New faculty spotlight: Mohan Krishnan, PhD

Mohan Krishnan, PhD, is a new faculty member at UNMC.

• Name: Mohan Krishnan, PhD
• Hometown: Tamil Nadu, India
• Title and department at UNMC: Associate professor, UNMC Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology; adjunct faculty, UNMC Department of Pediatrics

Research, professional and medical interests: My research focuses on investigating the pathophysiology of RBC Transfusion-associated Necrotizing Enterocolitis (TA-NEC) and Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome (SIRS) in premature infants who are at high risk of anemia and are frequently transfused. My seminal contribution in science was the development of a highly innovative murine model of NEC caused by the administration of blood transfusions to phlebotomy-induced murine animal models, with resulting injury correlating to the severity and duration of the underlying anemia. Using this first pre-clinical model of TANEC, I have addressed longstanding controversies by untangling the individual contributions to injury from anemia versus its treatment, the subsequent transfusion. Notably, this is the first, and so far only, animal model ever developed to investigate this phenomenon, and finally provides mechanistic insights into the association of blood transfusions and NEC that had been identified in more than 25 clinical studies. I am dedicated to understanding the role of monocytes/macrophages in the neonate and investigating their inflammatory phenotypes, function during anemia and/or RBC-transfusion associated NEC and SIRS.

How I fell in love with biology and research: My fascination with biology and research came largely from the courses I took during school. There are millions of knots to untangle in the vast network of each biological system to create benefits for human health. I find the mission of unraveling these knots to be thrilling and fulfilling, particularly when in service to infant health.

Education:

• MS in medical biochemistry, University of Madras
• PhD in biochemistry-biotechnology, University of Madras

Memberships:

• Society of Pediatrics Research
• American Physiological Society
• American Society of Hematology

Three things people may not know about me:

• I love to play badminton and volleyball.
• I love to belt out music on long drives.
• I enjoy spending time chatting with friends.