Over 26 years of experience as research scientist in the area of Animal Biotechnology. Completed several projects funded by Department of Biotechnology, National Fund, Department of Science and Technology and ICAR-NBAGR in the areas of molecular genetics and functional genomics. I have more than 100 research papers published in high-impact international as well national journals. I have contributed to book entitled “Lesser-known Sheep and Goat genetic resources of India”, written several book chapters (20), and published more than 10 monographs on cattle breeds based on phenotypic and molecular characterization.
EDUCATION
Dr. Monika Sodhi received her Bachelor in Science (Medical stream) degree from Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, Punjab in 1989, and her Masters in Animal Biotechnology from ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal, Haryana in 1992. She got her Ph.D. degree from Panjab University, Chandigarh followed by a Post-doctoral overseas associateship in Animal Biotechnology from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Assessment of genome diversity and evolutionary relationship of livestock species, cattle in particular. Evaluation of positive traits like milk quality, adaptation, and disease resistance of native livestock breeds for their value addition and thereby enhance sustainability
Comparative Evaluation of Isolation Methods on the Biophysical Properties of Milk Derived Exosomes from Bovine Subspecies Vidhi Garg, Manishi Mukesh, Amarjeet ., Ritu Mahajan, Ranjit S. Kataria, Sudharshan Kumar, Monika Sodhi Indian Journal of Animal Research, 2026 Background: Milk-derived exosomes (MDEs) are stable, nanosized extracellular vesicles secreted by mammary epithelial cells, encapsulating bioactive proteins, lipids and nucleic acids within a phospholipid bilayer. Their stability and resistance to enzymatic degradation make them promising candidates for targeted delivery systems and nutraceutical applications. This study standardized a robust, reproducible protocol for isolating high-purity MDEs from Bos indicus (Sahiwal), Bos taurus (Holstein Friesian) and crossbred (Karan Fries) cows and evaluated subspecies-specific variations in their properties. Methods: Differential ultracentrifugation and precipitation kit based methods using specific polymers were compared for efficiency, yield and preservation of exosomal integrity. Comprehensive characterization comprising transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, nanoparticle tracking analysis and western blotting for exosomal markers. Result: Our results demonstrate that differential ultracentrifugation is the superior method for yielding morphologically intact, homogeneous MDEs from large milk volumes, irrespective of the milk source. This precision was crucial, as it allowed us to discern subtle but significant subspecies-specific differences. MDEs from Bos indicus exhibited a markedly smaller particle size than those from Bos taurus and crossbreds. This distinction is critical because exosome size directly impacts their functional performance and utility. Bos indicus MDEs potentially offer enhanced cellular uptake and bioactivity, while larger MDEs from taurine and crossbred cattle may be advantageous for delivering bulkier molecular cargos or modulating immune responses. This work not only validates an optimized isolation technique for large-scale recovery of high-quality MDEs but also highlights bovine subspecies nanostructural traits with implications for précised applications in dairy biotechnology and healthcare. Identification of smaller, potentially more bioavailable MDEs from Bos indicus highlights the importance of native cattle resources for high value therapeutic applications, promoting value addition and sustainable utilization of native cattle genetic resources.
Characterization and genetic diversity analysis of lesser-known goat population of northern hills of Chhattisgarh Vandana Bhagat, D. Bhonsle, Monika Sodhi, K. Mukherjee, R. S. Katariya, A. K. Santra, M. K. Gendley, V. N. Khune Scientific Reports, 2025 This study aimed to delineate the native breeding tract, distribution, phenotypic characteristics, genetic diversity, and population structure of local goat population in the northern hills of Chhattisgarh, India. Phenotypic data were recorded from 636 adult local goats across 50 villages in three districts. A randomly selected, genetically unrelated subset of 48 individuals was genotyped using 23 FAO-recommended microsatellite markers. The newly identified goat population exhibited a medium-sized, compact body conformation with characteristic white facial strips, black ear margins, black neck rings and horizontally oriented ears. Canonical discriminant analysis identified two significant axes (CAN1: 77.6%, CAN2: 22.4%; P < 0.001), cumulatively accounting for 100% of the variance. Microsatellite analysis revealed 221 alleles, with mean allelic diversity of 9.17. Observed and expected heterozygosity values were 0.6666 and 0.7738, respectively. The mean inbreeding coefficient (FIS = 0.14) indicated a low level of inbreeding and absence of recent genetic bottleneck. The individual assignment accuracy was 47.6%, indicating moderate genetic homogeneity. These results confirm the presence of homogenous, phenotypically distinct and genetically diverse goat population well adapted to local agroclimatic conditions. Effective conservation depends on phenotypic and genetic characterization to identify unique traits and this assessment aids in precisely evaluating diversity and prioritizing the safeguarding of genetic resources for future breeding.
