Ken Bayles, PhD, UNMC vice chancellor of research, congratulated Siddappa Byrareddy, PhD, who was recognized recently at UNMC’s annual research awards as the 20th Scientist Laureate in UNMC’s history.
As the Singer Professor of Microbial Pathogenesis and vice chair for research in the UNMC Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience, Dr. Byrareddy currently researches HIV pathobiology and cure strategies, substance abuse, gut-brain connections and CAR-T cell targeted immunotherapy. He also has worked on HIV and AIDS, SARS-CoV-2, also known as COVID-19, and other emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases, such as Dengue, Zika and M-pox.
Read a profile of Dr. Byrareddy.
“His research is actively translating discoveries made in pre-clinical models into new therapies for patients,” Dr. Bayles said.
During the Nov. 6 awards ceremony, Dr. Byrareddy thanked Dr. Bayles and UNMC leadership, adding that he was especially happy to see his mentee, Arpan Archarya, PhD, honored as a New Investigator at the same ceremony.
See a slideshow from the event.
He also said he was thankful to be a part of the UNMC Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience and called out his three main UNMC collaborators, Shilpa Buch, PhD, Howard Gendelman, MD, and Benson Edagwa, PhD.
“I want to really thank all my students (too),” he said.
“Finally, what I’ve most enjoyed doing is team science, and I’ve collaborated with a large number of people,” he said, pointing to collaborators not only at UNMC but across the country.
During his presentation, Dr. Byrareddy spoke about his life and career, pointing out that he had no family in the United States but was grateful to have so many friends.
“I’m thankful for everyone, for all the opportunity and work here,” he said. “Thank you for selecting me this year for the laureate award.”
Once again, the UNMC College of Medicine was well-represented at the annual research event. Other college of medicine awardees at the 2025 event included:
New Investigators
- Maher Abdalla, PhD, associate professor in the UNMC Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology
- Arpan Acharya, PhD, assistant professor in the UNMC Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience
- Kurt Fisher, MD PhD, associate professor in the UNMC Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology
- Peng Zhong, PhD, assistant professor in the UNMC Department of Neurological Sciences
Distinguished Scientists
- Bin Duan, PhD, associate professor in the UNMC Department of Internal Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine
- Stacey Gilk, PhD, professor in the UNMC Department of Pathology, Microbiology, and Immunology
- Natalia Osna, MD PhD, professor in the UNMC Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience
- Gurudutt Pendyala, PhD, professor in the UNMC Department of Anesthesiology
- Micah Schott, PhD, associate professor in the UNMC Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Research Leadership