci. Ghent University, 2013, 78 (1).

8

13. Shalini Ravichandran and Usha Antony, Effect of processing on functional fructans from

tomato cultivars, Comm. Appl. Biol. Sci. Ghent University, 2013, 78 (1).

14. Ayyappan P, Tamil Kumaran P S , Naresh M and Usha Antony, Studies on rice bran and

Xylooligosaccharides (XOS) enriched cookies, IFCON -2013, Abstract book pg 133.

15. Ayyappan P and Usha Antony, Characterization of water soluble polysaccharide (WSP)

from rice bran and finger millet, EPNOE 2013, Abstract book, p147.

16. Chelliah R, Antony U, Kannan D and Rajamnaickam E, Microbial population dynamics and

textural properties of idli - a traditional fermented food of South India, 7th

Asian Conference

on Lactic Acid Bacteria, Abstract Book, Sep 2013.

17. Ramachandran C, Lavanya K, Nivetha S and Usha Antony, Moringa olifera: a plant with

multiple medicinal uses and food preservative, International Conference on Food

Technology: Impact on Nutrition and Health, 2013, pg 3.

18. Anmar Nazar, Vajiha Afrin, Ramachandran C and Usha Antony, International Conference

on Food Technology: Impact on Nutrition and Health, 2013, pg 16.

19. Sudha Rani R and Usha Antony, Effect of germination and fermentation on polyphenols in

finger millet, International Conference on Food Technology: Impact on Nutrition and

Health, 2013, pg 17.

20. Chithra AV, Usha Antony, Sai Deepika E, and Kalaiselvi V, “Production, partial

purification and application of bacteriocin from Lactic acid bacteria”, International

Conference on Technological Advances in Super Foods for Health Care, (Pondicherry

University, Kalapet, Puducherry, India; May 3-4, 2013), Abstract ID: ICTASH-2013: FHT-

O-11.

21. Kayalvizhi V and Usha Antony Preservation of chocolate milk and Rose milk by

pulsed electric field, OR227 International Conference on Electrical, Electronics, Signals,

Communication and Optimization (EESCO) – 2015, 978-1-4799-7678-2/15/$31.00 ©2015

IEEE.

Research Projects and Consultancy

1. Involved as a member in planning and monitoring the execution and documentation of the

following projects:

9

Title Sponsor Value Role & Institution Outcome

Taste acuity and glucose

tolerance in young women,

1983-85.

UGC

Rs.15,000

Principle Investigator

Women’s Christian

College, Chennai

Formed the basis for

further research on

diabetic patients

Availability and use of

artificial sweeteners, 1999.

Sensory evaluation of

beverage concentrates, 1999.

M/s Monsanto

Inc., Mumbai,

Rs.42,625

Co-Investigator

SNDT Women’s

University, Mumbai

Used by industry for

product development

Cod Liver Oil – Training

Manual for field workers,

2000

E. Merck India

Ltd. Mumbai

Rs.10,000

Co-Investigator

SNDT Women’s

University, Mumbai

Was used to give

technical information

and training to field

staff

Fish oil supplementation in

patients with hyperlipidemia,

2000

E. Merck India

Ltd. Mumbai

Rs.5840

(partial

funding)

Principle Investigator

SNDT Women’s

University, Mumbai

Formed part of the of the

M Sc research project

Sensory evaluation of table

salt, 2002-03

Hindustan Lever

Research Centre,

Mumbai

Rs.120000

Co-Investigator

SNDT Women’s

University, Mumbai

Used for product

development by industry

Effect of packaging and

storage temperature on

Rabdi, 2003

Indian Institute of

Packaging,

Mumbai

Rs 25,000

Co-Investigator

SNDT Women’s

University, Mumbai

Used for product

development

India as a source for cost

effective fruit raw materials,

2004

Reading

Scientific

Services Ltd.,

UK

GBP 8700

Co-Investigator

Centre for Research

& Applied Food

Technology,

Chennai

Used by the industry for

sourcing raw materials

from India

Evaluation of the

immunoprophylactic

efficacy of recombinant

Infectious Bursal Disease

Virus (IBDV) capsid protein

in cell line & animal model,

2007-2010

CSIR, GOI

Rs 14 lakhs

Principle Investigator

Centre for

Biotechnology, Anna

University, Chennai

Recombinant proteins

with antigenic properties

produced; Research

Scholar obtained his

PhD

and research

publications

10

Enhancing Research

Capacity and initiating

Integrated M. Tech & Ph D

programme in the area of

Food Technology, 2008-

2013

DBT-GOI

Rs. 753.93

lakhs

Co-coordinator

Centre for

Biotechnology, Anna

University, Chennai

M. Tech. Food

Technology was

introduced in 2008

PhD Research scholars

for Food Technology

Fermentation

Technology, Food

Analysis and Food

Processing Labs set up

EASTWEST FOOD

International Research Staff

Exchange Scheme (IRSES)

