Kevin E. Yarasheski, PhD
Professor of Medicine, Cell Biology & Physiology, and Physical Therapy
Biography
Dr. Kevin Yarasheski received his Ph.D. from Kent State University in 1986, and completed a post-doctoral research fellowship in Metabolism, Endocrinology and Geriatrics at Washington University School of Medicine under Dennis Bier, M.D. (1986-89). He received a NIH/NIA Research Career Development Award to study amino acid-protein metabolism in elderly adults administered recombinant human growth hormone (1989-1994). He studied stable isotope tracer methodologies and mass spectrometry in the Biomedical Mass Spectrometry Research Laboratory at WUMS, and received a NIH Shared Instrument Grant for an isotope ratio mass spectrometer (1998). He serves on: Advisory Committees for the Clinical Nutrition Research Unit and General Clinical Research Center at WUMS; Study Sections for several national and international agencies; Conference Organizing Committees; and the Editorial Board for the American Journal of Physiology. He mentors several junior faculty investigators and post-doctoral research fellows, and is a collaborator/consultant on several research projects within and outside WUMS.
Research Interests
My research group focuses on the pathogenesis and treatments for metabolic, anthropomorphic, and cardiovascular syndromes associated with HIV-infection, advanced age, and cachectic conditions. We utilize interdisciplinary resources and translational approaches to address patient and disease-oriented issues. We utilize stable isotope tracer methods and mass spectrometry, radioisotope tracer methods and positron emission tomography to quantify and characterize defects in substrate utilization and sensing in humans. We utilize several radiologic techniques to quantify adipose, lean, and bone mineral content and distribution in humans. Once metabolic, anthropomorphic, or cardiovascular syndromes have been characterized, we sample human tissues (muscle, fat, CSF) and utilize mass spectrometry-based analyses to identify and characterize protein, complex lipid, DNA, and RNA expression profiles that are dysregulated and may provide mechanistic information. The goal is to understand and describe the underlying pathogenesis for metabolic, anthropomorphic, and cardiovascular syndromes, so that safe and effective therapeutic interventions can be designed and tested.