Mariana Gerschenson

Mariana Gerschenson, Ph.D.

PubMed Link to a sample list of HIV-1 research articles.

Dr. Mariana Gerschenson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine and the Cell and Molecular Biology Program at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, John A. Burns School of Medicine.

Dr. Gerschenson earned her Ph.D. in Experimental Pathology from the University of Colorado, Health Sciences Center at Denver. She completed her postdoctoral studies in Genetics and Molecular Medicine at Emory University.

Dr. Gerschenson's Web Page

Research Interests

Dr. Gerschenson is the Director of the Molecular Medicine and Infectious Diseases Laboratory and the Chair of the Cell and Molecular Biology Graduate Program.

Dr. Gerschenson is a clinical researcher who conducts translational research studies to understand the mitochondrial pathogenesis of HIV complications, such as HIV-metabolic disease (including lipoatrophy and hepatic steatosis) HIV-peripheral neuropathy, and HIV associated dementia. Dr. Gerschenson teaches Genetics to the first year medical students and the mitochondria lectures to the graduate students in the Cell and Molecular Biology Course. She trains post-doctoral fellows, graduate students, and undergraduate students in her laboratories.

She has been a leader and innovator in the field of anti-retroviral therapy and mitochondria in pre-clinical and clinical research. Dr. Gerschenson made a critical discovery in 2000 that certain HIV drugs, the nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), specifically stavudine, are organ specific in their mitochondrial toxicity. This is an essential finding in the HIV field, since different drug combinations result in different mitochondrial organ specific complications.

Dr. Gerschenson and her colleagues have shown and published that antiretroviral nucleoside analogs have mitochondrial genetic, biochemical, and morphological effects in the heart, skeletal muscle, liver, and brains of monkeys and humans treated with these drugs.

She has hypothesized that the HIV therapy and/or HIV infection are contributing to mitochondrial dysfunction by decreasing energy metabolism, and increasing oxidative stress, and apoptosis. The long-term goal of this research is to understanding the pathogenesis of these toxicities, develop biomarkers to predict these toxicities and monitor patients, and improve future drug therapies.

Internships and Fellowships

The MMID Laboratory has internship positions for undergraduate and graduate students, medical students, and postdoctoral fellowships. Please contact Dr. Gerschenson at gerschen@hawaii.edu for further information.

Contact

University of Hawaii HACRP
3675 Kilauea Avenue
Young Building, Bsmt, Room 10
Honolulu, HI 96816
Tel.: 808.441.1573
Fax: 808.735.7047
gerschen@hawaii.edu

Appointments:

Associate Professor
Department of Medicine
John A. Burns School of Medicine
University of Hawaii
Associate Professor/Chair
Cell and Molecular Biology Graduate Program
John A. Burns School of Medicine
University of Hawaii
Director

AIDS Clinical Trials Group

Director
Molecular Medicine and Infectious Diseases Laboratory
Hawaii AIDS Clinical Research Program
University of Hawaii
Director
HIV Clinical Immunology Laboratory
Hawaii AIDS Clinical Research Program
University of Hawaii
Vice President Faculty Senate
John A. Burns School of Medicine
University of Hawaii

Committees

Editor
AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses - Clinical Investigations, Complications of Therapy
2007 - present
Member
NIAAA Advisory Group on Research on HIV/AIDS and Alcohol
NIAAA, NIH
2006 - present
Co-Chair of Admissions
Cell and Molecular Biology Department
2005 - present
Admission Interviewer
John A. Burns School of Medicine
2005 - present
Member
Veteran AIDS Cohort Tissue Banking Committee
2005 - present
Member
Cardiovascular Committee, Adult AIDS Clinical Trial Group
2002 - 2005
Chartered Member
AIDS Clinical Studies and Epidemiology Study Section, CSR, NIH
2005 - 2010
Ad-hoc Member
Gene and Drug Delivery Systems Study Section, CSR, NIH
2005
Member
Delivery Systems and Nanotechnology Study Section, CSF, NIH
2006
Member
Liver Committee, AIDS Clinical Trial Group
2003
Chair
Genomics Focus Group, AIDS Clinical Trial Group
2002
Program Director
AIDS and Pharmacogenetics, Division of Heart and Vascular Diseases, NHLBI, NIH
2000 - 2002

