About

Danish Khan is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biochemistry at Virginia Tech. He earned his PhD in Biochemistry from Texas A&M University in 2018, where he was mentored by Prof. Vytas A. Bankaitis. His educational background also includes a Master of Science in Biotechnology from Banaras Hindu University and a Bachelor of Science in Biochemistry from Presidency College, University of Calcutta. His research focuses on uncovering the fundamental mechanisms of proteostasis in cells experiencing stalled protein synthesis. The Khan Lab investigates ribosome-associated quality control pathways to understand how cells leverage biophysical forces to regulate mRNA-free protein synthesis and how failures in this process give rise to neurological disease. His work includes studying the regulation of stalled nascent chains by mechanical forces, mitochondrial stress responses related to translation, and the use of CRISPR activation to ameliorate disease phenotypes. Dr. Khan has published extensively on these topics, contributing to the understanding of cellular quality control mechanisms and their implications for health and disease.

Research topics

• Immunology
• Biology
• Medicine
• Chemistry
• Internal medicine
• Endocrinology

Selected publications

• Deletion of microRNA-183-96-182 Cluster in Lymphocytes Suppresses Anti-DsDNA Autoantibody Production and IgG Deposition in the Kidneys in C57BL/6-Faslpr/lpr Mice

  Frontiers in Genetics · 2022 · 8 citations

  • Immunology
  • Medicine
  • Endocrinology

  activated splenocytes from B6/lpr mice.

  PublisherDOI

• Depletion of microRNA-183-96-182 miRNA cluster in lymphocytes suppresses anti-dsDNA autoantibody production and IgG deposition in kidney in C57BL/6-Faslpr/lpr mice

  The Journal of Immunology · 2021

  • Immunology
  • Chemistry
  • Biology

  Abstract The miR-183-96-182 (miR-183C) is a highly conserved miRNA cluster among species. Our previous work found a significant upregulation of miR-183C in the splenic cells of three different murine models of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). Current studies revealed that miR-183C miRNAs are critically involved in immunity and autoimmunity. In this study, we found that inhibition of miR-182 alone or miR-183C in vitro with antagomirs significantly reduced lupus-related inflammatory cytokine IFN-γ and IL-6 in activated splenocytes from MRL or MRL/lpr mice. To further characterize the pathogenic role of miR-182 and miR-183C in lupus in vivo, we developed B6-lpr mice with conditional depletion of miR-182 or miR-183C in CD2+ lymphocyte. We found that depletion of either miR-182 or miR-183C in the lymphocytes of B6/lpr mice had no obvious effect on T and B cell development as similar percentage of CD4+. CD8+, CD19+, as well as Tregs, follicular helper T (TFH), germinal center B (GCB), and plasma cells were observed in the miR-182−/− and miR-183C−/− and their respective control. Importantly, we observed a significant reduction of serum anti-dsDNA autoantibodies in miR-183C−/− mice when compared to age-matched controls and the B6/lpr mice with miR-182 or miR-183C deficiency have significantly reduced IgG deposition in the kidneys. Meanwhile, there was reduced IFN production in ex vivo activated splenocytes from the knockout mice. Furthermore, we demonstrated that miR-182 and miR-183C regulated the inflammatory response in splenocytes via targeting forkhead box O1 (Foxo1). Together, our data suggest a potential therapeutic effect of targeting miR-183C in lupus.

  DOI

Frequent coauthors

• S. Ansar Ahmed

  Virginia–Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine

  29 shared

• Rujuan Dai

  Virginia Tech

  27 shared

• Bettina Heid

  Virginia Tech

  13 shared

• Catharine Cowan

  Colorado State University

  12 shared

• S. Ansar Ahmed

  Case Western Reserve University

  10 shared

• Ebru Karpuzoglu

  Emory University

  9 shared

• Rebecca A. Phillips

  7 shared

• Michael Edwards

  Virginia–Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine

  6 shared

Education

• PhD, Biochemistry & Biophysics

  Texas A&M University

  2018

• MSc, Biotechnology

  Banaras Hindu University

  2012

• BSc, Biochemistry

  Presidency University Kolkata

  2010

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