K. Sreekumaran Nair
Professor of Medicine
State University of New York at Albany
London, UK
Biography
The research program of K Sreekumaran Nair, M.D., Ph.D., has focused on the role of energy metabolism and the importance of altered protein turnover in diabetes and aging. Energy metabolism studies are performed mainly in mitochondria isolated from skeletal muscle biopsy samples. Specific methods include mitochondrial respiration, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) production rates, oxidant production, mitochondrial DNA abundance and mutations.
Research Interest
Dr. Nair's research team also investigates the impact of various interventions of the regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis. Analytical methods such as mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy allow the team to study metabolic consequences of altered energy and protein metabolism. Much of the team's work involves the use of stable isotope tracers to label proteins in vivo and study synthesis and accumulation of individual proteins. Post-translational modifications, especially carbonylation and deamidation, also are studied by mass spectrometry.