Nephrosphere Lab

Dr. Jochen Reiser & The suPAR Journey

At the forefront of kidney research, The Nephrosphere Lab at The University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) is redefining how we understand, diagnose, and treat kidney disease. Under the leadership of Dr. Jochen Reiser, an internationally recognized physician-scientist, the lab brings together innovation, discovery, and clinical impact to transform patient care.

A Transformative Discovery: The suPAR Story

One of the most groundbreaking contributions from Dr. Reiser and collaborators is the identification of soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) as a key factor in kidney disease. What began as a scientific question evolved into a paradigm-shifting discovery—linking suPAR to the development and progression of chronic kidney disease (CKD) and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS).

This work has:

Advanced understanding of kidney disease mechanisms
Enabled earlier risk detection and stratification
Opened new pathways for targeted therapies
Positioned suPAR as a powerful biomarker with global clinical relevance
The “suPAR journey” reflects years of rigorous science, collaboration, and persistence—bridging bench research to bedside application

Where Purpose Meets Passion

graphic representation of a kidney with a bright blue circle around the graphic

The Nephrosphere Vision

Excellence at the University of Texas Medical Branch

Kidney biopsy showing a normal glomerulus composed of thin capillaries. The surrounding tissue is filled with renal tubules. Microscopic view.

A Legacy of Scientific Impact

blurry view of the inside of a laboratory

Looking Forward

Featured Publications

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Current Projects

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Renal fibrosis and suPAR
In this project, the implication of suPAR and integrin signaling is examined in kidney inflammation and/or fibrosis models with the goal to discover novel mechanisms and to develop new therapeutic concepts for fibrosis.
Viral infection and glomerular kidney disease
In this project, the interplay between viral protein and host immune factor is explored in the development and management of virus associated kidney disease.
Mitochondrial dysfunction and glomerular sclerosis
This project integrates multi-omics to understand the implication of mitochondrial impairment in the development of glomerular sclerosis.
SuPAR and immunity
This project, utilizing cutting-edge research tools, aims to unravel the molecular mechanism on how suPAR causes immune dysregulation that is implicated in kidney disease.
SuPAR receptors and signaling in Renal Cells
Defining the receptors and binding partners of soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) in renal cells and characterize the downstream signaling pathways that are activated or suppressed following suPAR–receptor interactions.
D2D3 fragment and pancreatic beta cells
Determining the role of the D2D3 fragment of suPAR in regulating pancreatic beta-cell function and associated signaling mechanisms.
Physiologic and metabolic effects of suPAR
Characterizing the physiological and metabolic alterations induced by suPAR across diverse murine models.
Beta-amyloid and podocyte integrins
Elucidating the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying beta-amyloid interaction with podocyte integrins and the resulting effects on podocyte function.

Meet the Team

Current Members

Jochen Reiser, MD, PhD

President, The University of Texas Medical Branch
CEO, UTMB Health System
Professor, John Sealy School of Medicine
John D. Stobo, MD Distinguished Chair

David Changli Wei, MD, PhD

Professor

Mehmet Altintas, PhD

Associate Professor

Brenna Knott, BSc, MA

Program Manager

Jing Li, BSc

Laboratory Supervisor

Prashanta Deb, PhD

Post Doctoral Fellow

Neeraja Recharla, PhD

Post Doctoral Fellow

Ramasatyaveni Geesala, PhD

Research Scientist I

Azharul Islam, PhD

Research Scientist II

Dikshita Ramesh, MS

Research Associate I

Clayton Gabel

MD/PhD Student

Carmen Lopez-Alvarenga

PhD Student

Alumni

2026-2030

Start	End	Name	Title
06/2024	05/2026	Rani Catherine Chellappa	Post Doctoral Fellow, University of Texas Medical Branch
06/2026	08/2026	Nathan Stettin	Student, Baylor University, Waco, TX
06/2026	08/2026	Ali Alaa	Student, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX

2021-2025

Start	End	Name	Title
06/2018	06/2021	Cristina Bardita, M.D., Ph.D.	Resident, Internal Medicine, Rush University, Chicago, IL
08/2020	08/2021	Salvatore Dibartolo, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
03/2019	04/2022	Shivangi Agarwal, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
12/2019	05/2022	Onur K. Polat, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
01/2022	04/2022	Ishwarya Venkatesh, M.Sc.	Graduate student, Rush University, Chicago, IL
06/2019	08/2023	Yashwanth Sudhini, M.D.	Research assistant, Rush University, Chicago, IL
02/2020	08/2023	Varsha S. Kumar, Ph.D.	Instructor, Rush University, Chicago, IL
01/2021	08/2023	Ryan Spear, B.Sc.	Ph.D. student, Rush University, Chicago, IL
07/2024	08/2024	Ferdaus Ghafury	Student, University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA
07/2025	07/2025	Ikbal Azhar	M.D. student, University of Saskatchewan College of Medicine, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
07/2025	08/2025	Ipek Kocak	Physiology student, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada
07/2025	08/2025	Gabriel Crudo	Biology student, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN
10/2024	04/2025	Ramya Elangovan	Senior Research Scientist, University of Texas Medical Branch