Hawaii AIDS Clinical Research Program
	Home Our Staff Our Publications About Us: Units Contact Us Directions / Map			Mariana Gerschenson, Ph.D. PubMed Link to a sample list of HIV-1 research articles. Dr. Mariana Gerschenson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine and the Cell and Molecular Biology Program at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, John A. Burns School of Medicine. Dr. Gerschenson earned her Ph.D. in Experimental Pathology from the University of Colorado, Health Sciences Center at Denver. She completed her postdoctoral studies in Genetics and Molecular Medicine at Emory University. Dr. Gerschenson's Web Page Research Interests Dr. Gerschenson is the Director of the Molecular Medicine and Infectious Diseases Laboratory and the Chair of the Cell and Molecular Biology Graduate Program. Dr. Gerschenson is a clinical researcher who conducts translational research studies to understand the mitochondrial pathogenesis of HIV complications, such as HIV-metabolic disease (including lipoatrophy and hepatic steatosis) HIV-peripheral neuropathy, and HIV associated dementia. Dr. Gerschenson teaches Genetics to the first year medical students and the mitochondria lectures to the graduate students in the Cell and Molecular Biology Course. She trains post-doctoral fellows, graduate students, and undergraduate students in her laboratories. She has been a leader and innovator in the field of anti-retroviral therapy and mitochondria in pre-clinical and clinical research. Dr. Gerschenson made a critical discovery in 2000 that certain HIV drugs, the nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs), specifically stavudine, are organ specific in their mitochondrial toxicity. This is an essential finding in the HIV field, since different drug combinations result in different mitochondrial organ specific complications. Dr. Gerschenson and her colleagues have shown and published that antiretroviral nucleoside analogs have mitochondrial genetic, biochemical, and morphological effects in the heart, skeletal muscle, liver, and brains of monkeys and humans treated with these drugs. She has hypothesized that the HIV therapy and/or HIV infection are contributing to mitochondrial dysfunction by decreasing energy metabolism, and increasing oxidative stress, and apoptosis. The long-term goal of this research is to understanding the pathogenesis of these toxicities, develop biomarkers to predict these toxicities and monitor patients, and improve future drug therapies. Internships and Fellowships The MMID Laboratory has internship positions for undergraduate and graduate students, medical students, and postdoctoral fellowships. Please contact Dr. Gerschenson at gerschen@hawaii.edu for further information. Contact University of Hawaii HACRP 3675 Kilauea Avenue Young Building, Bsmt, Room 10 Honolulu, HI 96816 Tel.: 808.441.1573 Fax: 808.735.7047 gerschen@hawaii.edu Appointments: Associate Professor Department of Medicine John A. Burns School of Medicine University of Hawaii Associate Professor/Chair Cell and Molecular Biology Graduate Program John A. Burns School of Medicine University of Hawaii Director Mitochondrial Medicine Laboratory AIDS Clinical Trials Group National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, NIH Director Molecular Medicine and Infectious Diseases Laboratory Hawaii AIDS Clinical Research Program University of Hawaii Director HIV Clinical Immunology Laboratory Hawaii AIDS Clinical Research Program University of Hawaii Vice President Faculty Senate John A. Burns School of Medicine University of Hawaii Committees Editor AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses - Clinical Investigations, Complications of Therapy 2007 - present Member NIAAA Advisory Group on Research on HIV/AIDS and Alcohol NIAAA, NIH 2006 - present Co-Chair of Admissions Cell and Molecular Biology Department 2005 - present Admission Interviewer John A. Burns School of Medicine 2005 - present Member Veteran AIDS Cohort Tissue Banking Committee 2005 - present Member Cardiovascular Committee, Adult AIDS Clinical Trial Group 2002 - 2005 Chartered Member AIDS Clinical Studies and Epidemiology Study Section, CSR, NIH 2005 - 2010 Ad-hoc Member Gene and Drug Delivery Systems Study Section, CSR, NIH 2005 Member Delivery Systems and Nanotechnology Study Section, CSF, NIH 2006 Member Liver Committee, AIDS Clinical Trial Group 2003 Chair Genomics Focus Group, AIDS Clinical Trial Group 2002 Program Director AIDS and Pharmacogenetics, Division of Heart and Vascular Diseases, NHLBI, NIH 2000 - 2002

Hawaii AIDS Clinical Research Program