Mohanish Deshmukh

Mohanish Deshmukh, PhD is the William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Physiology at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. He also serves as Co-Director of the UNC MD/PhD Program and is affiliated with the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center. His research focuses on mechanisms of cell survival and death in neurons, stem cells, and cancer cells.

Education:

• Bachelor’s Degree, St. Xavier’s College, 1986
• PhD, Carnegie Mellon University, 1994
• Postdoctoral Research, Washington University, 1994–2000

Research Interests: Dr. Deshmukh studies how cells regulate apoptosis in dynamic contexts such as development, aging, and disease. Key areas include:

• Neuronal survival mechanisms during neurodegeneration (e.g., Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s)
• Apoptosis restriction in postmitotic neurons
• Exploiting survival pathways to combat brain tumors while sparing neurons
• Axon pruning mechanisms in neurons and cancer models

Awards:

• Mentor of the Year Award (2012)
• Teaching Excellence Award (2004)
• Burroughs Wellcome New Investigator Award (2001–2003)

Lab & Grants: The Deshmukh Lab actively recruits graduate students and postdocs for projects on axon pruning and neurodegeneration. A new grant supports research using microfluidic chambers and mouse models to explore synaptic pruning mechanisms.

Labs/Teams: Deshmukh Lab (website: deshmukhlab.web.unc.edu) focuses on translational research bridging basic cell biology and clinical applications in neuroscience and oncology.