Anumantha Kanthasamy

Anumantha Kanthasamy is the Johnny Isakson Distinguished Professor and Director of the Isakson Center for Neurological Disease Research at the University of Georgia's College of Veterinary Medicine. He holds the Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar title and leads a lab focused on neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Parkinson’s Disease (PD). His research integrates molecular mechanisms of neurotoxicity, protein aggregation, mitochondrial dysfunction, and translational biomarker development.

• Affiliations: Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Isakson Center for Neurological Disease Research, University of Georgia
• Education: PhD in Biochemistry (University of Madras), Postdoctoral training in Pharmacology at Purdue University

Research Interests include: neurotoxicant-induced dopaminergic degeneration, α-synuclein aggregation pathways, mitochondrial dysfunction in neurodegeneration, and development of biomarkers and therapies targeting PD. His work bridges basic science and clinical translation, including live-bacterial L-DOPA therapy and exosome-based diagnostics.

Key Contributions include identifying PKCδ as a key mediator of oxidative stress-induced neuronal death, discovering manganese’s role in protein aggregation via prion protein interactions, and pioneering RT-QuIC-based detection of α-synuclein in skin and biofluids.

Scientific Awards: Multiple NIH grants (NIEHS, NINDS), DoD funding, MJFF support, and recognition as an NAI Fellow.

Advising & Grants: Trained over 30 PhD students, leads a 25-member lab, and has secured continuous federal funding for over two decades. Current projects include drug discovery targeting Kv1.3 and PKD1 pathways.

Labs/Teams: Kanthasamy Lab at UGA, Isakson Center collaborations, and partnerships with industry for translational drug development.