Nagarajan Kannan

Nagarajan Kannan, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. He holds an administrative appointment as Senior Associate Consultant I-Research in both the Division of Experimental Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and the Department of Cancer Biology. Dr. Kannan leads the Stem Cell and Cancer Biology Laboratory, where he integrates single-cell technologies, genetic clonal tracking, and functional assays to investigate the origins of breast cancer in epithelial stem and progenitor cells.

• Ph.D. in Molecular Medicine, University of Auckland
• Postdoctoral Fellowships in Stem Cell Biology, University of British Columbia and Terry Fox Laboratory
• M.Sc. in Industrial Biotechnology, Bharathiar University
• B.Sc. in Biochemistry, The American College

Dr. Kannan's research focuses on the molecular mechanisms underlying cancer initiation, particularly in aging mammary stem and progenitor cells. His work explores lineage-specific tumor suppression, oxidative signaling in therapy resistance, and the role of clonal evolution in metastasis. His lab aims to identify pre-malignant cells in healthy tissues to enable early detection and preventive therapies for high-risk individuals.

His recent publications highlight advancements in clonal tracking, single-cell proteomics, and organoid modeling, with applications in breast, ovarian, lung, and salivary gland cancers. These studies reflect a strong emphasis on translational research, integrating mass spectrometry, DNA barcoding, and functional genomics.

• Editorial Board Member, Reactive Oxygen Species, 2015–2018
• Chair, Canadian Association of Postdoctoral Scholars, 2014–2015
• Recipient, Mitacs Elevate Postdoctoral Award, 2013–2015
• Recipient, Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship, 2011–2013
• Multiple Scholar-in-Training Awards from AACR and other societies

Dr. Kannan actively mentors trainees, serves on national grant review panels (NIH, DoD, NHMRC), and collaborates across disciplines to advance regenerative cancer medicine. His lab contributes to the Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center and the Center for Regenerative Biotherapeutics, emphasizing interdisciplinary innovation in cancer biology.