Dr. Arati A. Inamdar

Contact Information

Mailing Address

Rutgers University
Department of Plant Biology & Pathology
Foran Hall/ Cook Campus
59 Dudley Rd.
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
inamdar@rci.Rutgers.edu

Campus Location

Office: Room 291D Foran Hall, 848-932-6196
Lab: Room 297 Foran Hall, 848-932-6235
FAX: 732-932-9441

 

Research Interests

My PhD research (2005-2009) at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa focused on generating a Drosophila Parkinson’s disease model using neurotoxin, paraquat and studying molecular mechanisms for the pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease, which could be applied to test and develop therapeutic agents to alleviate or cure this neurodegenerative disease.

Recently, it has been proposed that microglia, the innate immune cells of the mammalian brain, become hyperactivated and deregulated in response to neuronal dysfunction in PD and thereby, accelerate dopaminergic neuronal loss. The mechanisms for neuroinflammatory responses that exaggerate neurotoxicity are poorly understood. Moreover, the studies to date that investigate neuroinflammatory mechanisms have utilized primarily in vitro approaches. My dissertation
 “ DISCOVERY OF A NITRIC OXIDE SYNTHASE-DEPENDENT RESPONSE AND A FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF GENES REGULATING THE RESPONSE IN A DROSOPHILA MODEL OF PARKINSON’S DISEASE” describes the discovery of specialized blood cells “hemocytes” capable of induction of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in adult Drosophila brainin response to paraquat ingestion and thus functioning equivalent to mammalian microglia. This work therefore provides the foundation to understand the underlying mechanisms for the inflammatory response in vivo, which, may be further implemented to perform high thorough put screening and to identify genetic modulators for such inflammatory response in an inexpensive and powerful Drosophila model.

My postdoctoral research (May 2009-April 2010) focused on understanding the role of fungal secondary metabolite, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) for the commonly reported syndrome in the building related illness, “Sick Building Syndrome”. My research focused on generating Drosophila as a model to determine the toxic effects of fungal VOCs on the central nervous system and respiratory system. My findings showed that exposure of certain fungal VOCs commonly found in moldy and water damaged buildings cause loss of dopaminergic neurons in Drosophila suggesting the deleterious and underestimated neurotoxic effects of fungal VOCs.

I have been promoted to Research Associate position from April, 2010.  I continue to explore the toxic effects of other fungal VOCs emitted from the fungi isolated from houses after Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, on human embryonic stem cells and other mammalian models and cell lines through collaborative work with other departments at Rutgers (Stem cell research center, Department of Cellular Biology and Neuroscience, Environmental and Occupational Health Science Institute etc). These collaborations will facilitate exploration of the mechanism of toxicity associated with these fungal VOCs in higher models. In addition, I will utilize our Drosophila model to identify the signaling pathways and modulatory role of genes encoding for essential neurotransmitters. I am further interested to determine the activation of the potential inflammation response by fungal VOCs in Drosophila central nervous system and respiratory system similar to that found with paraquat.

In conclusion, my research approach involves innovative ideas to understand the molecular mechanisms for pathogenesis of Parkinson’s disease and Sick Building Syndrome. The results significantly contributes in providing basic foundation for application of my research towards transitional medicine, thereby improving the patient care and opens new avenues for treatment or alleviation of these diseases. 

Publications

Click on a link below to launch a publication search:

Dr. Arati A. Inamdar joined the department in 2009 as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate and was promoted to Research Associate in 2010.