Analysis of allelic pattern across milk trait genes in native cattle adapted to high altitude region of Leh-Ladakh Indian Journal of Animal Sciences, 2021
Morphometric characterisation and performance evaluation of Bhangor indigenous swamp buffalo population of Tripura Indian Journal of Animal Sciences, 2021
Molecular characterization and identification of SNPs in ATP1A1 isoform of sodium-phosphate adenosine triphosphatase across diverse breeds of riverine buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) and Indian native cattle (Bos indicus): A plausible candidate gene for heat tolerance Indian Journal of Animal Sciences, 2021
Selection of stably expressed internal control genes in circulating polymorphoneutrophils of periparturient Sahiwal (Bos indicus) cows Indian Journal of Animal Sciences, 2018
Nutrigenomics, metabolomics and metabonomics: Emerging faces of molecular genomics and nutrition Metabolomics Metabolites Metabonomics and Analytical Technologies, 2011
Assessment of genetic variability and strain identification of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae using RAPD-PCR and IS1112-based PCR Current Science, 2001
Identification of amplified fragment length polymorphism markers associated with Karnal bunt (Neovossia indica) resistance in bread wheat Indian Journal of Agricultural Sciences, 1999
RECENT SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
Comprehensive Proteomic Characterization of Ladakhi Yak (Bos grunniens) Colostrum Whey Reveals Immune and Regulatory Protein Signatures R Rani, M Mathur, P Panchal, R Kumar, S Malik, M Mukesh, M Sodhi, ... International Dairy Journal, 106664 , 2026 2026
Comparative evaluation of physio-hematological, antioxidant and hypoxia associated gene expression responses in cattle breeds adapted to hot semi-arid environment and cold Arid … M Tiwari, M Sodhi, P Vivek, A Jast, SK Niranjan, RS Kataria, VK Bharti, ... International Journal of Biometeorology 70 (4), 114 , 2026 2026
Serum Biochemical and Gene Expression Changes in the Spermatozoa of Buffalo Bulls Under Heat Stress R Vasisth, KR Sriranga, M Chitkara, A Gurao, LP Singh, MS Dige, ... Biochemical Genetics 64 (2), 2020-2047 , 2026 2026
Peptidome profiling of colostrum from Ladakhi yak (Bos grunniens) and evaluation of endogenous peptide's bioactivity P Panchal, R Kumar, M Mukesh, JK Kaushik, M Sodhi, AK Mohanty, ... Food Bioscience 77 , 2026 2026 Citations: 1
Bioactive Endogenous Peptides from Ladakhi Yak (Bos grunniens) Colostrum P Panchal, R Kumar, M Mukesh, JK Kaushik, M Sodhi, AK Mohanty, ... Food Bioscience, 108241 , 2026 2026
Advances in Genomics and Biotechnological Approaches for Genetic Improvement in Livestock M Mukesh, N Masharing, M Sodhi Biotechnology Innovations for a Sustainable Future: Integrating Clean Energy … , 2026 2026
Comparative Evaluation of Isolation Methods on the Biophysical Properties of Milk Derived Exosomes from Bovine Subspecies V Garg, M Mukesh, RM Amarjeet, R Mahajan, RS Kataria, S Kumar, ... Indian Journal of Animal Research 60 (1), 135-143 , 2026 2026
Buffalo Population Genomics Based Differentiation Between Chattisgarhi, Manda and Bastar Breeds: Data-Independent Computational Analysis and Visualization AG Banerjee, V Jain, K Mukherjee, M Sodhi 2025
Characterization and genetic diversity analysis of lesser-known goat population of northern hills of Chhattisgarh V Bhagat, D Bhonsle, M Sodhi, K Mukherjee, RS Katariya, AK Santra, ... Scientific Reports , 2025 2025 Citations: 1
Exploring the genetic footprints of high altitude adapted humans and livestock M Tiwari, G Gujar, S Ponsuksili, CG Shashank, S Sharma, M Sodhi, ... Mammalian Genome 36 (4), 1005-1028 , 2025 2025 Citations: 3
Kangayam and Tharparkar cattle exhibit higher duplications in innate immune genes compared to Sahiwal, Gir, Karan Fries, and Holstein Friesian: insights from an array … M Roshan, A Vats, KK Bajwa, S Sharma, M Thambiraja, M Sodhi, D Singh, ... Mammalian Genome 36 (3), 812-826 , 2025 2025 Citations: 1
