Faculty Mentors & Research Projects
VCU Department of Surgery
| Faculty Name | Primary Department | Areas of Research Interests | Keywords | Mentorship Availability | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Azhar Rafiq | patricia.lange@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Clinical Research | Telemedicine elective is designed for medical students to become familiar with integration of telecommunication technologies to support care delivery, Artificial Intelligence and its application in health data interpretation. | Yes |
| Mazhar Kanak | Mazhar.Kanak@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Clinical Research | Islet cell transplantation is a promising beta cell replacement therapy for patients with brittle type 1 diabetes as well as refractory chronic pancreatitis. Islets are isolated from donor pancreas and transplanted into portal vein of liver in recipients. Inflammation is a major problem that causes severe detrimental effect to islets at the time of transplantation. | Yes |
| Mangino, Martin | martin.mangino@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Clinical Research, Basic Science Research, Translational Research | liver, transplant, regeneration, HCC | Yes |
| Kirsty Dixon | kirsty.dixon@vcuhealth.org | surgery | Basic Science Research, Translational Research | Shock, ischemia, reperfusion, microcirculation, metabolism, critical illness, sepsis | Yes |
| Prathab Saravanan | PrathabBalaji.Saravanan@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Clinical Research, Basic Science Research, Translational Research | Islet cell transplantation is a promising beta cell replacement therapy for patients with brittle type 1 diabetes as well as refractory chronic pancreatitis. Islets are isolated from donor pancreas and transplanted into portal vein of liver in recipients. Inflammation is a major problem that causes severe detrimental effect to islets at the time of transplantation. | Yes |
| Victoria Findlay | victoria.findlay@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Basic Science Research, Translational Research | CANCER PREVENTION: PUBERTY, CANCER PREVENTION: POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN, CANCER PROGRESSION: TREATMENT, CANCER PREVENTION: LACTATION,CANCER CONTROL: BIOMARKER DISCOVERY | Yes |
| Esha Madan | Esha.Gogna@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Basic Science Research, Translational Research | cancer cell and its microenvironment; how a cancer cell gains competitive advantage over its microenvironment. The molecular mechanisms of tumor-host interactions, cell fitness signaling and developing therapies as well as biomarkers for translational biomedical research. | Yes |
| Nicholas D. Thomson | nicholas.thomson@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Clinical Research | reventing Firearm Violence in Youth: A hospital-based prevention strategy, Virtual Reality Intervention for Reducing Aggression and Substance Use in Youth & Adults | Yes |
| David Turner | david.turner1@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Basic Science Research, Translational Research | mechanistic implications of dietary-AGE consumption on tumor growth, The molecular links between early life exposure to AGEs and increased breast cancer risk, AGEing & RAGEing: Interventional Targets to Prevent Multimorbidity, AGEs and diet: their impact on animal companion well-being and lifespan | Yes |
| Mary Philogene | Mary.Philogene@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Basic Science Research, Clinical Research | G protein coupled receptor, AT1R in transplantation, flow cytometric crossmatch assay currently used to determine compatibility between donor and recipient, and several ELISA and multiplex bead assays for HLA antibody detection | Yes |
| Kelly O'Connor | Kelly.OConnor@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Clinical Research | to clarify and expand upon current theoretical models of youth violence prevention and firearm violence in particular, to investigate risk and protective mechanisms associated with youth firearm violence; to develop and enhance culturally relevant programs, policies, and practices that reduce risky firearm behaviors and bolster positive youth development | Yes |
| Ilija Uzelac | ilija.uzelac@vcuhealth.org | Surgery | Basic Science, Translational | prevent, control, or terminate heart arrhythmias, exploring biological bases at the cellular level, examining the roles of the cardiac intrinsic nervous system, applying physics concepts regarding self-organizing dynamics to bridge cellular and whole heart levels, and utilizing tools from biomedical engineering alongside modern techniques in image and signal processing | Yes |