2010 -14

On-going

European Union

€ 127800

(Total)

€ 25,200

(AU)

Coordinator for Anna

University (AU)

Joint International

Conference and

International courses

conducted

Student and Faculty

Exchange with

University of

Copenhagen and

Wageningen University,

Netherlands

Optimization of functional

ingredients in wheat

products

General Mills

India Pvt. Ltd.

Mumbai

Rs.1,50000

Consultant

Centre for Food

Technology, Anna

University, Chennai

Process know how

optimised for industry

use

Development of diet and

nutrition messages for the

management of Life style

diseases 2012 -13.

M/s Xcode Life

Sciences,

Chennai

Rs 1,50,000

Consultant

Centre for Food

Technology, Anna

University, Chennai

The messages will be

used to sensitize clients

of the industry

Development of Almond

based health snacks 2012-13

M/s DP Nue Life

Health Care,

Chennai

Rs 1,50,000

Consultant

Centre for Food

Technology, Anna

University, Chennai

Products introduced in

the market by optimizing

process technology

Prebiotic efficacy of

Xylooligosaccharides (XOS)

and their food applications

2013 -14

Ministry of Food

Processing

Industries, DST,

GoI

Rs 1879200

Principle Investigator

Centre for Food

Technology, Anna

University, Chennai

Process for extraction of

xylan from rice bran

and finger millet seed

coat developed,

production of XOS from

xylan by enzyme

11

2. Involved in completing a DBT funded project titled “Entrepreneurship development of small scale

farmers in stevia cultivation”. Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University, Chennai.

3. Co- investigator with Dr R B Narayanan as PI in the following projects:

Indo-Norwegian platform for fish and shellfish vaccine development, DBT-GOI,

Rs 27.03 lakhs, 2009-11.

Recombinant Bm-33(Brugya malayi pepsin inhibitor homolog) induced modulation

of human macrophage functions in vitro, CSIR, Rs 795833, 2010-11.

Recombinant WSP (Wolbachia Surface Protein) induced modulation of human

macrophage functions in vitro, DBT-GOI, Rs 24.82 lakhs 2011-14.

Other Professional Activities

1. Member of Working Group Committee for drafting the sections on Nutrition for the Syllabus on

Gerontology, a vocational course planned by NCERT, at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences,

Mumbai, 2002.

2. Honorary Faculty member for WHARF (Wockhardt – Harvard Medical International HIV / AIDS

Education and Research Foundation), Mumbai, 2003.

3. Subject Expert for preparing PG Course Material on Nutritional Regulation of Gene Expression for

IGNOU, New Delhi, 2003.

4. Review of research papers for peer reviewed journals such as International Journal of Food Science

& Technology, UK; Journal of Food Quality, USA and Journal of Food Science & Technology,

India.

5. Member Secretary, Institution Animal Ethics Committee, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna

University, Chennai, August 2005 - date.

6. Member, Ethical Committee for Clinical Nutrition Studies, Department of Home Science, Women’s

Christian College, Chennai, 2006-date.

7. Member, Research Advisory Council, National Agro Foundation, Chennai, from July 2007 - date.

8. Member, Advisory Committee, Scientific Food Testing Services (P) Ltd., Chennai, 2015.

treatment optimized

Papers presented and

published, Research

scholar completed PhD

Freshness indicators for

poultry meat packages by

inkjet printing to ensure food

safety

DBT-GOI Rs 6337 000 Co - PI PI from Department of

Printing Technology,

Anna University

On-going

12

9. Organizing Special Guest Lectures of industrial and academic experts from India and abroad for B

Tech, M Tech and research scholars in Food Technology and Pharmaceutical Technology since

2006.

10. Organizing field/plant visits to food, pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries for UG and PG

students of the department.

11. Coordinating placements for B Tech and M Tech Food Technology students in core industries.