Faculty

Bio

Pranava Sinha, MD, has been appointed as the new Division Chief and Professor of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery in the Department of Surgery at the University of Minnesota Medical School and the M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital. Dr. Sinha will serve a critical role in building and co-leading an interdisciplinary team to provide exemplary patient care and family experience. He will be Co-director of the Heart Center at the M Health Fairview Masonic Children's Hospital and the inaugural holder of the John Bass Chair in Pediatric Cardiovascular Health.

Research Summary

Dr. Sinha's clinical focus lies in early primary repair of neonatal and infant heart defects and heart transplantation.

Clinical Summary

Dr. Sinha's clinical focus lies in early primary repair of neonatal and infant heart defects and heart transplantation.

Bio

Wayne Soon is an Associate Professor in the Program of the History of Medicine in the Department of Surgery and the Program of History of Science, Medicine, and Technology. He received his B.A. from Carleton College and his Ph.D. in history from Princeton University and previously taught at Earlham College and Vassar College.

Dr. Soon is a historian of medicine as well as modern China and Taiwan, with an interest in how international ideas and practices of medicine, institutional building, and diaspora have shaped Chinese East Asia’s interaction with its people and the world in the twentieth century. His book, Global Medicine in China: A Diasporic History (Stanford University Press, 2020), tells the global health history of Chinese East Asia through the lens of diasporic Chinese medical personnel, who were central in introducing new practices of military medicine, blood banking, mobile medicine, and mass medical training to China and Taiwan. Universal care, practical medical education, and mobile medicine are all lasting legacies of this effort on both sides of the Taiwan Straits.

His current research projects centers around the history of health insurance and medical practices in postwar China and Taiwan and the transpacific history of SARS and COVID-19. He is also the editor for a forthcoming special issue in the East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal entitled “Biogeopolitics of Health Insurance in East and Southeast Asia.”

Dr. Soon is a frequent contributor to The Diplomat, a Washington D.C. based current affairs magazine. He has also published scholarly articles in Bulletin of the History of Medicine, Twentieth Century China, American Journal of Chinese Studies, and East Asian Science, Technology and Society: An International Journal.

Research Summary

History of Global Health; History of Medicine in China; History of Health Insurance; History of SARS and COVID-19

Selected Publications:

Global Medicine in China: A Diasporic History, Stanford CA: Stanford University Press, 2020. 

Transpacific Taiwanese Americans and the Global Fight against Covid-19, Global China Pulse 2, no. 1 (2023): 104-113. 

Military Medicine in East Asia: Histories of Instrumentalism, Resistance, and Agency, East Asian Science, Technology, and Society 17, no. 2 (2023): 222-231.

From SARS to COVID-19: Rethinking Global Health Lessons from Taiwan, East Asian Science, Technology, and Society 14, no. 4 (2020): 647–655.

“Taiwan as Study Abroad,” American Journal for Chinese Studies, 27, no. 1 (April 2020): 66–68.

“Blood, Soy Milk, and Vitality: The Wartime Origins of Blood Banking in China, 1943–45,” Bulletin of the History of Medicine 90 no. 3 (2016): 424-454. (Article was awarded the Zhu Kezhen Junior Scholar Prize by ISHEASTM in 2019)

“Science, Medicine, and Confucianism in the Making of China and Southeast Asia – Lim Boon Keng and the Overseas Chinese, 1897 to 1937,” Twentieth-Century China 39, no. 1 (2014): 24-43.

Teaching Summary

History of Medicine; History of Infectious Disease; History of Modern China and Taiwan; History of Global Health; History of Health Insurance

Service Summary

Professional Associations

• American Association for the History of Medicine (AAHM)
• American Historical Association
• Association for Asian Studies

Research Summary

Optimization of organ donor selection Use of mechanical circulatory support perioperatively in transplant recipients Transcatheter heart valve therapies

Clinical Summary

Myocardial revascularization; Valve repair and replacement; Lung transplantation

Bio

The intestinal microbiota is a vital organ critical to the development, functioning, and health of the human the host. Our research focus is to characterize how disruptions in this community affect the onset and progression of diseases and conditions e.g., obesity, colorectal cancer, and inflammatory bowel diseases. By applying microbial ecology principles and leveraging next-generation sequencing technologies, our goal is to develop targeted, microbiota-based therapies to improve patient outcomes.

