Anil D. Kulkarni, Ph.D. 1988, The Queen's University of Belfast UT-Houston Medical School Surgery Contact Information Biographical Sketch

Research Interests: Nutritional nucleotides; AHCC; oligonol and functional foods; immune system

The focus of my research is the role of nutritional nucleotides and AHCC, Oligonol and Functional Foods  in immune function. My current project studies dietary substrates in immunologic rescue and recovery in various experimental models including microgravity research models. These studies involve in vivo and in vitro models of anti-orthostatic tail suspension of mice and in vitro studies using a Bioreactor, 3-D cultures where lymphocytes are cultured under constant free fall state. We will examine the mechanisms involved in nutritional supplementation as a countermeasure to obviate immune dysfunction in many clinical situation by looking at the molecular level for expression of various cytokines and intracellular messages.

Other projects study the role of nutrition and immune response in would healing using various animal models. These wound models include normal and experimental diabetic animals. We measure several parameters of would healing such as collagen deposition, collagenase levels, histology, other markers of wound healing and quantitative image analysis measurements of wound closure.

We are also interested in clinical applications of such substrates to be developed as functional foods and currently developing a protocol for human studies.

A tutorial in my laboratory would provide opportunities in various immunological methodology in general and especially in relation to the above referred projects. You will also learn the importance and relevance of the translational nutritional immunology discipline in the medical field.
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Kulkarni AD, Yamauchi K, Hales NW, Ramesh V, Ramesh GT, Sundaresan A, Andrassy RJ, Pellis NR (2002) Nutrition beyond Nutrition: Plausibility of nutritional countermeasure for space travel. Clinical Nutrition, 21(3):231-268.

Yamauchi K, Hales NW, Robinson SM, Niehoff ML, Ramesh V, Pellis NR, Kulkarni AD (2002) Nutritional requirement of nucleotides for cellular immunity in simulated microgravity. J. Appl. Physiology, 93:161-166.

Hales NW, Yamauchi K, Alicia A, Sundaresan A, Pellis NR, Kulkarni AD (2002) A countermeasure to ameliorate immune dysfunction in in vitro simulated microgravity environment, Role of cellular nucleotide nutrition. In Vitro Cell Biol Animal, 38(4)213-217.

Yamauchi K, Hales N.W, Robinson SM, Niehoff ML, Ramesh V, Pellis NR, Kulkarni AD (2002) Nutrition requirement of nucleotide for cellular immunity in simulated microgravity. J. Appl. Physiol., 93: 161-166.

Kulkarni AD (2003) Evidence Strategy for Functional Foods, JJMUFF, 1(4):183-185 (English), 184-185 (Japanese).

Felix K, Wise K, Manna S, Yamauchi K, Wilson BL, Thomas R, Kulkarni AD, Pellis NR, Ramesh GT (2004) Altered cytokine expression in tissues of mice subjected to simulated microgravity., Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry, 266:79-85.

Sommer AP, Kulkarni AD, Pretorius AM, Oron U, Ciftcioglu N, Wickramsinghe C, Mester AR (2004) Light and Nutrients- Multidisciplinary Responses to the Novel Climatic Challenges. Submitted to Int. J. of Environmental Sciences.

Kulkarni AD, K. Yamauchi, A. Sundaresan, G.T. Ramesh, N. R. Pellis (2005) Countermeasure For Space Flight Effects On Immune System: Nutritional Nucleotides, Gravitational and Space Biology Bulletin, March.

Ramesh GT, Wise K, Ramesh V, Yamauchi Y, Kulkarni AD, Wilson B. Activation of immediate early response genes in mouse brain induced by simulated microgravity. Proceedings of International Astronautics Federation Conference, 2005, Fukuoka, Japan.

Sundaresan A, Kulkarni AD, Pellis NR, Yamauchi K. Biomarkers of cell and tissue injury in analog microgravity. Proceedings of International Astronautics Federation 2005, Fukuoka, Japan.

Kulkarni AD, Yamauchi K, Sundaresan A, Ambrose C, Ramesh GT, Pellis NR. An evidence- based countermeasure for spaceflight: Nutritional nucleotide augmentation of immunity. Proceedings of International Astronautics Federation Conference, 2005, Fukuoka, Japan.

Wise KC, Manna SK, Yamauchi K, Ramesh V, Wilson BL, Thomas RL, Sarkar S, Kulkarni AD, Pellis NR, Ramesh GT (2005) In Vitro Cell. Dev. Biol.-Animal, 41:118–123.

Sarkar P, Sarkar S, Ramesh V, Hayes BE, Thomas RL, Wilson BL, Kim H, Barnes S, Kulkarni AD, Pellis NR, Ramesh GT (2006) Proteomic Analysis of Mice Hippocampus in Simulated Microgravity Environment. Journal of Proteome Research, 5, 548- 553

U.S. Patent: Ribonucleotide Preparations and Uses Thereof ( U.S. Patent No. 5,712,256).

US. Patent Title: Methods & Compositions for Promotion of Wound Healing. ( U. S. Patent No. 6,342,484).

Program Affiliation:
Program in Immunology