Pavithra Viswanath

Dr. Pavithra Viswanath is an Associate Professor in the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at UCSF. Her research focuses on leveraging tumor genetics and biology to develop non-invasive metabolic imaging biomarkers and therapeutic targets for brain tumors. She holds a PhD in Biochemistry from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. Her work integrates preclinical models with advanced imaging techniques like hyperpolarized 13C-MRS and deuterium metabolic imaging to assess tumor burden and therapy response. She has received awards including the 2019 Women in Neuro-Oncology Basic/Translational Science Research Award and multiple NIH grants. Her lab collaborates with clinical teams to translate findings into clinical applications.

• Education:
  • PhD in Biochemistry, Indian Institute of Science (2007)
  • MS in Biochemistry, Indian Institute of Science (2003)
  • BS in Microbiology, St. Xavier's College (2000)

Her research interests include cancer metabolism, metabolic imaging biomarkers, and precision medicine for brain tumors. Recent work highlights synthetic lethality in glioblastoma and imaging TERT expression. Key achievements include identifying metabolic vulnerabilities and developing imaging strategies to monitor therapy response. She leads NIH-funded projects and collaborates on drug discovery and imaging development. Her lab includes postdocs and staff specializing in MRI, mass spectrometry, and metabolic analysis.

Grants & Awards:

• NIH R01 for identifying telomere maintenance mechanisms (2020–2025)
• DoD Idea Award for TERT expression imaging (2020)
• Multiple career enhancement awards from UCSF Brain Tumor Center

Labs & Teams: Co-director of the Cancer Metabolic Imaging and Therapy Lab (Viswanath & Ronen Labs), focusing on integrated preclinical and clinical research in metabolic imaging and therapy.