Rahail Ashraf

Photo: Rahail Ashraf

-Post-doc-

he/him
Email: 
rahail@unm.edu
Faculty Advisor: 
Mubarak Syed

Education:
University of New Mexico, Post Doc, Jan 2025- Present
IISER Tirupati, PhD, 2019-2024
University of Kashmir, MS Biochemistry, 2016-2018

 
Curriculum vitae

Research Area(s)

Developmental Biology,  Genetics

Research Interests:

My current research explores the molecular and signaling cues that guide neurons to their correct locations within the central complex of the brain. In particular, I am fascinated by the DL1 lineage and its unique capacity to produce tangential neurons while excluding columnar neurons. By studying the factors underlying this lineage-specific outcome, I aim to uncover principles of neural diversity and circuit organization.

Selected Publications:

1. Ashraf, R., Kumar, S. (2022). Mfn2-mediated mitochondrial fusion promotes autophagy
and suppresses ovarian cancer progression by reducing ROS through AMPK/mTOR/ERK
signaling. Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences.79(11), 573.

2. Mohapatra, O., Gopu, M., Ashraf, R., Easo George, J., Patil, S., Mukherjee, R., Kumar,
S., & Mampallil, D. (2024). Spheroids formation in large drops suspended in
superhydrophobic paper cones. Bio microfluidics, 18(2), 024107.
https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0197807  (Equal author)

3. Behera, A., Ashraf, R., Srivastava, A. K., & Kumar, S. (2020). Bioinformatics analysis
and verification of molecular targets in ovarian cancer stem-like cells. Heliyon, 6(9),
e04820.

4. Kumar,S., Ashraf,R., & C K, A. (2022): Mitochondrial dynamics regulators: implications
for therapeutic intervention in cancer. Cell Biology and Toxicology, 38(3), 407.

5. Cherukunnath, A., Davargaon, R. S., Ashraf, R., Kamdar, U., Srivastava, A. K., Tripathi,
P. P., Chatterjee, N., & Kumar, S. (2022). KLF8 is activated by TGF-β1 via Smad2 and
contributes to ovarian cancer progression. Journal of CellularBiochemistry, 123(5),
921–934.

6. Thomas, A. R., Swetha, K., C K, A., Ashraf,R., Kumar, J., Kumar,S., & Mandal, S. S.
(2022). Protein fibril-assisted chiral assembly of gold nanorods. Journal of Materials
Chemistry. B, 10(33), 6360–6371.