Research Summary

Microbial community dynamics related to obesity and type 2 diabetes Fecal microbiota transplantation therapies Patterns of dysbiosis related to health outcomes Network modeling of microbial communities Personalized microbiota therapeutics Microbiota interactions in solid and non-solid cancers

Bio

Awards & Recognition

• 2020 Minnesota Cardiovascular Epidemiology and Prevention Training Grant (PI: A. Folsom)
• 2020 University of Minnesota School of Public Health, J.B. Hawley Research Award (PI: Steffen)
• 2014 Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis Young Investigator Award
• 2006 American Heart Association, Pre-doctoral Fellowship Award (PI Fellow: Steffen)

Education

• MS, Clinical Research, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, MN  
• PhD, Physiology, Department of Medical Pharmacology and Physiology, University of Missouri - Columbia, MO  
• BS, Organismal Biology, University of Kansas—Lawrence, KS

Research Summary

• Identifying proteomic risk factors of cardiometabolic disease and adverse surgical outcomes
• Conducting Mendelian randomization to determine potential causality between exposure and outcome variables
• Applying these techniques to medicine and surgery to determine whether assessing plasma proteome at pre-op may predict adverse outcomes

Bio

Dr. Subramanian completed his postdoctoral fellowship at Stanford University and joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota in 2007. Dr. Subramanian has established an internationally recognized cancer research program focused on deciphering the molecular mechanisms of immune evasion in cancer. His current research focuses on understanding how cancer cells and gut microbiome manipulate the anti-tumor immune response in colorectal cancer. Specifically, Dr. Subramanian's research has shed light on how cancer cells and the gut microbiome collaborate to suppress the immune response in patients with colorectal cancer. Dr. Subramanian and his team have revealed a previously unknown mechanism affecting T cell costimulation in colorectal cancer by identifying the immune suppression mediated by cancer- secreted exosomes. These findings have immense clinical relevance, offering new insights into treating advanced-stage colorectal cancer.

Dr. Subramanian's extensive publication record, including over 120 peer-reviewed articles, attests to his high-quality research and impact. He serves as the section Editor-in-Chief of the journal Vaccines and the Associate section Editor-in-Chief of Cancers. As a co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of EV Therapeutics Inc., Dr. Subramanian is at the forefront of developing clinical-grade engineered exosomes to treat advanced-stage colorectal cancer patients. Moreover, as a leader in his field, Dr. Subramanian is dedicated to training the next generation of scientists and making a difference in people's lives. Beyond his research and teaching, Dr. Subramanian is committed to giving back to his community, a testament to his dedication to scientific advancement and social responsibility.

ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS: 

• Professor, Department of Surgery
• Member, Masonic Cancer Center
• Member, Center for Immunology
• Senior Graduate faculty, Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology (MICaB) Ph.D. Graduate Program
• Senior Graduate faculty, Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics (MPaT) Ph.D. Graduate Program
• Senior Graduate faculty, Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (BICB) Ph.D. Graduate Program 
• Director, Resident Research Enrichment Program, Department of Surgery
• Co-leader, Gastrointestinal Cancer Translational Working Group, Masonic Cancer Center 
• Faculty Director and Mentor, Proposal Preparation Program, Medical School

PUBLICATIONS

Pubmed link

Recent publications:

1. Zhao X, Yuan C, Wangmo D, Subramanian S. Tumor-secreted extracellular vesicles regulate T-cell costimulation and can be manipulated to induce tumor-specific T-cell responses. Gastroenterology 2021 161: 560-574
2. Wangmo D, Premsrirut PK, Yuan C, Morris WS, Zhao X and Subramanian S. Loss of ACKR4 in tumor cells dysregulates dendritic cell migration to tumor-draining lymph nodes and T-cell priming. Cancers 2021. 7;13(19):5021.
3. Nair, AA Tang X, Thompson KJ, Kalari KR, Subramanian S. MicroRNA response elements frequency identifies dysregulation of MAPK signaling in triple-negative breast cancer. Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1101/817098. iScience 2020 23(6):101249
4. Yuan C, Graham M, Subramanian S. Mucosal Microbiota and Metabolome along the Intestinal Tract Reveal a Location-Specific Relationship. mSystems 2020 5(3):e00055-20 5. Zhao X, Kassaye B, Wangmo D, Lou E, Subramanian S. Chemotherapy but Not the Tumor Draining Lymph Nodes Determine the Immunotherapy Response in Secondary Tumors. iScience 2020 23(5):101056

