Graduate Lab Members

Karthickeyan Chella Krishnan, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator

Karthick was a Biotechnology major from India who then received his PhD in Systems Genetics from the University of Cincinnati in 2015, under the expert mentorship of Dr. Malak Kotb. He then completed his postdoctoral training with Dr. Jake Lusis in the Department of Medicine/Cardiology at the University of California, Los Angeles in 2021. In February 2021, he joined the Department of Pharmacology and Systems Physiology and is currently an Assistant Professor. I started out as an engineer, then a microbiologist and now a metabolism guy. I wonder what the future holds for me. I love gaming (PlayStation and board games), reading manga and binge-watching anime series.

Brook Hemmelgarn, B.S.

Lab Manager

Brook graduated with a Bachelor of Science from the University of Cincinnati in the spring of 2023. She earned her degree in Biological Sciences with a specialization in Cell & Molecular Biology. Brook is particularly interested in genetics and neurobiology, as well as learning more about how sex differences influence mitochondrial function & susceptibility to disease. She plans to obtain a PhD in the future. I enjoy sci-fi movies, reading mystery novels, and playing board games with friends. I spend most of my free time adventuring with my dog or watching cooking shows to discover new recipes. My guilty pleasure is hot sauce!

Noble Kumar Talari, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Noble received his PhD from the University of Hyderabad, India. He then completed his first Postdoctoral fellowship under the mentorship of Prof. Naresh Babu Sepuri, where he studied the role of mitochondria in liver metabolism. Currently, he is interested in understanding the role of peridroplet mitochondria in metabolic disorders such as obesity and MASLD. He would further like to decode the key events with respect to mitochondrial metabolism that drive sex differences in these metabolic disorders. I live in a fantasy world where I can communicate with cells, organelles, lipid droplets and mitochondria through my dreams. Sometimes, I get answers for my experiments through my dreams. It is funny but it is real. I love to read publications and discuss about science. Also, I enjoy listening to music and I am a singer too.

Ushodaya Mattam, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Ushodaya received her PhD from the University of Hyderabad, India. She worked as a National Postdoctoral Fellow (DST-SERB-NPDF) with Prof. Naresh Babu V. Sepuri. She successfully completed a DBT (India) funded project as a principal investigator, where she studied the role of neuropeptides in mitochondrial homeostasis. Currently, she is interested in understanding CNS regulation on liver lipid and energy metabolism in MASLD. Apart from research, I love cooking and listening to music. I am a proud mother and I enjoy spending time with my son.

Ashish Rao Sathayanarayana, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Ashish received his PhD from Taipei Medical University under the mentorship of Prof. Hui Kang Liu, where he studied the role of Chinese herbal drugs used in treating obesity-induced diabetes and other metabolic complications. Currently, he is interested in understanding the role of liver pyruvate kinase in cholesterol metabolism. He would further like to decode the key events with respect to mitochondrial metabolism in sex-specific metabolic disorders. I enjoy traveling, hiking, and camping. I adore spending good moments with friends. I enjoy cooking and can prepare a variety of cuisines. In my spare time, I enjoy reading (apart from research). I was a basketball player and am also proficient in badminton. I'm outgoing and enjoy socializing.

James Frazier, M.S.

Ph.D. Student

James is a PhD student in the Pharmacology and Systems Physiology program here at the University of Cincinnati School of Medicine. Following completion of his BS degree in exercise physiology at West Virginia University, he immediately sought a thesis-track MS degree in exercise physiology. During this time, he worked in a basic vascular biology lab under the expert mentorship of Drs. Mark Olfert and Paul Chantler. James arrived at UC in July 2023, bringing with him a deep passion for the cardiovascular system. Joining K Lab provides James with the opportunity to further develop his research experience by learning the concepts of mitochondrial and molecular biology work. Currently, he is interested in understanding the roles of mitochondria and sex differences in the context of cardiometabolic diseases such as heart failure with preserved ejection fraction and atherosclerosis. My first ever passion in life was the sport of wrestling, as it allowed me to be able to achieve a very high level of success. In hindsight, those achievements are meaningless; however, the core values and lessons that I obtained during that time were priceless. Here are some of my favorites: always having fun with daily goal-driven work, buying in and being a team player, taking value in only achievements which you have earned, and struggling through adversity to get the next best thing when you fail.

Zoe Paxhia-Poppaw, B.S.

Ph.D. Student

Zoe graduated from Wright State University in the spring of 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Biological Sciences. She received General Honors and graduated Summa Cum Laude. Zoe was also a member of the Wright State Women’s Bowling team. Zoe is currently enrolled in the Molecular Genetics, Biochemistry, and Microbiology PhD program at the University of Cincinnati. She plans to investigate sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease mouse models during her time in the program. I enjoy listening to music and playing old Wii games. Most of my free time is spent going out with my friends, cuddling with my cat, George, or watching YouTube deep dive videos. I do the NYT mini crossword and connections every day. My favorite food is chicken tenders.