Rashmi S. Hegde, PhD

My career has spanned both independent research and scientific leadership, bridging basic science discovery with clinical translation. After initial training in medicinal chemistry and pharmacy (PhD, University of Pittsburgh) and structural biology (post-doc, Yale University and HHMI), I established an independent laboratory at New York University Medical Center, where we studied molecular mechanisms underlying the life- and infection-cycles of cervical cancer-associated papillomaviruses.

Moving to Cincinnati Children's in 2002 provided the exciting opportunity to adapt my research program to benefit from ready access to pediatric clinical programs. My laboratory used a combination of animal models, structure-aided mechanistic biochemistry, transcriptomics, and drug discovery to elucidate mechanisms that promote, and interventions that prevent, the pathological cell proliferation in diseases including cancer, retinopathy and pulmonary arterial hypertension. I also directed the Molecular and Developmental Biology (MDB) PhD program (now renamed the Development, Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine (DSRM) program, and was the founding director of the Biomedical Research Technologies (BMRT) MS program.

After over three decades of leading an independent, extramurally-funded research laboratory I have transitioned to serving as vice-chair for basic and data sciences at Cincinnati Children's Medical Center overseeing our Discovery Sciences research programs, chief scientific officer for our Innovation Ventures group facilitating the translation of scientific discoveries into practice through commercialization, director of the Office of Research Training and Development Programs focused on upskilling and advancing the careers of our research workforce, and director of our Office of Graduate Studies overseeing graduate programs at Cincinnati Children's. In these roles I continue my deep commitment to research, innovation and translation as well as fostering the training and development of the next generation of scientists.