Researcher profile

Shyam Mohapatra

Shyam S. Mohapatra is Distinguished Health Professor; director of the Division of Translational Medicine and of the Center for Research and Education in Nanobioengineering at the University of South Florida (USF) Department of Internal Medicine, where he has been a faculty member since 1996; and a professor in the institute. Recipient of two international awards (Alexander Von Humboldt Research Fellow and Pharmacia Allergy Research Foundation Award) early in his career, in the last two decades, he has been internationally recognized for his many inventions in the field of nanoscale biomedical diagnostics and therapeutics in cancers, asthma, viral infections, and traumatic brain injury. In cancers, his inventions have led to several technology platforms and products for innovative anti-cancer drug discovery, drug development, and personalized cancer treatment. His research has brought USF over $26 million in extramural funds, and he has published over 200 papers and holds over 35 U.S. and foreign patents. He is also the founding associate dean of graduate programs at the USF College of Pharmacy and has established a cutting-edge, highly innovative Master of Science program in pharmaceutical nanotechnology. As a research career scientist at the James A. Haley VA Hospital in Tampa, Dr. Mohapatra has recently founded a Veteran Affairs cellgenomics collaborative on colorectal cancers (VA4C), which includes clinical and research investigators from about a dozen VA hospitals/universities in the nation, which aims to utilize cellgenomic approach to individualize cancer treatment. His research has spawned inventions that have spun out companies. He co-founded Transgenex Nanobiotech Inc, a USF spin-out company that focuses on commercializing nanoscale innovations. He is a Charter Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors; a fellow of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, American Association of Medical and Biological Engineers, and American Association of Advancement of Science; and is a 2014 inductee of the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame. He obtained his Ph.D. from the Australian National University, Canberra, Australia, and his MBA from the University of South Florida.