Rajeshwar AwatramaniRajeshwar Awatramani, PhD
Assistant Professor of Neurology and Physiology

303 East SuperiorAve, Lurie 7-113
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 503-0690

Research Profile
Background
Fellowship Harvard Medical School
Residency  
Internship  
Medical Degree University of Pennsylvania
Clinical
Interests		 Embryonic development of the midbrain, including dopaminergic neurons
Research Interests Determining how neurons are specified in the mouse ventral midbrain using conditional genetic fate mapping and knockout technologies.
Biography

Dr. Awatramani obtained his PhD at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship, working on hindbrain development, in the Department of Genetics at Harvard Medical School. In August 2005, he moved to Chicago and was appointed Assistant Professor of Neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Dr. Awatramani is the principal investigator in a research laboratory dedicated to understanding the genesis of the mammalian central nervous system. Specifically, his laboratory investigates the mechanisms by which distinct neuron types are produced, with particular emphasis on midbrain dopamine neurons. By understanding the molecular underpinnings of dopamine neurogenesis, it will be more feasible to generate large numbers of bona fide dopamine neurons from embryonic stem cells, a key avenue of Parkinson’s Disease therapy.

Dr. Awatramani has received several prestigious awards including the American Parkinson’s Disease Association award, and the Dana foundation Brain and Immunoimaging award.
Selected
Publications
  • Awatramani, R., Soriano, P., Mai, J., Dymecki, S.(2001) An Flp indicator mouse expressing alkaline phosphatase from the ROSA26 locus. Nature Genetics.;29(3):257-9.
  • Awatramani, R., Shumas, S., Kamholz, J., and Scherer, S. (2002) TGFb1 Modulates the Phenotype of Schwann Cells at the Transcriptional Level. Mol. Cell. Neurosci. 19(3):307-19.
  • Awatramani, R., Soriano, P., Rodriguez, C., Mai, J.J., and Dymecki, S. (2003) Cryptic boundaries in roof plate and choroid plexus identified by intersectional gene activation. Nature Genetics. 35(1): 70-5.
  • Hunter, N., Awatramani R., Farley, F. and Dymecki, S. (2005) Ligand-activated Flpe for temporally regulated gene modifications .  Genesis 41(3):99-109.
  • Landsberg, R.*, Awatramani, R.*, Hunter, N., Farago, A, Dipietrantonio, H, and Dymecki, S. (2005) Hindbrain rhombic lip is comprised of discrete progenitor cell populations allocated by Pax6.  Neuron, 48: 1-15.
    * contributed equally to this work        
  • Farago, A., Awatramani, R., and Dymecki, S. (2006) Assembly of the brainstem cochlear nuclear complex is revealed by intersectional and subtractive genetic fate maps. Neuron, 50 (2) 205-218.
  • Menichella, D, Majdan, M, Awatramani, R., Goodenough, D, Sirkowski, E., Scherer, S and Paul, D (2006) Genetic and physiological evidence that oligodendrocyte gap junctions contribute to spatial buffering of potassium released during neuronal activity. J. Neuroscience 26(43):10984-91
  • Kittappa, R., Chang, W., Awatramani, R., and McKay, R.(2007) The floor plate forkhead gene, foxa2, is required for the differentiation and survival of midbrain dopamine neurons. PLoS Biology in press