Sachin Mahanta

About

I am a Senior Research Fellow and doctoral scholar at the School of Biotechnology, KIIT Deemed to be University, Bhubaneswar, India, working under the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Senior Research Fellowship. My doctoral research focuses on lactic-acid-bacteria fermentation of indigenous cereals and substrates, particularly Lactiplantibacillus and Levilactobacillus-fermented finger millet, for natural B-vitamin enrichment, pesticide-residue degradation, and protection against gut pathogens and cancer cells.
My work bridges bench-level fermentation science with computational research and development, combining statistical optimization (Response Surface Methodology) and Artificial Neural Network modelling to predict and improve fermentation outcomes, alongside in silico molecular docking and in vitro anticancer assays. I integrate instrumental analysis (GC-MS, HPLC, FTIR, SEM, TGA, XRD) with cell-biology and animal-model studies to translate fermentation research into functional-food and nutraceutical applications with commercialization potential.
I am also a contributor to the India-South Africa DST/NRF Bilateral Project, linking KIIT with the University of Pretoria in research aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals 2 and 3. I have authored four first-author peer-reviewed publications in journals including Food Bioscience, LWT - Food Science and Technology, Methods, and the Brazilian Journal of Microbiology, and I mentor junior doctoral and postgraduate researchers in fermentation, instrumentation, and assay protocols.
I am interested in cross-sector collaboration spanning academic, government-research, and industrial partners to advance fermentation-based functional foods and nutraceuticals from lab-scale research to scalable, real-world applications.

Employment

• KIIT University Senior Research Fellow
  2021 - 2026

Education

• KIIT University Ph.D. Biotechnology
  2020 - 2026
• KIIT University B.Tech and M.Tech (Dual Degree) Biotechnology
  2014 - 2019

Projects & Funding

Projects & funding information is unavailable.

Publications (5)

• Beer like products of India
  Beer in Health and Disease Prevention 2026 DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-443-22332-7.00013-1
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• Simultaneous folate fortification and pesticide residue degradation in finger millet (Eleusine coracana) via malting and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum-mediated fermentation
  Food Bioscience 2024 DOI: 10.1016/j.fbio.2024.105429
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• Optimisation ofLevilactobacillus brevis-fermented finger millet (Eleusine coracana) and evaluation of its effects on cancer cells (HCT116 and MDA-MB-231)
  Methods 2024 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2024.06.002
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• Sour beer production in India using a coculture of Saccharomyces pastorianus and Lactobacillus plantarum: optimization, microbiological, and biochemical profiling
  Brazilian Journal of Microbiology 2022 DOI: 10.1007/s42770-022-00691-8
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• Novel Levilactobacillus brevis-based formulation for controlling cell proliferation, cell migration and gut dysbiosis
  LWT 2022 DOI: 10.1016/j.lwt.2021.112818
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