University of Nebraska Medical Center
College of Medicine - Cellular & Integrative Physiology
Dr. SARASWATHI VISWANATHAN
The overall focus of our laboratory is to determine the link between obesity and cardiovascular disease. Obesity is a growing worldwide concern, and the mechanism by which it leads to other metabolic disorders such as insulin resistance (IR), dyslipidemia, and hepatic steatosis is an area of intense research. Adipose tissue (AT) is a storage reservoir for excess energy in the form of triglycerides (TGs). In addition to storing TGs, AT secretes several factors called adipokines into the plasma which in turn, regulate glucose and lipid metabolism. It is becoming clear that it is not the obesity per se but the AT-specific inflammation which is more critical in modulating the features of metabolic syndrome. AT-inflammation impairs the storage and secretory functions of AT thereby leading to other metabolic disorders. While arachidonic acid-derived eicosanoid metabolites regulate several physiological and pathological processes, their role in modulating inflammation as it relates to metabolic syndrome is not clear. Using nutritional, genetic, and pharmacological approaches, we sought to determine the role of eicosanoid signaling in modulating obesity-associated metabolic disorders.
Positions and Employment
1999-2000 Research Associate in the lab of Dr. Akhil Banergea, National Institute of Immunology, New
Delhi, India
2000-2004 Post-Doctoral Fellow in the lab of Dr. Bernhard Hennig, Univ. of Kentucky, Lexington, KY
2004-2006 Post-Doctoral Fellow in the lab of Dr. Alyssa Hasty, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
2006-2010 Research Instructor, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
2010-2011 Research Assistant Professor, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN
2011-present Assistant Professor, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE
Awards and Honors
1994-1996 Junior Research Fellow, University Grants Commission, India
1996-1997 Senior Research Fellow, University Grants Commission, India
1997-1999 Senior Research Fellow, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research India
2002 New Investigator Award, The American College of Nutrition, presented at the 43rd Annual
Meeting of the American College of Nutrition, San Antonio, Texas, October 3-6, 2002
2012 Invited Speaker, Annual Meeting of Nebraska Physiological Society, Wayne, NE October 2012
2014 Recipient of travel award to attend the Annual Meeting of the Central Society for Clinical
and Translational Research, Chicago, IL, April 2014
2015 Alex Crook, a summer undergraduate research student, received the Best Poster Award at the
Department of Internal Medicine-Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP)-Poster
Session, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, August 2015
2015 Selected as a finalist for the Eric Olson Young Faculty Competition in Cardiovascular
Sciences at the Annual Meeting of the International Academy of Cardiovascular Sciences
(IACS): North American Section, Omaha, NE, September 2015
Other Experience and Professional Memberships
2003-present Ad Hoc Journal Reviewer for: Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology, Obesity,
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Atherosclerosis, American Journal of Physiology
Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology, Journal of Nutritional Bioichemistry,
Journal of Nutrition, Neurotoxicity Research, Process Biochemistry, Molecular Nutrition and
Food Research, Cell Physiology and Biochemistry, and Acta Alimentaria
2004-present Member, American Heart Association
2004-present Member, American Physiological Society
2011-present Member, Nebraska Physiological Society
2012-2014 Member, American Diabetes Association
2013 Grant Reviewer, Pilot Grant Application from a State University
2014 Peer Reviewer, NIH-Integrative Physiology of Obesity and Diabetes (IPOD) study section
2014 Peer Reviewer, American Heart Association Lipids Basic Science 3 Study Section
2014-2015 Peer Reviewer, American Heart Association Lipids Basic Science 1 Study Section
