Ravinder Nagpal, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor

rnagpal@fsu.edu

Vita

ravinder headshot

Get to know Dr. Nagpal

Interests

My research focuses on understanding the casual versus causal role of the gut microbiome, mycobiome and metabolome in host aging-associated intestinal and neurocognitive health. The long-term goals of my research program are to identify dysbiotic signatures and underlying mechanisms of gut commensal/beneficial microbes, indigenous/opportunistic pathobionts, and microbial metabolites, and to harness this knowledge to develop novel nutritional/pharmacological interventions to foster a healthier microbiome and suppress ‘pathobiome’, thereby ameliorating neurodegenerative and cardiometabolic diseases including Alzheimer’s disease and diabesity, respectively. Specifically, the ongoing research in my Nutrition-Microbiome lab is centered on understanding (a) the role of specific gut pathobiome signatures in host neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease, (b) the interaction of gut microbiome with specific dietary constituents and pre/probiotics in context to host cardiometabolic and neurodegenerative health, and (c) the elements of maternal-neonatal microbiome interface in relation to developmental origins of health and disease. One of my lab’s fortes is our extensive collaborative endeavors and networks to foster and team up multidisciplinary alliances with experts in gerontology, neuroscience, microbiology, nutrition/food sciences, cell/molecular biology, immunology, and sepsis, with the ultimate aim to obtain high-throughput and comprehensive insights into this intricate and fascinating area of research.

Education

  • Postdoc training (Microbiome): Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
  • Postdoc training (Infant Microbiome): Juntendo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
  • PhD (Dairy Microbiology): National Dairy Research Institute, Karnal, India
  • MS (Microbiology): Bundelkhand University, Jhansi, India
  • BS (Life Sciences): DS College, Karnal, India

Accomplishments

  • Young Investigator Grant Award: Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) 2021.
  • Early Investigator Grant Award: Almond Board of California (ABC-USDA) 2022.
  • Robert B. Bradley Library Research Award, Florida State University, Tallahassee, USA. 2021
  • Paper of Distinction recognition: European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition (ESPGHAN), Prague, Czech Republic. 2017.
  • Best Paper Award: European Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition (ESPGHAN); Athens, Greece. 2016.
  • Young Investigator Award: Microbiota and Probiotic Science Foundation, Bangaluru, India. 2012.
  • Best Paper Award: Indian Dairy Association (IDA), Goa, India. 2009.
  • Junior Researcher Scholarship: Asian Federation of Societies of Lactic Acid Bacteria (AFSLAB), Singapore. 2009.
  • Doctoral Scholarship: Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Government of India, 2004-2008.

Membership

  • American Society for Nutrition (ASN)
  • International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUCN)
  • Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA)
  • The U.S. Shock Society
  • International Association for Food Protection (IAFP)
  • International Scientific Association of Probiotics & Prebiotics (ISAPP)
  • Association of Microbiologists of India (AMI)
  • International Probiotics Association (IPA)

Editorial Board Membership

  • Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience
  • Molecular Psychology
  • Frontiers in Nutrition
  • Nutrients

Journal Peer Review Service

  • Nature Communications; Advanced Science; Microbiome; Gut Microbes; Gut Microbiome; EBioMedicine; Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA); Journal of Alzheimer’s disease; iScience; Clinical Nutrition; FEMS Microbiology; Journal of the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics; BMC Microbiology; Food Research International; Scientific Reports; Clinical & Translational Medicine; Nutrients; mSystems; Neurogastroenterology & Motility; American Journal of Primatology; Journal of Functional Foods; Nutritional Neuroscience.

Teaching

  • Nutrition and Microbiome (HUN 5938)
  • The Science of Nutrition (HUN 1201)

Research Support

  • United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
  • Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA)
  • Almond Board of California (ABC-USDA)
  • Yakult Probiotics Research Laboratory, Tokyo
  • FSU Council on Research and Creativity
  • FSU Institute for Successful Longevity
  • Southern Shrimp Alliance, Florida, USA

Selected Pubs and Other Scholarly Activities

For a complete list see PubMed or Google Scholar.