Bio

My primary focus is to provide the highest-quality and world-class patient care as well as to contribute to our field through advances in cutting-edge surgical techniques, therapeutics, devices, and tissue engineering.

Research Summary

Regenerative medicine and tissue engineering Targeted oxygen delivery with therapeutics and devices Bioengineered soft tissue and bone flap design/fabrication for the replacement of diseased or injured tissue

Research Summary

Thyroid Cancers Head & Neck Paraganglioma Hyperparathyroidism

Clinical Summary

Endocrine surgery (thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal); Head and neck cancer surgery; Melanoma; Surgical oncology

Bio

I wholeheartedly enjoy caring for patients with critical illness and emergency surgical conditions. My approach is to provide high-quality evidence-based emergency surgical and critical care to those in need. I treat every patient like I would my own family member. Dr. Tignanelli is an Acute Care Surgeon at the University of Minnesota providing trauma, emergency surgery, critical care, and ECMO care for critically ill patients. He is triple board-certified in General Surgery, Surgical Critical Care, and Clinical Informatics. His research lab, MNCCORE includes over 30 researchers developing and deploying informatics-based tools to improve the delivery of healthcare within and beyond the University of Minnesota system. His research focuses on the development and validation of machine learning and AI-enabled decision support systems as well as the implementation, user-centered design, and scaling of interoperable clinical decision support tools.

Dr. Tignanelli is the current dyad director of the University of Minnesota Center for Outcomes, Quality, Delivery and Evaluation (C-QODE). He is the current co-Director of the Federated Computer Vision in Healthcare U.S. Collaborative and faculty in the UMN Institute for Health Informatics' Natural Language Processing research lab. He is an AHRQ-funded K12 Learning Health System Scholar. His research program has since been funded by the NIH, Gates Foundation, Microsoft AI for Health, among others. He has over 70 peer-reviewed publications and has been awarded over $6 million in grant funding since 2018. In 2021, he was named a "Health Care Hero" by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal for his innovative use of AI and informatics to improve healthcare for patients with COVID-19. Dr. Tignanelli is a member of multiple informatics committees including the AHRQ evidence-based Care Transformation Support (ACTS), CDC's Adapting Clinical Guidelines for the Digital Age Initiative and the American College of Surgeons Health Information Technology (HIT) Committee.

Research Summary

Quality Improvement Patient Safety Trauma Systems Research Surgical Outcomes

Clinical Summary

Trauma, Surgical Critical Care, ECMO, Emergency general surgery

Research Summary

Outcomes after breast cancer treatment Outcomes after cytoreductive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal Surgical outcomes among Native Americans Breast cancer outcomes in Central America

Clinical Summary

Specialties: Surgical oncology, Gastrointestinal cancer, Breast cancer, Melanoma, Sarcoma Interests: Surgical oncology; Gastrointestinal cancer; Breast cancer; Melanoma; Sarcoma; Cancer care in Central America

Clinical Summary

Minimally invasive mitral valve repairs; Minimally invasive valve surgery; Aortic surgery; Coronary artery bypass grafting; Surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation; Surgical management of endocarditis; Complex redo heart surgeries; Heart transplantation; Mechanical circulatory assist devices

Bio

Dr. Watt obtained her undergraduate degree from Stanford University and medical degree from the University of Michigan. She remained at University of Michigan for Cardiothoracic Surgery Residency training as well as Advanced Heart Failure and Mitral Surgery Fellowship. During her training she also obtained a Master of Health and Healthcare Research degree from the Institute for Health Policy and Innovation and completed a fellowship in Surgical Critical Care at University of Michigan.

Dr. Watt is committed to providing evidence-based, patient-focused care in the surgical treatment of advanced heart conditions. The primary tenant of her care philosophy is always putting patients first.