Characterization of metabolite profiles in milk derived exosomes from indicus, crossbred and taurine cows by proton nuclear magnetic resonance analysis V Garg, M Mukesh, U Kumar, D Kumar, R Mahajan, RS Kataria, P Kumari, ... Food Chemistry 473, 143015 , 2025 2025 Citations: 2
Deciphering genomic basis of unique adaptation of Ladakhi cattle to Trans-Himalayan high-altitude region of Leh-Ladakh in India M Tiwari, M Sodhi, D Chanda, RS Kataria, SK Niranjan, I Singh, VK Bharti, ... Gene 942, 149251 , 2025 2025 Citations: 10
Omics approaches to understand impact of heat stress on semen quality and fertility in bovines M Chitkara, A Gurao, H Kaur, MS Dige, M Sodhi, M Mukesh, RS Kataria Animal Reproduction Science 274, 107786 , 2025 2025 Citations: 2
Characterizing metabolome signature of colostrum, transition and mature milk of indigenous cows (Bos indicus) adapted to high altitude environment of Leh-Ladakh U Kumar, M Sodhi, D Kumar, P Vivek, SK Niranjan, RS Kataria, S Kumar, ... Food Chemistry 464, 141767 , 2025 2025 Citations: 7
Biochemical Profiles of High Fat Diet Mice Model with Feeding of Cow Milk representing different beta casein genotypes with reference of A1/A2 allele. M Mukesh, P Singh, SK Dubey, G Bhakri, A Kumar, V Chaudhary, ... Ecology, Environment & Conservation (0971765X) 31 , 2025 2025
Effect of bovine beta-casomorphins on rat pancreatic beta cells (RIN-5F) under glucotoxic stress SK Dubey, A Thakur, MK Jena, S Kumar, M Sodhi, M Mukesh, JK Kaushik, ... Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications 739, 150578 , 2024 2024 Citations: 4
Hypoxia related genes modulate in similar fashion in skin fibroblast cells of yak ( Bos grunniens ) adapted to high altitude and native cows ( Bos indicus ) adapted to … M Tiwari, M Sodhi, M Sharma, V Sharma, M Mukesh International journal of biometeorology 68 (8), 1675-1687 , 2024 2024 Citations: 17
Modulations in antioxidant defence system and expression of genes involved in antioxidant and apoptosis pathway helps ward-off heat stress incows reared in hot-arid ambience of … G Gujar, V Kumar, M Sodhi, P Vivek, M Tiwari, M Mukesh Indian Journal of Animal Sciences 94 (4), 333-341 , 2024 2024
Optimizing workflow efficiency for analyzing low molecular weight endogenous peptides in colostrum P Panchal, R Rani, R Kumar, S Malik, M Mukesh, JK Kaushik, M Sodhi, ... RSC advances 14 (40), 29189-29200 , 2024 2024 Citations: 5
MOST CITED SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
Genetic diversity of Indian native cattle breeds as analysed with 20 microsatellite loci M Mukesh, M Sodhi, S Bhatia, BP Mishra Journal of Animal Breeding and Genetics 121 (6), 416-424 , 2004 2004 Citations: 160
Status of milk protein, ß-casein variants among Indian milch animals B Mishra, M Mukesh, B Prakash, M Sodhi, R Kapila, A Kishore, R Kataria, ... Ind J Anim Sci 79 (7), 722-725 , 2009 2009 Citations: 136
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells: a potential cellular system to understand differential heat shock response across native cattle (Bos indicus), exotic cattle (Bos taurus … A Kishore, M Sodhi, P Kumari, AK Mohanty, DK Sadana, N Kapila, ... Cell Stress and Chaperones 19 (5), 613-621 , 2014 2014 Citations: 125
DGAT1 and ABCG2 polymorphism in Indian cattle ( Bos indicus ) and buffalo ( Bubalus bubalis ) breeds MS Tantia, RK Vijh, BP Mishra, B Mishra, STB Kumar, M Sodhi BMC Veterinary Research 2 (1), 32 , 2006 2006 Citations: 121
Impact of Heat Stress on Cellular and Transcriptional Adaptation of Mammary Epithelial Cells in Riverine Buffalo ( Bubalus Bubalis ) N Kapila, A Sharma, A Kishore, M Sodhi, PK Tripathi, AK Mohanty, ... PloS one 11 (9), e0157237 , 2016 2016 Citations: 87
