Thomas A. Gerwin Chair of Excellence in Physiology
Ioannis Dragatsis, PhD
Professor
Zheng Fan, PhD
Professor
Jonathan H. Jaggar, PhD
Maury W. Bronstein Professor
Salvatore Mancarella, PhD
Associate Professor
Helena Parfenova, PhD
Professor
Kaushik Parthasarathi, PhD
Associate Professor
Gadiparthi N. Rao, PhD
George and Elizabeth Malloy Professor
Radhakrishna Rao, PhD
Eldon D and Ruth Connell Professor
Donald B. Thomason, PhD
Professor Dean, College of Graduate Health Sciences
Gabor J. Tigyi, MD, PhD Van Vleet Professor
Junwang Xu, PhD
Associate Professor
Djamel Lebeche, PhD Professor
Ki-Suk Kim, PhD Assistant Professor
Rahima Zennadi, PhD Associate Professor
Rajeshwary Ghosh, PhD Assistant Professor
At the Physiology Department’s annual Year End Review event this past December, Dr. Radhakrishna Rao was presented with a special honor. He was bestowed with the Dr. Eldon D. and Ruth Connell Professorship.
This endowment seat had been previously held by Dr. Adebowale Adebiyi, who was the first person to hold that honor under Dr. Sun’s tenure as the department’s chair.
Dr. RK Rao serves as the ViceChair of the department of Physiology, a position he has held since 2017. His renowned research focuses on the structure and regulation of epithelial tight junctions and adherens junctions.
For more information about Dr. RK Rao’s research, contact him at rrao2@uthsc.edu.
DR. GABOR TIGYI AWARDED
BY THE TRANSYLVANIA MUSEUM ASSOCIATION, DELIVERS KEYNOTE
Dr. Gabor Tigyi, the Harriet Van Vleet Professor in Physiology, presented the keynote lecture on the occasion of the “Day of Science” celebration in the Transylvanian city of Cluj-Napoca, in Romania.
Dr. Tigyi was also this year’s recipient of the Ct. Imre Mikó plaque, which was also awarded by the Transylvania Museum Association.
The Museum Association, which has been the hub of intellectual pursuits by scientists and artists from the Transylvanian region, is celebrating its 165th anniversary this year.
Dr. Tigyi, who was born in Hungary, is known globally for his research pertaining to the pharmacology of phospholipid growth factors. For more information about Dr. Tigyi’s research, contact him at gtigyi@uthsc.edu. For more information on The Transylvania Museum Society, visit www.eme.ro/servlet/eme/ template/english%2CPIndexScreenEN.vm/action/ChangeLocaleAction/currentlocale/ en/eventsubmit_dochangelocale/null
DIVERSITY MATTERSPHYSIOLOGY NEWS
MD MONIRUL HOQUE
AWARDED QUIGLEY SCHOLARSHIP
For the 2024 academic year, the Department of Physiology awarded the J. Paul Quigley Memorial Scholarship to Graduate Student Md Monirul Hoque, who works in the lab of Dr. Djamel Lebeche.
The Quigley Scholarship is awarded annually to the student enrolled in the MTP track of the Biomedical Sciences PhD program who has completed all of their core courses with the highest GPA in these courses, and has not previously won the award. Monirul was also awarded 1st Prize for poster presentation at this fall’s Physiology Department Research Retreat.
For more information about Monirul’s research, please contact him at mhoque5@uthsc.edu. For more information about department scholarships and awards, contact Bernard Provencher at bproven1@uthsc.edu
BUILDING
The ongoing progress of the renovation of the Nash Building was celebrated recently with a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the 4th floor of the Physiology Department’s past and future home. Dr. Sun joined Chancellor Buckley, Dean Verne, EVC Kurapati and the project-manager from Flintco to cut the ribbon.
DR. JUNWANG XU RECEIVES UT FOUNDATION GRANT
We are proud to announce that Dr. Junwang Xu, Associate Professor in the Department of Physiology, has been awarded the highly competitive 2025 UT Research Foundation (UTRF) Maturation Grant. This funding will support Dr. Xu’s innovative project, “NanomiR-181a: A Novel Therapeutic for Enhancing Diabetic Wound Healing.”
