Vikas Dharnidharka, MD, MPH, FAST
Specialty:
Pediatric Nephrology
Graduated From:
MBBS and MD: Topiwala National Medical College, Bombay University, Pediatric Residency from Children’s Hospital of Michigan and Wayne State University, Pediatric Nephrology fellowship from Children’s Hospital Boston and Harvard University
Current Position:
Vice-Chair for Clinical Investigation, Department of Pediatrics and Professor and Chief, Division of Pediatric Nephrology, Hypertension and Pheresis
Current Projects:
A) Large scale 3-way national database integration for assessing outcomes after immunosuppression regimens in adult kidney transplantation; B) viral metagenomics in post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorders (PTLD) in all organs and at all ages; C) longitudinal prospective evaluation of donor-derived cell-free DNA and blood gene expression panels as biomarkers of immunosuppression in pediatric kidney transplantation.
What made you decide to work in transplantation?:
I was always interested in the immune system in nephrology. During fellowship, I had the honor to work with former AST President Bill Harmon in clinical transplantation (where I saw my first PTLD case) and be mentored in David Briscoe’s transplant immunology laboratory for my research project. I was hooked.
What do you find to be the most valuable aspect of your work?:
The variety of things that I can do: in patient care, in teaching trainees, in performing clinical and translational research.
How have you served AST?:
I have been a member of AST since ~1998, and have served on numerous committees: Pediatrics, Grants and Awards, Nominating, Education and now American Transplant Congress Planning Committee. The greatest benefit has been the opportunity to meet and network with so many colleagues in the transplant field.
Fun Facts:
I play table tennis (ping pong) in the St Louis Table Tennis league. By virtue of winning the state title in my age category in 2018, I had the honor of representing Missouri in the National Senior Games in Albuquerque in 2019. There I got 4th place in my age category in both men’s doubles and mixed doubles.