  1. Kadyan S, Sharma A, Arjmandi BH, Singh P, Nagpal R. Prebiotic potential of dietary beans and pulses and their resistant starch for aging-associated gut and metabolic health. Nutrients. 2022;14(9):1726.
  2. Clark M, Centner AM, Ukhanov V, Nagpal R, Salazar G. Gallic acid ameliorates atherosclerosis and vascular senescence and remodels the microbiome in a sex-dependent manner in ApoE-/- mice. Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry 2022;110:109132.
  3. Bhattacharya SS, Yadav B, Rosen L, Nagpal R, Yadav H, Yadav JS. Crosstalk between gut microbiota and lung inflammation in murine toxicity models of respiratory exposure or co-exposure to carbon nanotube particles and cigarette smoke extract. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology. 2022 Jul 15;447:116066.
  4. Srivastava U, Nataraj BH, Kumari M, Kadyan S, Puniya AK, Behare PV, Nagpal R. Antioxidant and immunomodulatory potency of Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus NCDC24 fermented milk-derived peptides: A computationally guided in-vitro and ex-vivo investigation. Peptides. 2022; 155:170843.
  5. Singh S, Sharma P, Pal N, Kumawat M, Shubham S, Sarma DK, Tiwari RR, Kumar M, Nagpal R. Impact of environmental pollutants on gut microbiome and mental health via the gut-brain axis. Microorganisms. 2022; 10(7):1457.
  6. Kumar M, James MM, Kumawat M, Nabi B, Sharma P, Pal N, Shubham S, Tiwari RR, Sarma DK, Nagpal R. Aging and microbiome in the modulation of vaccine efficacy. Biomedicines. 2022; 10(7):1545.
  7. Velez F, Bosilevac JM, Delannoy S, Fach P, Nagpal R, Singh P. Development and validation of high-resolution melting assays for the detection of potentially virulent strains of Escherichia coli O103 and O121. Food Control 2022; 139:109095.
  8. James MM, Pal N, Sharma P, Kumawat M, Shubham S, Verma, V, Tiwari RR, Singh B, Nagpal R, Sarma DK, Kumar M. Role of butyrogenic firmicutes in type-2 diabetes. Journal of Diabetes & Metabolic Disorders 2022; 1-10.
  9. Kumar M, Pal N, Sharma P, Kumawat M, Sarma DK, Nabi B, Verma V, Tiwari RR, Shubham S, Arjmandi B, Nagpal R. Omega-3 fatty acids and their interaction with the gut microbiome in the prevention and amelioration of type-2 diabetes. Nutrients. 2022 Apr 21;14(9):1723.
  10. Sarma DK, Kumar M, Dhurve J, Pal N, Sharma P, James MM, Das D, Mishra S, Shubham S, Kumawat M, Verma V, Tiwari RR, Nagpal R, Marotta F. Influence of host blood meal source on gut microbiota of wild caught Aedes aegypti, a dominant arboviral disease vector. Microorganisms. 2022 Feb 1;10(2):332.
  11. Rejeski JJ, Wilson FM, Nagpal R, Yadav H, Weinberg RB. The impact of a Mediterranean diet on the gut microbiome in healthy human subjects. Digestion 2021 Nov 8:1-8.
  12. Nagpal R, Indugu N, Singh P. Distinct Gut microbiota signatures in mice treated with commonly used food preservatives. Microorganisms. 2021 Nov 7;9(11):2311.
  13. Kumari M, Singh P, Nataraj BH, Kokkiligadda A, Naithani H, Azmal Ali S, Behare PV, Nagpal R. Fostering next-generation probiotics in human gut by targeted dietary modulation: An emerging perspective. Food Res Int. 2021 Dec;150(Pt A):110716.
  14. Sharma L, Nagpal R, Jackson CR, Patel D, Singh P. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria and gut microbiome communities associated with wild-caught shrimp from the United States versus imported farm-raised retail shrimp. Scientific Reports 2021; 11(1):1-14.
  15. Kumar S, Nagpal R, Kumar A, Ashraf MU, Bae YS. Immunotherapeutic potential of m6a-modifiers and micrornas in controlling acute myeloid leukaemia. Biomedicines. 2021 Jun 18;9(6):690.
  16. Vasundhara D, Raju VN, Hemalatha R, Nagpal R, Kumar M. Vaginal & gut microbiota diversity in pregnant women with bacterial vaginosis & effect of oral probiotics: An exploratory study. Indian J Med Res. 2021 Apr;153(4):492-502.
  17. Kincaid HJ, Nagpal R, Yadav H. Diet-microbiota-brain axis in Alzheimer’s disease. Annals of Nutrition & Metabolism 2021; 27:1-7.
