Dr Mahima Krishnan
Grant-Funded Postdoctoral Research Fellow
School of Agriculture, Food and Wine
College of Science
Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.
Mahima is a postdoctoral fellow with the Weed Science Research Group at The University of Adelaide. She completed her PhD in the study of salt tolerance in various cereal crops. As a postdoctoral fellow, she has focused her efforts in understanding the mechanisms that drive herbicide resistance in various weeds. Her research has included studying resistance to glyphosate (Group 9), ACC'ase inhibitors (Group 1), ALS inhibitors (Group 2), paraquat (Group 22) and tri-allate (Group 15) in various weed species. Her current research focus is on understanding the evolutionary dynamics of summer weed resistance to pre-emergent herbicides mesotrione (Group 27), S-metolachlor (Group 15), saflufenacil+trifludimoxazin (Group 14) and genetic characterisation of 2,4-D (Group 4) herbicide resistance in common sow thistle, wild radish, Indian hedge mustard, winged slender thistle, capeweed and wild turnip.
Weeds are an important yield determinant of agriculture and, in Australia, cause annual losses in the vicinity of $5 billion AUD. Herbicides account for most, if not all, of a farmer’s chemical control budget in cropping systems and are therefore a critical tool for broadacre farming. Such strong dependence on herbicides has inevitably given rise to herbicide resistance in various weed species. Understanding how these instances of resistance arise and the mechanisms by which they cause resistance is key for the identification of alternative weed management strategies. My research looks into the mechanisms which give rise to herbicide resistance in weeds and how the resistance can be mitigated.
| Year | Topic |
| 2015-2018 | Mechanisms, evolution and inheritance of herbicide resistance |
| 2018-2020 | Understanding resistance to 2,4-D in common sowthistle and opportunities for improving 2,4-D activity on resistant populations |
| 2020-2025 | Target-site resistance to 2,4-D or other group I/4 herbicides in winter and summer weed species |
| 2020-2025 | Assessment of phenotypic variation in glyphosate resistant populations of feathertop Rhodes grass and awnless barnyard grass in response to the K herbicide S-metolachlor (Group K/15) and saflufenacil + trifludimoxazin (Group G/14) |
| 2025-2030 | Dynamics of weed adaptation to management strategies, including the evolution and inheritance of herbicide resistance |
| 2025-2030 | Molecular, Biochemical and genetic mechanisms of novel herbicide resistance |
| 2025-2030 | Mitigating the impact and development of herbicide resistance |
Email me directly if you are interested in pursuing Honours, Masters by research or a PhD project in herbicide resistance and/or weed management.
| Date | Position | Institution name |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 - ongoing | Postdoctoral Fellow | The University of Adelaide |
| Language | Competency |
|---|---|
| English | Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review |
| Hindi | Can speak and understand spoken |
| Kannada | Can speak and understand spoken |
| Malayalam | Can speak and understand spoken |
| Tamil | Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review |
| Date | Institution name | Country | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| The University of Adelaide | Australia | B.Sc. Molecular Biology | |
| Charles Darwin University | Australia | B.Sc. Honours | |
| The University of Adelaide | Australia | PhD |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2025 | Krishnan, M., Petrovic, T., Schwerdt, J. G., Merriam, A. B., Hereward, J. P., & Preston, C. (2025). A novel mutation in SoIAA20 confers cross-resistance to 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and other auxinic herbicides in Sonchus oleraceus. Pest Management Science, 81(1), 141-148. Scopus9 WoS8 Europe PMC7 |
| 2025 | Qi, Y., Krishnan, M., Tucker, M., & Preston, C. (2025). A point mutation in IAA34 confers resistance to the auxin herbicide 2,4-D in Sisymbrium orientale. Pest Management Science, 81(7), 3523-3531. Scopus2 WoS2 Europe PMC2 |
| 2025 | Qi, Y., Krishnan, M., Tucker, M., Boutsalis, P., & Preston, C. (2025). An 18 base pair in-frame deletion in the degron tail of IAA2 provides resistance to 2,4-D and dicamba in Brassica tournefortii. Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology, 213, 6 pages. |
