Gaurav Sharma

Gaurav Sharma is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center, where his research bridges metabolic imaging and clinical cardiothoracic surgery to develop novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches for cardiovascular diseases.

Education:

• B.Sc. in Biological Sciences
• M.Sc. in Biotechnology
• Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), specializing in NMR and LCMS metabolomics for anticancer drug response
• MBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology, Washington, DC

His laboratory investigates altered metabolic states in cardiovascular and metabolic diseases using hyperpolarized ¹³C magnetic resonance spectroscopy, metabolomics, and molecular techniques. This work focuses on real-time assessment of metabolic fluxes in cardiac tissue, with direct clinical integration to improve surgical decision-making and patient outcomes in heart transplantation and cancer therapy.

Analysis of his 27+ publications reveals a cohesive trajectory in metabolic imaging, particularly using hyperpolarized ¹³C probes to study mitochondrial function, redox states, and substrate utilization across cardiovascular, renal, and oncological contexts. His work consistently translates basic metabolic discoveries into clinically applicable imaging techniques.

Scientific awards:

• ICMR Predoctoral Fellowship
• AHA Postdoctoral Fellowship
• AHA Second Century Early Faculty Independence Award

Dr. Sharma actively contributes to academic service as editorial board member for The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation-Open, Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine, and six other journals, while performing peer review for over 40 international publications. His lab at UT Southwestern's Advanced Imaging Research Center develops next-generation metabolic imaging tools with direct applications in cardiothoracic surgery and transplantation medicine.