Milk proteins and human health: A1/A2 milk hypothesis M Sodhi, M Mukesh, RS Kataria, BP Mishra, BK Joshii Indian Journal of Endocrinology and Metabolism 16 (5), 856 , 2012 2012 Citations: 82
Microsatellite‐based diversity analysis and genetic relationships of three Indian sheep breeds M Mukesh, M Sodhi, S Bhatia Journal of Animal Breeding and Genetics 123 (4), 258-264 , 2006 2006 Citations: 77
Novel polymorphisms in UTR and coding region of inducible heat shock protein 70.1 gene in tropically adapted Indian zebu cattle (Bos indicus) and riverine buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) M Sodhi, M Mukesh, A Kishore, BP Mishra, RS Kataria, BK Joshi Gene 527 (2), 606-615 , 2013 2013 Citations: 76
Msp I Allelic Pattern of Bovine Growth Hormone Gene in Indian Zebu Cattle ( Bos indicus ) Breeds M Sodhi, M Mukesh, B Prakash, BP Mishra, RC Sobti, KP Singh, S Singh, ... Biochemical genetics 45 (1), 145-153 , 2007 2007 Citations: 74
Multiple Asian pig origins revealed through genomic analyses ES Luetkemeier, M Sodhi, LB Schook, RS Malhi Molecular phylogenetics and evolution 54 (3), 680-686 , 2010 2010 Citations: 73
Transcriptome analysis of circulating PBMCs to understand mechanism of high altitude adaptation in native cattle of Ladakh region P Verma, A Sharma, M Sodhi, K Thakur, RS Kataria, SK Niranjan, ... Scientific Reports 8 (1), 7681 , 2018 2018 Citations: 71
Characterizing Nali and Chokla sheep differentiation with microsatellite markers M Sodhi, M Mukesh, S Bhatia Small ruminant research 65 (3), 185-192 , 2006 2006 Citations: 71
Reproductive biotechniques in buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis): status, prospects and challenges B Singh, MS Chauhan, SK Singla, SK Gautam, V Verma, RS Manik, ... Reproduction, Fertility and Development 21 (4), 499-510 , 2009 2009 Citations: 66
DNA fingerprinting and virulence analysis of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae isolates from Punjab, northern India M Sodhi, Y Vikal, MLC George, GS Bala, GS Mangat, M Garg, JS Sidhu, ... Euphytica 130 (1), 107-115 , 2003 2003 Citations: 64
Selection of suitable reference genes for normalization of quantitative RT-PCR (RT-qPCR) expression data across twelve tissues of riverine buffaloes (Bubalus bubalis) R Kaur, M Sodhi, A Sharma, VL Sharma, P Verma, SK Swami, P Kumari, ... PloS one 13 (3), e0191558 , 2018 2018 Citations: 45
Selection of stable reference genes in heat stressed peripheral blood mononuclear cells of tropically adapted Indian cattle and buffaloes A Kishore, M Sodhi, K Khate, N Kapila, P Kumari, M Mukesh Molecular and cellular probes 27 (3-4), 140-144 , 2013 2013 Citations: 45
Microsatellite DNA typing for assessment of genetic variability in Tharparkar breed of Indian zebu ( Bos indicus ) cattle, a major breed of Rajasthan M Sodhi, M Mukesh, B Prakash, SPS Ahlawat, RC Sobti Journal of genetics 85 (3), 165-170 , 2006 2006 Citations: 45
Evaluation of genetic differentiation in Bos indicus cattle breeds from Marathwada region of India using microsatellite polymorphism M Sodhi, M Mukesh, BP Mishra, B Prakash, SPS Ahlawat, KR Mitkari Animal biotechnology 16 (2), 127-137 , 2005 2005 Citations: 45
Heat stress modulates differential response in skin fibroblast cells of native cattle ( Bos indicus ) and riverine buffaloes ( Bubalus bubalis ) UK Shandilya, A Sharma, M Sodhi, M Mukesh Bioscience Reports 40 (2), BSR20191544 , 2020 2020 Citations: 44
Screening of taurine and crossbred breeding bulls for A1/A2 variants of β-casein gene M Sodhi, M Mukesh, BP Mishra, A Kishore, B Prakash, R Kapil, K Khate, ... The Indian Journal of Animal Sciences 82 (1), 2-9 , 2012 2012 Citations: 44
RESEARCH OUTPUTS (PATENTS, SOFTWARE, PUBLICATIONS, PRODUCTS)
Gel-based and Gel free technologies for testing of genotypes with reference to A1/A2 allele of beta-casein. Services for testing are provided to farmers and commercial dairies (Code: 07_A1A2: since 2016.