| 2025 | Qi, Y., Krishnan, M., Tucker, M., Boutsalis, P., & Preston, C. (2025). A deletion upstream of the degron of <scp><i>AcIAA27</i></scp> leads to auxinic herbicide resistance in <scp><i>Arctotheca calendula</i></scp>. Pest Management Science, 81(10), 6377-6384. |
| 2019 | Nguyen, H., Malone, J., Krishnan, M., Boutsalis, P., & Preston, C. (2019). Inheritance of glyphosate resistance in Echinochloa colona from Australia. Journal of Research in Weed Science, 2(4), 310-331. |
| 2018 | Dang, H., Malone, J., Boutsalis, P., Krishnan, M., Gill, G., & Preston, C. (2018). Reduced translocation in 2,4-D-resistant oriental mustard populations (Sisymbrium orientale L.) from Australia. Pest management science, 74(6), 1524-1532. Scopus30 WoS31 Europe PMC19 |
| 2017 | Ngo, T. D., Krishnan, M., Boutsalis, P., Gill, G., & Preston, C. (2017). Target-site mutations conferring resistance to glyphosate in feathertop Rhodes grass (Chloris virgata) populations in Australia. Pest Management Science, 74(5), 1094-1100. Scopus47 WoS42 Europe PMC23 |
| 2014 | Byrt, C., Xu, B., Krishnan, M., Lightfoot, D., Athman, A., Jacobs, A., . . . Gilliham, M. (2014). The Na⁺ transporter, TaHKT1;5-D, limits shoot Na⁺ accumulation in bread wheat. The Plant Journal, 80(3), 516-526. Scopus198 WoS179 Europe PMC125 |
| 2007 | Alvarez, B., Krishnan, M., & Gibb, K. (2007). Analysis of intragenomic variation of the rDNA internal transcribed spacers (ITS) in Halichondrida (Porifera: Demospongiae). Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 87(6), 1599-1605. Scopus15 WoS14 |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| - | Korres, N. E., Burgos, N. R., & Duke, S. O. (2018). Weed Control. In N. E. Korres, N. R. Burgos, & S. O. Duke (Eds.). CRC Press. DOI |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2018 | Preston, C., Brunton, D., Merriam, A., Dang, H., Ngo, T., Boutsalis, P., . . . Gill, G. (2018). Herbicide and weed management - latest research. In GRC Updates Papers. Australia. |
| Year | Citation |
|---|---|
| 2018 | Krishnan, M., Petrovic, T., Valappan, G., Merriam, A., & Preston, C. (2018). Understanding the mechanism of 2,4-D resistance in Sonchus oleraceus (Common sowthistle). Poster session presented at the meeting of Weed Biosecurity - Protecting Our Future. Sydney. |
| 2016 | Krishnan, M., Nguyen, T. H., Malone, J., Morran, S., Boutsalis, P., & Preston, C. (2016). Mechanisms and inheritance of glyphosate resistance in Echinochloa colona from Australia. Poster session presented at the meeting of Weed Science Society of America’s Annual Meeting. |
| 2016 | Krishnan, M., Boutsalis, P., & Preston, C. (2016). Understanding the mechanisms of triallate resistance in annual ryegrass. Poster session presented at the meeting of 20th Australasian Weeds Conference. |
| 2015 | Krishnan, M., & Preston, C. (2015). New developments in herbicide resistance in Australia. Poster session presented at the meeting of The 3rd Australian Agrichemical Resistance Meeting. |
| Year | Project | Team | Amount | Grant | Role |
| 2015-2020 | Protecting your crop: Mechanisms, evolution and inheritance of resistance | C Preston, J Malone, M Krishnan, F Dolman | $1,498,727 | GRDC- Cat 1 | Partner investigator |
| 2020-2025 | Australian Herbicide Resistance Initiative- Phase 6 | M Krishnan, C Preston | $720,827 | GRDC- Cat 1 | Chief investigator |
| 2024 | Is the 2,4-D resistance caused by a novel mutation in IAA34 in Sisymbrium orientale a result of reduced herbicide translocation in resistant biotypes? | M Krishnan | $4,800 | Charlick Endowment Fund- internal | Chief investigator |
| 2025-2030 | UOA Weed Management Initiative | C Preston, G Gill, J Malone, M Krishnan N Aggarwal | $6,700,000 | GRDC- Cat 1 | Chief investigator |
Bachelor of Agricultural Sciences and the Bachelor of Viticulture and Oenology
Courses:
- Foundations in Plants Science II
- Plant Health III
- Research Skills for Applied Biology II
| Date | Role | Research Topic | Program | Degree Type | Student Load | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 - 2025 | Co-Supervisor | Auxin Herbicides Resistance in Broadleaf Weeds in Australia | Doctor of Philosophy | Doctorate | Full Time | Mr Yuanlin Qi |
| Date | Role | Committee | Institution | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 - ongoing | Representative | Gender, Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity | University of Adelaide | Australia |
| Date | Role | Membership | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 - ongoing | Member | WMSSA | Australia |
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