Gurudutt Pendyala

Gurudutt Pendyala, PhD, is the Robert Lieberman Endowed Professor of Anesthesiology and a full Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of Nebraska Medical Center's College of Medicine. He maintains an additional appointment as Adjunct Professor in the Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Anatomy, reflecting his interdisciplinary research approach.

His research program investigates neurobiological mechanisms of addiction through several interconnected domains:

• Neuroinflammatory responses to psychostimulants (methamphetamine, nicotine) and opioids at synaptic levels
• Impacts of prenatal drug exposure on fetal synaptic development
• Sex-specific differences in substance abuse neurobiology
• MicroRNA-mediated synaptic regulation in addiction
• Extracellular vesicles as biomarkers and mediators in drug addiction and HIV-associated neuropathology

Dr. Pendyala's recent publications (2021) demonstrate consistent focus on opioid/psychostimulant research using systems biology, epigenetic analysis, and transgenerational models. These works collectively highlight his laboratory's expertise in molecular neuroscience and neuropharmacology.

He has been honored with the Robert Lieberman Endowed Professorship in recognition of his scientific contributions. His research is supported by three active NIH grants:

• R01DA059177 (2023-2026): Investigating placental/fetal alterations from maternal oxycodone exposure
• R21ES034956 (2023-2025): Examining extracellular vesicle-mediated neurotoxicity of deltamethrin
• R01DA046852 (2018-2023): Exploring extracellular vesicles in methamphetamine relapse mechanisms and sex differences