Paluri Sai Shantanu Rao

Biography

Dr. Rao received his Bachelor of Pharmacy degree from the DAVV University, Indore, India. For his Ph.D. degree (2006-2011), Dr. Rao joined the Department of Medicinal & Biological Chemistry at the University of Toledo, Ohio. Subsequently, Dr. Rao was a postdoctoral fellow (PDF) in the Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics​, in Dr. Youssef Sari's lab, at the University of Toledo. His work at the University of Toledo involved the synthesis and in vitro characterization of muscarinic antagonists (graduate research work) and the evaluation of in vivo efficacy of beta lactams in alcohol-preferring P rats (postdoctoral work). Dr. Rao's research work at Toledo resulted in the successful publication of 9 research articles and 2 review articles. To continue his postdoctoral training and to better understand the interactions between HIV-1 infection and drug addiction, Dr. Rao joined Dr. Santosh Kumar's research group at the University of Missouri-Kansas City in March 2014.After joining Dr. Kumar's lab, Dr. Rao was actively involved in studying drug-drug interactions between antiretroviral therapy (ART) and drugs of abuse. As a PDF in Dr. Kumar's lab, he successfully conducted experiments demonstrating the deleterious effects of ethanol and cigarette smoke condensate on HIV replication and the cellular pathways governing these effects. Dr. Rao collaborated with Dr. Kumar towards publishing novel data and reviewing the existing literature on drug-drug interactions between antiretroviral therapy and drug addiction. These efforts have resulted in the publication of 4 research articles, 6 review papers, and 1 book chapter.

Research Interest

Dr. Rao's current research interests include: a) Examining the scope of drug-drug interactions between HIV medications and drugs of abuse b) Assessing the potential anticancer properties of novel compounds  c) Studying the effects of drug abuse on human health