Ramamurthy named permanent chair for Biochemistry

Visvanathan Ramamurthy, Ph.D., has been named chair of the WVU School of Medicine’s Department of Biochemistry, effective January 1, 2020.

Ramamurthy has served as interim chair of Biochemistry since September. He is also a professor and the Director of Research in the Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences.

“As the field has evolved, the possibilities and the potential for career opportunities have expanded and become more diversified than in the past,” Ramamurthy said. “We must ensure that our curriculum reflects the progress in the field and that our educational outcomes stay ahead of the curve in order to thrive in the competitive academia and industry that await our graduates at all levels.”

Ramamurthy notes the wide scope of research interests among the faculty as a strength of the program.

“Our team is an ambitious group of scientists who study diverse biological processes at a molecular level. We focus on a multitude of health issues, including Alzheimer’s, blindness, cancer and digestive diseases,” he said. “With increased sophistication and rapid advancement of technologies, the time is ripe to apply findings from basic research into everyday clinical practice.”

Ramamurthy’s research interests include post-translational modification of proteins, neuronal degeneration, blindness, tubulinopathies, ciliary disorders, gene therapy, and other areas related to vision and the brain.

After earning his Bachelor’s degree in Pharmacy and a Masters in Biological Sciences in India, he earned his doctorate in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut.

He then trained as Howard Hughes Medical Institute Fellow at Department of Biochemistry, University of Washington prior to joining WVU as an Assistant professor in 2006.

For more information about the Department of Biochemistry, visit www.medicine.hsc.wvu.edu/biochemistry/.