  18. Miller B, Mainali R, Nagpal R, Yadav H. A newly developed synbiotic yogurt prevents diabetes by improving the microbiome-intestine-pancreas axis. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2021; 22(4):1647.
  19. Saccon TD*, Nagpal R*, Yadav H, Cavalcante MB, Nunes ADC, Schneider A, Gesing A, Hughes B, Yousefzadeh M, Tchkonia T, Kirkland JL, Niedernhofer LJ, Robbins PD, Masternak MM. Senolytic combination of Dasatinib and Quercetin alleviates intestinal senescence and inflammation and modulates the gut microbiome in aged mice. Journal of Gerontology 2021: glab002 (*equal contribution).
  20. Miller B, Mainali R, Nagpal R, Yadav H. A newly developed synbiotic yogurt prevents diabetes by improving the microbiome-intestine-pancreas axis. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2021; 22(4):1647.
  21. Kumar M, Sarma DK, Shubham S, Kumawat M, Verma V, Singh B, Nagpal R, Tiwari RR. Mucormycosis in COVID-19 pandemic: risk factors and linkages. Current Research in Microbiological Sciences 2021; 2:100057.
  22. Nagpal R, Neth BJ, Wang S, Mishra SP, Craft S, Yadav H. Gut mycobiome and its interaction with diet, gut bacteria and Alzheimer’s disease markers in subjects with mild cognitive impairment: A pilot study. EBioMedicine 2020; 59:102950.
  23. Nagpal R, Mishra SP, Yadav H. Unique gut microbiome signatures depict diet- versus genetically-induced obesity in mice. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 2020; 21(10):3434.
  24. Nagpal R, Mishra SK, Deep G, Yadav H. Role of TRP channels in shaping the gut microbiome. Pathogens 2020; 9(9):753.
  25. Kincaid HJ, Nagpal R, Yadav H. Microbiome-immune-metabolic axis in the epidemic of childhood obesity: Evidence and opportunities. Obesity Reviews 2020; 21(2):e12963.
  26. Young TM, Bray AS, Nagpal R, Caudell DL, Yadav H, Zafar MA. Animal model to study Klebsiella pneumoniae gastrointestinal colonization and host-to-host transmission. Infection and immunity 2020; 88(11).
  27. Nataraj BH, Shivanna SK, Rao P, Nagpal R, Behare PV. Evolutionary concepts in the functional biotics arena. Food Sci Biotechnol. 2020 Sep 16;30(4):487-496.
  28. Nagpal R, Neth BJ, Wang S, Craft S, Yadav H. Modified Mediterranean-ketogenic diet modulates gut microbiome and short-chain fatty acids in association with Alzheimer’s disease markers in subjects with mild cognitive impairment. EBioMedicine. 2019; 47:529-542.
  29. Ahmadi S, Wang S, Nagpal R, Wang B, Jain S, Razazan A, Mishra SP, Zhu X, Wang Z, Kavanagh K, Yadav H. A human-origin probiotic cocktail ameliorates aging-related leaky gut and inflammation via modulating the microbiota/taurine/tight junction axis. Journal of Clinical Investigation – JCI Insight 2020; 5(9):e132055.
  30. Ahmadi S, Razazan A, Nagpal R, Jain S, Wang B, Mishra SP, Wang S, Justice J, Ding J, McClain DA, Kritchevsky SB, Kitzman D, Yadav H. Metformin Reduces Aging-Related Leaky Gut and Improves Cognitive Function by Beneficially Modulating Gut Microbiome/Goblet Cell/Mucin Axis. Journal of Gerontology 2020; 75(7):e9-e21.
  31. Wang S, Ahmadi S, Nagpal R, Jain S, Mishra SP, Kavanagh K, Zhu X, Wang Z, McClain DA, Kritchevsky SB, Kitzman DW, Yadav H. Lipoteichoic acid from the cell wall of a heat killed Lactobacillus paracasei D3-5 ameliorates aging-related leaky gut, inflammation and improves physical and cognitive functions. Geroscience 2020; 42(1):333-352.
  32. Nataraj BH, Shivanna SK, Rao P, Nagpal R, Behare PV. Evolutionary concepts in the functional biotics arena. Food Science & Biotechnology 2020; 30(4):487-496.
  33. Nagpal R, Shively CA, Register TC, Craft S, Yadav H. Gut microbiome-Mediterranean diet interactions in improving host health. F1000Research 2019; 8:699.
  34. Ahmadi S*, Nagpal R*, Wang S, Gagliano J, Kitzman DW, Soleimanian-Zad S, Sheikh-Zeinoddin M, Read R, Yadav H. Prebiotics from acorn and sago prevent high-fat-diet-induced insulin resistance via microbiome-gut-brain axis modulation. Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry 2019; 67:1-13 (*equal contribution).
