Dr Murali Gopal had completed Graduation in Agriculture from TNAU, Coimbatore during 1985-89, Master’s and Doctorate degree in Microbiology from IARI, New Delhi during 1989 – 1995 and went on to join as ARS scientist at ICAR-Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Kasaragod, Kerala in 1995. Later he did a one-year post –doctoral tenure in Rothamsted Research as Rothamsted International Fellow. He has quarter a decade of experience in the field of microbiology of lignin-rich organic matter recycling, rhizosphere microbiology and bioinoculant technology for coconut palms and cocoa. Unraveling the microbiome diversity and its function in the unique coconut leaf vermicomposting technology and deciphering the whole genome of efficient PGPRs of coconut, cocoa and arecanut  using next-generation sequencing platform are some of his important contributions. Currently his aim is to replicate some of the striking developments in human microbiome research in the field of agriculture and food production including converging microbiome with plant breeding.