Dr. Xu collaborated with Dr. Hongsik Cho, Associate Professor in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, to develop Nano-miR181a, a cutting-edge nanosome designed to encapsulate a miR-181a mimic. This novel therapeutic approach targets proinflammatory signaling and promotes angiogenesis, offering tremendous potential for treating chronic non-healing diabetic wounds. The UTRF committee commended the project’s strong translational impact and the team’s compelling preclinical data. This grant will accelerate the validation of Nano-miR-181a’s efficacy and lay a solid foundation for future clinical applications. To learn more about Dr. Xu’s research, contact jxu61@uthsc.edu. For more information about UTRF and its Maturation Grant program, visit https://utrf.tennessee. edu/innovator-resources/maturation-grantfunding/
DIVERSITY MATTERSPHYSIOLOGY NEWS
DEREK NORMAN
AWARDED FOR POSTER AT LIPID CONFERENCE IN TAIWAN
Derek Norman, who works as a Senior Research Specialist in the lab of Dr. Gabor Tigyi, attended the 64th International Conference on the Bioscience of Lipids (ICBL) in Taipei, Taiwan in October of 2024, where he presented a poster entitled “IEX-1 is Crucial for LPAR2-mediated Radiation Mitigation and Regeneration.”
This poster won the ICBL Poster Award for the Lipids in Clinical and Translational Research session.
Derek’s work with the Tigyi lab is part of ongoing projects on the cutting edge of our understanding of lipid sciences, and the ICBL is among the preeminent gatherings for experts in this field of research.
To learn more about Derek’s research, please contact him at dnorman@uthsc.edu. For information about the ICBL, visit http://www.icbl. info
DR. ABDUL MAJID
RECEIVES ACCOLADES FOR POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH
Dr. Abdul Majid, a Postdoctoral Research Associate working in the lab of Dr. Djamel Lebeche, has been collecting recognition for his work recently.
The UTHSC Postdoc Association awarded Dr. Majid a Travel Award to attend the Society for Neuroscience conference in Chicago. In addition, The UTHSC College of Graduate Health Sciences awarded him an Independent Research Project Grant for a project titled “Novel Pharmacotherapy Targeting Neuroinflammation Following Neuronal Injury.” At the 2025 Postdoc Research Showcase, Dr. Majid received both 1st and 2nd place awards for Poster Presentations.
Dr. Majid has also recently been elected CoPresident of the UTHSC Postdoc Association for the 2024-2025 term.
To learn more about Dr. Majid and his research, please contact him at amajid1@uthsc.edu. For information about the UTHSC Postdoctoral Association (PhDA), visit https://uthsc.edu/ graduate-health-sciences/phda/index.php
DIVERSITY MATTERSPHYSIOLOGY NEWS
DR. WASEEM CHAUHAN
ELECTED SECRETARY OF POSTDOC ASSOCIATION
Dr. Waseem Chauhan, a Postdoctoral Researcher working in the lab of Dr. Rahima Zennadi, was recently chosen as the secretary of the UTHSC Postdoctoral Association for the 2024-2025 term.
Additionally, Dr. Chauhan was awarded third place for Oral Presentation at the 2024 Physiology Department Research Retreat.
In the Zennadi lab, his research focuses on the roles of snoRNA’s and ROS production in Sickle Cell Disease.
For more information about Dr. Chauhan’s work, please contact him at wchauhan@uthsc.edu. To learn more about UTHSC Postdoctoral Association (PhDA), visit https://uthsc.edu/graduate-healthsciences/phda/index.php
DR ZHONGJIE SUN
HONORED AS AAAS FELLOW
Professor and Chair of the Department of Physiology, Dr. Zhongjie Sun, is to be honored as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
According to the AAAS, “Fellows are a distinguished cadre of scientists, engineers and innovators who have been recognized for their achievements across disciplines, from research, teaching, and technology, to administration in academia, industry and government, to excellence in communicating and interpreting science to the public.”
Dr. Sun will be bestowed with this great distinction at a ceremony in Washington DC in June of
2025.
He joins such names in the ranks of this organization’s fellows as Thomas Edison and W.E.B. DuBois.
Dr. Sun is being recognized by the AAAS, which is the world’s largest general scientific society, for his renown work related to the epigenetic mechanisms of cardiovascular and renal diseases.
For more information about Dr. Sun’s research, contact him at zsun10@uthsc.edu. For information about the AAAS, visit https://www. aaas.org
DIVERSITY MATTERSPHYSIOLOGY NEWS
DR RAHIMA ZENNADI
PUBLISHES ARTICLE IN CIRCULATION RESEARCH
Dr. Rahima Zennadi, an Associate Professor in the Physiology Department, recently had an article accepted for publication in Circulation Research, which is a journal of the American Heart Association.
The manuscript, which is titled “Rpl13a snoRNAs U34 and U35a: New Targets for Sickle Cell Disease Complications,” was accepted in the high-impact journal in April, and is currently available in advance online form, which was published on May 15.
The article also features credit to members of the Zennadi lab team, Drs. Chauhan, Sudharshan, Ferdowsi, and Kafle.
