Sunil
Ahuja, MD

Dr. Sunil Ahujas research is focused on characterization of the host determinants of immunologic health. His work has been supported through both federal (e.g. NIH, Veterans Administration (VA) Center grants, DoD) and non-federal (e.g. Doris Duke) agencies. Dr. Ahuja has received the NIH MERIT award, the Doris Duke Distinguished Clinical Scientist Award, Burroughs Wellcome Clinical Scientist in Translational Research award and Elizabeth Glaser Pediatrics AIDS Scientist award. He has been elected to the American Society of Clinical Investigation and American Association of Physicians. Dr. Ahuja serves as the Director of VA Center for AIDS and HIV Infection and VA Center for Personalized Medicine. The Centers represent a nodal point for cross-fertilization of ideas from a multi-disciplinary group of investigators from the VA, University affiliates and the DoD. The Centers house Illumina-based equipment for conducting GWASs and next-generation sequencing studies.Dr. Ahuja also serves as Director for Research Enhancement Programs in the Vice-President for Research Office.His team has a strong track record of successful and productive research in multi-disciplinary projects and ability to conduct large-scale genetic, genomic, immunologic and translational research related to infectious, immune and inflammatory diseases (e.g. allergy/asthma, HIV, and autoimmunity). Studies from his group have been consistently published in top-tier journals (Science, Nature Medicine, Nature Immunology, PNAS, NEJM, JAMA-Internal Medicine, JACI, Blood) and are widely cited. He is passionate about training the next generation of researchers and has extensive experience in research training and mentoring at the high school (>200), undergraduate (139), graduate (20), medical (16) student, post-doctoral (28) and faculty levels (17) with equal opportunity given to qualified trainees that are underrepresented in the sciences.

• Medical student gains research experience thanks to Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
• Study: Antiretroviral therapy for HIV-1 in first 4 months is crucial
• Health Science Center lands $11.6 million to study cardiac proteins
• Renowned researchers to speak at meeting
• Study: Genetic variation raises HIV risk in people of African descent
• Scientists: Protein that predicts Alzheimer’s also predicts HIV progression
• Gene mutations tied to immune comeback during therapy for HIV-1
• Study: Pace of AIDS progression not dependent on viral load alone
• Health Science Center faculty to discuss DNA with Ira Flatow during ‘Science Wednesday’
• Postdoctoral fellows vital to Health Science Center research
• Dr. Sunil Ahuja receives the Health Science Center’s highest honor at 2006 Awards Ceremony
• Dr. Julio Palmaz appointed to prestigious Ashbel Smith Professorship
• President’s Council awards prestigious chair to leading AIDS researcher
• Number of copies of immune-response gene linked to HIV/AIDS susceptibility