  35. Ahmadi S, Wang S, Nagpal R, Mainali R, Soleimanian-Zad S, Kitzman D, Yadav H. An in-vitro batch-culture model to estimate the effects of interventional regimens on human fecal microbiota. Journal of Visualization Experiments 2019; (149):10.3791/59524.
  36. Mishra SP, Wang S, Nagpal R, Miller B, Singh R, Taraphder S, Yadav H. Probiotics and prebiotics for the amelioration of type 1 diabetes. Microorganisms 2019; 7(3):67.
  37. Whang A, Nagpal R, Yadav H. Bi-directional drug-microbiome interactions of anti-diabetics. EBioMedicine 2019; 39:591-602.
  38. Nagpal R, Newman TM, Wang S, Jain S, Lovato JF, Yadav H. Obesity-Linked Gut Microbiome Dysbiosis Associated with Derangements in Gut Permeability and Intestinal Cellular Homeostasis Independent of Diet. Journal of Diabetes Research 2018; 2018:3462092.
  39. Nagpal R, Wang S, Ahmadi S, Hayes J, Gagliano J, Subashchandrabose S, Kitzman DW, Becton T, Read R, Yadav H. A human-origin probiotic cocktail increases short-chain fatty acid production via modulation of mice and human gut microbiome. Scientific Reports 2018; 8(1):12649.
  40. Nagpal R, Shively CA, Appt SA, Register TC, Michalson KT, Vitolins MZ, Yadav H. Gut Microbiome Composition in Non-human Primates Consuming a Western or Mediterranean Diet. Frontiers in Nutrition 2018 Apr 25;5:28.
  41. Nagpal R, Kurakawa T, Tsuji H, Takahashi T, Kawashima K, Nagata S, Nomoto K, Yamashiro Y. Evolution of gut Bifidobacterium population in healthy Japanese infants over the first three years of life: a quantitative assessment. Scientific Reports 2017; 7(1):10097.
  42. Nagpal R, Tsuji H, Takahashi T, Nomoto K, Kawashima K, Nagata S, Yamashiro Y. Ontogenesis of the Gut Microbiota Composition in Healthy, Full-Term, Vaginally Born and Breast-Fed Infants over the First 3 Years of Life: A Quantitative Bird’s-Eye View. Frontiers in Microbiology 2017; 8:1388.
  43. Suzuki Y, Ikeda K, Sakuma K, Kawai S, Sawaki K, Asahara T, Takahashi T, Tsuji H, Nomoto K, Nagpal R, Wang C, Nagata S, Yamashiro Y. Association between Yogurt Consumption and Intestinal Microbiota in Healthy Young Adults Differs by Host Gender. Frontiers in Microbiology 2017; 8:847.
  44. Nagpal R, Tsuji H, Takahashi T, Kawashima K, Nagata S, Nomoto K, Yamashiro Y. Sensitive Quantitative Analysis of the Meconium Bacterial Microbiota in Healthy Term Infants Born Vaginally or by Cesarean Section. Frontiers in Microbiology 2016; 7:1997.
  45. Nagpal R, Ogata K, Tsuji H, Matsuda K, Takahashi T, Nomoto K, Suzuki Y, Kawashima K, Nagata S, Yamashiro Y. Sensitive quantification of Clostridium perfringens in human feces by quantitative real-time PCR targeting alpha-toxin and enterotoxin genes. BMC Microbiology 2015; 15:219.
  46. Rajkumar H, Kumar M, Das N, Kumar SN, Challa HR, Nagpal R. Effect of Probiotic Lactobacillus salivarius UBL S22 and Prebiotic Fructo-oligosaccharide on Serum Lipids, Inflammatory Markers, Insulin Sensitivity, and Gut Bacteria in Healthy Young Volunteers: A Randomized Controlled Single-Blind Pilot Study. Journal of Cardiovascular & Pharmacological Therapeutics 2015; 20(3):289-98.
  47. Nagpal R, Yadav H, Marotta F. Gut microbiota: the next-gen frontier in preventive and therapeutic medicine? Frontiers in Medicine 2014; 1:15.
  48. Kumar M, Rakesh S, Nagpal R, Hemalatha R, Ramakrishna A, Sudarshan V, Ramagoni R, Shujauddin M, Verma V, Kumar A, Tiwari A, Singh B, Kumar R. Probiotic Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG and Aloe vera gel improve lipid profiles in hypercholesterolemic rats. Nutrition 2013 ;29(3):574-9.
  49. Nagpal R, Kumar A, Kumar M, Behare PV, Jain S, Yadav H. Probiotics, their health benefits and applications for developing healthier foods: a review. FEMS Microbiology Letters 2012; 334(1):1-15.
  50. Kumar M, Verma V, Nagpal R, Kumar A, Gautam SK, Behare PV, Grover CR, Aggarwal PK. Effect of probiotic fermented milk and chlorophyllin on gene expressions and genotoxicity during AFB₁-induced hepatocellular carcinoma. Gene 2011; 490(1-2):54-9.