To learn more about Dr. Zennadi’s research, please contact her at rzennadi@uthsc.edu. For information about Circulation Research and other AHA journals, visit https://www.ahajournals.org
DR TESSA GARRUD
RECEIVES AHA CAREER DEVELOPMENT AWARD
Dr. Tessa Garrud, an Instructor who works in the lab of Dr. Jonathan Jaggar, recently received a new grant for her research. She was awarded the American Heart Association Career Development Award.
This award provides Dr. Garrud with three years of funding to study how the kinase WNK1 in endothelial cells regulates artificial contractility.
According to the AHA, “this grant supports highly promising healthcare and academic professionals, in the early years of one’s first professional appointment, to explore innovative questions or pilot studies that will provide preliminary data and training necessary to assure the applicant’s future success as a research scientist.”
To learn more about Dr. Garrud and her research, please contact her at tgarrud@uthsc.edu. For information about the AHA Career Development program, visit https://professional.heart.org/en/ research-programs/aha-funding-opportunities/ career-development-award
RK RAO LAB MEMBERS
RECOGNIZED FOR ACHIEVEMENTS
Lohitha Basa, a part-time student working in the lab of Dr. RK Rao, has been selected as the outstanding student in the Masters of Medical Pharmacology program for the 2024/ 2025 school year. Additionally, Lohitha has been recently admitted into the medical school program through the College of Medicine here at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center.
Drs. Preeti Raju and Nitesh Shashikanth, who are
both Instructors working in the lab of Dr. RK Rao, have both been invited to deliver oral presentations in symposium at the 48th annual Scientific meeting of the Research Society on Alcohol (RSA), which will be held in June of 2025 in New Orleans.
Dr. Raju was also invited to give an oral presentation at the annual meeting of the Alcohol and Immunology Research Interest Group (AIRIG) which was held in Chicago in November of 2024. At this meeting, Dr. Raju also received a travel award. For more information on the ongoing work of the researchers in the Dr. RK Rao lab, contact him at rrao2@uthsc.edu
DIVERSITY MATTERSPHYSIOLOGY NEWS
RESEARCH RETREAT
PROVIDES SHOWCASE FOR FACULTY AND RESEARCHERS TO SHARE THEIR WORK
The Department of Physiology’s annual Research Retreat for 2024 was held this year on October 10th, in the Student Activity Center Ballroom on campus. This event provides a valuable opportunity each year for our researchers to share their work with each other, and this year’s installment featured a full day of presentations from scientist at all levels of their research journeys at UTHSC, from Graduate Students to tenured Professors. This year’s program also featured a special talk from a distinguished Keynote Speaker, Dr. Susan Baserga from Yale University. In addition to oral talks, a selection of poster presentations also lined the walls of the hall.
For Graduate and Postdoctoral Scholars, this day also featured an opportunity for juried feedback on their presentations, with awards chosen and presented by experts from the department’s Research Committee. Awards for poster presentations went to Md Monirul Hoque (1st place), Zhen Xie (2nd place), and Dr. YoungIn Kwon (3rd place). For Oral Presentations, Dr. Lynn Aung took first place, Bahar Meshkat second, and Dr. Waseem Chauhan third.
Dr. Sun with Keynote Speaker Dr. Baserga
The crowd watches intently
Attendees ask presenters questions
Researchers present their posters
Department of Physiology group photo at the 2024 research retreat
PHYSIOLOGY NEWS
YEAR END REVIEW
A TIME FOR CELEBRATING ACCOMPLISHMENTS WITH COLLEAGUES AND FAMILY
The 2024 year’s schedule of annual department events culminated with the Year End Review, held at the University of Memphis Holiday Inn Ballroom, on the evening of December 18th. This event, which has grown in scope and attendance each year since the first in 2018, allows our Department an opportunity to come together with colleagues and families to reflect on and celebrate the accomplishments of our teams over the course of the year.
Centered around a presentation of the Physiology Department’s accomplishments over the year by Department Chair Dr. Zhongjie Sun, this year’s event also featured awards presentations, flute performances from Celina Xu and Aspyn Lee, a visit from “Santa,” trivia games, and a DJ. Faculty, scientists, and staff were encouraged to bring significant-others and children, in order to celebrate our community and the holidays as one Physiology family.
Among those honored with awards at this years event were Dr. RK Rao who was bestowed with an Endowed Professorship, Bahar Meshkat for the Outstanding Graduate Student Award, Charles Hicks for Outstanding Staff Service, and Jaquelyn Easley for Outstanding Core Staff Service.
For information about the Physiology Department’s annual events, contact Bernard Provencher at bproven1@uthsc.edu. For full collection of photos from the event, visit https:// the-pictureman.smugmug.com/BanquetDinner/ UT-Physiology-Department-End-of-the-YearReview-2024
For more information, please contact:
Department of Physiology | 956 Court Ave. | Memphis, TN 38163 t 901.448.9605
