Nishan Kalupahana, MBBS, Ph.D., FSLCNP

Personal Information

Nishan Sudheera Kalupahana, Ph.D., is an Adjunct Professor in the Nutritional Sciences Department at Texas Tech University. He is a Professor in the Department of Nutrition and Health in the College of Medicine and Health Sciences at the United Arab Emirates University, UAE.  He received his MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery) and MPhil (Master of Philosophy) degrees from the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka and his Ph.D. in Nutritional Sciences from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, Tennessee, USA in 2011. He later completed a postdoc in immunology at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA. 

Nishan's research focuses on identifying mechanisms responsible for obesity-associated metabolic derangements, such as Type-2 diabetes, with a view to developing preventive and treatment strategies for these conditions. He is specifically interested in dietary bioactive compounds, ethnic differences in body mass index (BMI)-associated chronic disease risk, obesity and immune function, nutrient-gene interactions, adipose tissue biology, and lifestyle modification. 

He has co-authored 62 peer-reviewed articles in journals including PNAS, Obesity Reviews, Molecular Aspects of Medicine, Obesity, and the Journal of Nutrition. He has also co-authored five book chapters. He has received many research awards, including the World Obesity Federation's International Journal of Obesity New Faculty Award (Basic Science) in 2014 and an American Heart Association pre-doctoral fellowship in 2010. He was also elected a fellow of the Sri Lankan College of Nutrition Physicians and is a SCOPE national fellow of the World Obesity Federation. He is a current member of the American Society for Nutrition. He serves as a reviewer for the Medical Research Council, UK, and for several journals, including Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, American Journal of Physiology (Endocrinology and Metabolism), Obesity, and Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry. He is also an editorial board member of the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry.

CV

Research Interest

• Mechanisms of adiposity-associated metabolic derangements, especially in Asian Populations
• Dietary bioactive compounds, including omega-3 fatty acids and date seed extract
• Immunometabolism and adipose tissue inflammation
• Adipose tissue renin-angiotensin system (RAS) in the pathogenesis of insulin resistance
• Mechanisms by which fatty acids (mainly omega-3 PUFAs) modulate adipose tissue function
• Lifestyle interventions targeting obesity-associated co-morbidities, including non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)

Future Research Collaboration Interests

• Clinical trials on omega-3 fatty acids for metabolic syndrome and fatty liver
• Effects of date seed extract on whole-body metabolism
• Adipokines and insulin resistance in South Asian populations
• Novel interventions for the treatment of childhood obesity