Associate Professor, South Asian University, New Delhi, India (2021-Present)
Assistant Professor, South Asian University, New Delhi, India (2012-2021)
Post-doctoral Scholar, Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA (2008-2012)
Post-doctoral fellow (American Heart Association Fellowship), Yale Child Health Research Centre, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA (2005-2008)
Qualifications
Ph.D. (2005): University of Freiburg Medical School, Freiburg, Germany
M.Sc. (2000): Indian Institute of Technology (IIT-B), Mumbai,India , in 2000
B.Sc. (1998): Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, India , in 1998
Research Interests
Modulation of innate immune cell activity (macrophages & microglia) through ATP and its metabolites
Mitochondrial dynamics during early neurodegeneration
Metastasis and tumor control through P2 receptor modulation
Recent Publications
Rahman MM, Sircar A, Lakhina S, Kumar P, Gupta RD & Akundi RS. Ecto-5'-nucleotidase/CD73 reduces COX-2 expression in activated macrophages. Scientific Reports (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-34809-3.
Ghimeray K, Sharma S, Rahman MM, Kundu S & Akundi RS. P2Y6 receptor inhibition arrests tumors cell progression in a mouse lymphoma model. Nucleosides Nucleotides & Nucleic Acids (2025), 7:1-19. DOI: 10.080/15257770.2025.2584080.
Rahman MM & Akundi RS. CD73-enriched extracellular vesicles reduce cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2)-mediated inflammation in activated macrophages. Biochemical & Biophysical Research Communications (2025), 788:152845. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2025.152845.
Sharma S, Ghimeray K, Rahman MM, Upadrasta A & Akundi RS. P2Y12 receptor-mediated cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) expression enhances tumor cell progression in a mouse model of lymphoma. Purinergic Signaling (2024), 21(3):447-464. DOI: 10.1007/s11302-024-10057-4. [Read here: https://rdcu.be/dYrHF]
Sharma S, Kalra H & Akundi RS. Extracellular ATP mediates cancer cell migration and invasion through increased expression of cyclooxygenase 2. Frontiers in Pharmacology (2021), 11:617211. DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2020.617211.
Sharma RK, Singh M, Ghimeray K, Juneja P, Dev G, Pulavarthi S, Reddy SR & Akundi RS. Imidazopyridazine acetylcholinesterase inhibitors display potent anti-proliferative effects in the human neuroblastoma cell-line, IMR-32. Molecules (2021), 26(17):5319. DOI: 10.3390/molecules26175319.
Raj K & Akundi RS. Mutant ataxin-3 containing aggregates (MATAGGs) in spinocerebellar ataxia type 3: dynamics of the disorder. Molecular Neurobiology (2021), 58(7):3095-3118. DOI: 10.1007/s12035-021-02314-z.
Akter S, Sharma RK, Sharma S, Rastogi S, Fiebich BL & Akundi RS. Exogenous ATP modulates prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) release in macrophages through sustained phosphorylation of CDK9 and p38 MAPK. Journal of Leukocyte Biology (2021), 110(4):663-677. DOI: 10.1002/JLB.3A1219-697RR.
Agnihotri SK, Sun L, Yee BK, Shen R, Akundi RS, Zhi L, Duncan MJ, Cass WA & Bueler H. Pink1 deficiency is associated with increased deficits of adult hippocampal neurogenesis and lowers the threshold for stress-induced depression in mice. Behavioural Brain Research (2019), 363:161-172. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2019.02.006
Sharma S & Akundi RS. Mitochondria: A connecting link in the major depressive disorder jigsaw. Current Neuropharmacology (2019) 17(6):550-562. DOI: 10.2174/1570159X16666180302120322
Sharma RK, Candelario-Jalil E, Feineis D, Bringmann G, Fiebich BL & Akundi RS. 1-trichloromethyl-1,2,34-tetrahydro-beta-carboline (TaClo) alters cell cycle progression in human neuroblastoma cell lines. Neurotoxicology Research (2017), 32(4):649-660. DOI: 10.1007/s12640-017-9782-1
Fiebich BL, Akter S, Akundi RS. The two-hit hypothesis for neuroinflammation: role of exogenous ATP in modulating inflammation in the brain. Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience (2014) 8, 260. DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2014.00260
Ellis GI, Zhi L, Akundi R, Bueler H, Marti F. Mitochondrial and cytosolic roles of PINK1 shape induced regulatory T cell development and function. European Journal of Immunology (2013) 43:3355-60.
Akundi RS, Zhi L, Bueler H. Pink1 enhances insulin-like growth factor 1–dependent Akt signalling and protection against apoptosis. Neurobiology of Disease (2012), 45(1): 469-78. DOI: 10.1016/j.nbd.2011.08.034
Back SA, Craig A, Ling Luo N, Ren J, Akundi RS, Ribeiro I, Rivkees SA. Protective effects of caffeine on chronic hypoxia-induced perinatal white matter injury. Annals of Neurology (2006), 60:696-705. DOI: 10.1002/ana.21008
Akundi RS, Candelario-Jalil E, Hess S, Hüll M, Lieb K, Gebicke-Haerter P, Fiebich BL. Signal transduction pathways regulating cyclooxygenase-2 in primary rat microglia. Glia (2005), 51:199-208. DOI: 10.1002/glia.20198
Awards & Honours
"P2 receptor-based
anti-inflammatory drugs (PBAIDs): Potential therapeutic agents against
sinonasal undifferentiated carcinoma" by Cayman Biomedical Research Institute (CABRI), Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA (2022-24)
“Investigating the role of exogenous ATP in cancer metastasis” by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Government of India (2017-2020)
“Investigating the role of exogenous ATP in modulating inflammation in the rodent brain” from Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB), Government of India (2017-2020)
“Sickle cell anaemia and its coexistence with alpha and beta thalassemia in a cohort of indigenous Tharu population of Nepal:Implications for the South Asian region” from Institute for South Asian Studies, South Asian University, New Delhi (2016-2018)
Parkinson’s Action Network Scholarship, Parkinson’s Action Network, Washington DC, USA (2012)
Heritage Post-doctoral Fellowship, American Heart Association, USA (2006-08)
