Profile
I graduated from Kurukshetra University in 2010 with a Bioinformatics degree. After earning my master's degree in biotechnology from Guru Jambheshwar University of Science & Technology in Hisar in 2012, I began working as a quality control biologist at the National Institute of Biologicals, Government of India, where I developed an interest in neurotherapy. Later, in 2019, I received my PhD from the Department of Biochemistry at Panjab University in Chandigarh, where I discovered transsulfuration pathway targeted interventions as potential cures for inflammatory and neurological disorders. Later, from 2019 to 2021, I received postdoctoral training at the College of Pharmacy, University of Kentucky (USA), where I studied the pharmacogenomics of substance use disorders, particularly nicotine and opioid use disorders. In August 2021, I returned to India and began working as an MK Bhan Young Researcher Fellow at NABI, eventually becoming Scientist C. My research group's goal is to understand the pathological mechanisms that drive compulsive eating behaviour and palatable food addiction. Another area of study is to develop designer diets and foods to improve the innate immune response and cognitive abilities of healthy people, as well as precision therapeutics to treat neurological and inflammatory disorders.
Current Focus Areas
Neuroinflammatory correlates of compulsive eating disorders and palatable food addiction
Immunometabolic reprogramming for better immunity and mental health
Designer diets and foods as precision therapeutics for inflammatory and neurological disorders
Selected Publications
Kumar M, Bhatt B, Mahajan N, Gusain C, Bishnoi M (2024). Sex-specific effects of ketogenic diet on anxiety-like behaviour and neuroimmune response in C57Bl/6J Mice. The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry. 127:109591, PMID: 38311044.
Kumar M, Gusain C, Bhatt B, Lal R, Bishnoi M (2024). Sex-specific effects of Sucrose Withdrawal on Anxiety-like Behaviour and Neuroimmune Response. Neuropharmacology. 15:249:109868, PMID: 38403263
Kumar M, Keady J, Aryal S, Alpers MH, Richards CI, Turner JR (2023). The Role of Microglia in Sex- and Region-Specific Blood-Brain Barrier Integrity During Nicotine Withdrawal. Biological Psychiatry: Global Open Science. 4(1):182-193, PMID: 38298802.
Kumar M, Williams K, Lyle J, Vassoler FM, Turner JR (2021). Sexually Dimorphic Neuroimmune Response to Chronic Opioid Treatment and Withdrawal. Neuropharmacology. 186:10846, PMID: 33485944
Kumar M, Arora A, Sandhir R (2020). Hydrogen sulfide attenuates LPS-induced behavioral deficits by suppressing microglia activation and promoting M2 polarization. Journal of Neuroimmune Pharmacology. 16(2):483-499, PMID: 32676889.