Research Summary

Dr. Watt’s research interests include cardiothoracic surgical outcomes, mitral valve repair, heart failure and mechanical circulatory support, cardiac transplant recipient outcomes, organ donor optimization, surgical education, and the use of video analysis to evaluate and improve surgical skill and technique.

Clinical Summary

Coronary Revascularization (coronary artery bypass grafting); Valvular Heart Disease including Mitral Valve Repair; Aortic Surgery and Reconstruction; Heart Failure and Ventricular Assist Devices (VADs); Mechanical Circulatory Support; Heart Transplantation

Bio

I enjoy practicing medicine at the University of Minnesota, where we have every resource in place to ensure the best possible outcome for each patient. As a general and bariatric surgeon, I believe in taking a very thoughtful approach with each patient, sometimes leading to surgery but many times not. I am very involved in clinical and basic science research as well, as only through this process of discovery can we develop better treatments for the surgical disease we see on a daily basis.

Research Summary

Medical device development, physiology, clinical applications of artificial intelligence.

Clinical Summary

Bariatric Surgery; Benign diseases of the foregut; Hernia; Gallbladder; General Surgery

Bio

He received his Medical Degree from the Jefferson Medical College - Thomas Jefferson University, completed his General Surgery residency at the University of Rochester and recently completed a Cardiothoracic Fellowship with the University of Minnesota Medical School.

Dr. Wong is an expert in adult cardiac surgery, coronary artery revascularization, mechanical circulatory support, and heart and lung transplantation. He is driven to provide excellence in care to patients and teach and mentor the next generation of cardiothoracic surgeons.

Dr. Wong's research interests are focused on surgical outcomes after adult cardiac surgery, surgical education, and Mechanical Circulatory Support (ECMO/LVAD)-Medical device innovation. 

"I am excited to be joining and working with the outstanding group of individuals who comprise the Department of Surgery," said Dr. Wong. "It will be my goal to help grow the clinical, educational, and research endeavors of our Division. I thank my U of M mentors for my growth as a surgeon."

Research Summary

Surgical outcomes after adult cardiac surgery; Mechanical Circulatory Support (ECMO/LVAD)-Medical device innovation; Surgical Education

Clinical Summary

Coronary (multi-arterial) revascularization; complex aortic surgery; structural heart disease; mechanical circulatory support; heart and lung transplantation  

Research Summary

Cancer gene therapy with Adenovirus Vector Conditionally replicative adenovirus for the treatment of cancer Non-invasive in vivo molecular imaging Gene therapy of gastrointestinal diseases, pancreatic cancer, esophageal cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer, and multiple myeloma Cancer gene-therapy and virotherapy Our goal is to develop clinically usable gene-/viro-therapy modalities for solid tumors, e.g. GI cancers including pancreatic cancer. Our group has been developing cancer therapeutics with adenovirus as gene delivery tool. Current gene therapy modalities for cancer have not achieved the expected therapeutic efficiency due to disease related obstacles. Our lab is developing advanced version of adenovirus vectors and oncolytic adenoviruses by employing virological advance. We perform extensive vector engineering and produce the viruses/vectors to overcome the issues impeding clinical realization of this kind of therapeutics. Recent advances include 1) Development of adenovirus targeting ligand library and its application to the targeted delivery upon systemic administration, 2) Theranostics enables tumor imaging and tumor selective radiotherapy employing sodium-iodine symporter, 3) Combination viro-therapy with INF-alpha expressing oncolytic adenovirus and chemoradiation, 4) Development of cancer stem cell targeted oncolytic adenovirus.

Bio

Rui Zhang, PhD, FAMIA, Founding Chief of the Division of Computational Health Sciences in the News:

• Research Spotlight: Dr. Zhang Received an R01 Renewal Developing Novel AI Approach to Mine Effective & Safe Use of Dietary Supplements
• Dr. Zhang Received a New R01 to Research Drug Repurposing for Alzheimer's Disease
• U of M researchers receive $1.2M to study role of AI in breast cancer treatment
• Center for Learning Health System Sciences: All of Us Risk Modeling
• Detecting synergistic effects of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions for Alzheimer's disease and related dementia