Prashant Rajbhandari, PhD

Laboratory of Dr. Prashant Rajbhandari uses molecular biology, biochemistry, and genomic science to study lipid metabolism. Dr. Rajbhandari completed his doctoral studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where he elucidated how structural changes in the unstructured region of Estrogen Receptor-alpha increases its ligand-independent transcriptional function to promote drug-resistance in breast cancer. An intriguing relation between metabolism and cancer led him to his pursuit of postdoctoral studies in the Lab of Dr. Peter Tontonoz, MD PhD in the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) at the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA). At UCLA, his interests were broadly focused in understanding lipid metabolism, particularly in adipose tissues and how it affects adipocytes, hepatic, and cardiovascular function. He discovered immune-adipocyte crosstalk in the adipose microenvironment that function to limit mitochondrial respiration, energy expenditure, lipid mobilization and block thermogenic transcriptional program in the adipose tissue. His postdoctoral works are published in Cell, Nature Medicine, Nature Metabolism, Journal of Clinical Investigation, eLIFE, Cell Metabolism, and Nature Chemical Biology. His work has been recognized as meritorious by the NIH: he received an NRSA F32 individual postdoctoral training grant as well as a prestigious K99/R00 Transition to Independence Award recently to support his work from NIDDK. His lab in DOMI at Mt. Sinai will focus on identifying and studying novel factors that control lipid metabolism using combination of genetics, cell biology, biochemistry and Next Gen sequencing.

PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT

May 2019-present: Assistant Professor, DOMI, Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai. NY
Oct.2013-Mar.2019: Postdoc, HHMI, University of California, Los Angeles, CA
2008-2013: PhD/Research Assistant, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI
2007-2008: Research Technician, Life Science institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
2006-2007: Scientist I, Department of Molecular Pharmacology, Pfizer, Ann Arbor, MI

GRANTS AND FELLOWSHIPS

2018-2023: NIH/NIDDK Pathway to Independence DK114571
2014-2017: NIH/NIDDK NRSA Individual Postdoctoral Fellowship (F32 DK104484), UCLA
2012-2013: NIH/NCI (T32 CA009135), UW-Madison
2009-2010: NIH/NIGMS (T32 GM008688), UW-Madison
2008-2009: Herman I. Shapiro Graduate Fellowship, School of Medicine, UW-Madison
2008: Ronald E. McNair Post Baccalaureate Fellowship, University of Michigan
2005: MIT Research Fellowship, MIT, Cambridge, MA

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL HONORS

2018: UCLA Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Postdoctoral Research Nominee
2017: NIH/NIDDK 1R13DK104611-03 Keystone Symposia Scholarship
2012: Best Talk, Great Lakes Nuclear Receptor Conference, Northwestern University, IL
2012: Endocrine Society Award, Northwestern University, IL
2011: Molecular Pharmacology Annual Symposium on Signal Transduction Award, UW- Madison
2012:  Vilas Conference Award (UW-Madison), Keystone Symposia at Whistler, BC
2010: Endocrine Society Award, Great Lakes Nuclear Receptor Conference, University of Michigan
2008: Herman I. Shapiro Graduate Fellow, School of Medicine, UW-Madison
2006: Summa Cum Laude, Olivet College