R. Aswani has completed her PhD in microbiology at the School of Biosciences, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, India. After her MSc in microbiology, she completed an MPhil in biosciences and has authored 26 publications, 2 review articles, and 8 book chapters. She edited one book titled Biocontrol Mechanisms of Endophytic Microorganisms, published by Elsevier. Her area of research is the role of microbes in biocontrol mechanisms and induction of plant defense response by plant-associated microorganisms.