2016-2020

Start	End	Name	Title
06/2009	07/2016	Hao Yu, B.Sc.	Ph.D. student, University of Miami, Miami, FL
04/2013	05/2016	Eunsil Hahm, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
07/2013	04/2016	Shikha Wadhwani, M.D.	Fellow, Nephrology, Rush University, Chicago, IL
02/2014	02/2016	Guohui Ren, M.D., Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
08/2015	05/2016	Shakera A. Syed, M.D.	Research assistant, Rush University, Chicago, IL
06/2016	08/2016	Devon Rosen	Food Science student, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
07/2016	09/2016	Beyza B. Senay	M.D. student, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
07/2014	09/2017	Kwihye Koh, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
04/2016	04/2017	Jianchao Ma, M.D.	Scientist, Guangdong Academy, Guangzhou, China
05/2017	06/2017	Barbara A. Hanson, B.Sc.	Graduate student, Rush University, Chicago, IL
06/2017	08/2017	Keira N. Stacks	Biology student, Georgia College, Milledgeville, GA
07/2017	09/2017	Sevdiye N. Pinar	M.D. student, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey
01/2014	08/2018	Nicholas J. Tardi, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
02/2016	05/2018	Xuexiang Wang, M.D., Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
11/2017	06/2018	Vincent P. Schmitz, B.Sc.	Rush University, Chicago, IL
06/2018	08/2018	Rebecca Obrien	Neuroscience student, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
10/2018	12/2018	Ravi Patel, B.Sc.	Graduate student, Rush University, Chicago, IL
05/2015	05/2019	Ranadheer R. Dande, M.D.	Research assistant, Rush University, Chicago, IL
05/2018	03/2019	Stefan Hagele, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
08/2019	09/2019	Michael H. Korbut	Student, Milwaukee School of Engineering, Milwaukee, WI
09/2015	07/2020	Salvatore Dibartolo, B.Sc.	Ph.D. student, Rush University, Chicago, IL
06/2017	06/2020	Kyaw Z. Hein, M.D., Ph.D.	Resident, Rush University, Chicago, IL
05/2017	04/2020	Ke Zhu, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
11/2019	05/2020	Christian Nusshag, M.D.	Scientist, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany

2011-2015

Start	End	Name	Title
07/2008	06/2011	Vasil Peev, M.D.	Resident, Internal Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL
08/2008	08/2011	Kumiko Moriwaki, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Kagawa University, Kagawa, Japan
07/2009	07/2011	Shafic El Hindi, M.D.	Resident, Internal Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL
10/2009	10/2011	Fumihiko Matsuda, Ph.D.	Scientist, Ajinomoto, Tokyo, Japan
02/2008	06/2012	Vineet Gupta, Ph.D.	Faculty, Internal Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL
09/2009	03/2012	Andreas Kistler, M.D.	Scientist, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
06/2012	06/2012	Allyson McGuinty, Ph.D.	Scientist, Pfizer, Groton, CT
12/2010	06/2013	Tanya Pereira, M.D.	Fellow, Pediatric Nephrology, University of Miami, Miami, FL
08/2013	08/2013	Sabrina Borello Kjaer	Scientist, Novozymes, Copenhagen, Denmark
06/2010	02/2014	Jin-Ju Kim, B.Sc.	Ph.D. student, University of Miami, Miami, FL
07/2013	06/2014	Cristina Bardita, M.D., Ph.D.	Resident, Internal Medicine, Rush University, Chicago, IL
07/2013	12/2014	Yu Wen Chao, M.D.	Scientist, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
05/2014	12/2014	Julia van Tuijl	M.D. student, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
06/2014	07/2015	Chuang Chen, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Rush University, Chicago, IL
12/2014	12/2015	Shuangxin Liu, M.D.	Scientist, Guangdong Academy, Guangzhou, China
05/2015	09/2015	Enna Offerman	M.D. student, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
06/2015	06/2015	Fan Fan, M.D.	Scientist, University of Mississippi, Jackson, MS
06/2015	06/2015	Kasi C. McPherson	Ph.D. student, University of Mississippi, Jackson, MS

2005-2010

Start	End	Name	Title
06/2000	06/2001	Martin Loos, M.D.	Resident in Surgery, University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany
07/2005	09/2005	Jing Shih, B.Sc.	Student, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
07/2005	10/2005	Melanie Becker	Student, European School of Biotechnology, Strasbourg, France
04/2006	10/2006	Lavan Khandan, B.Sc.	Student, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
10/2004	09/2007	Clemens Moeller, M.Sc.	Ph.D. student, University of Heidelberg, Germany
08/2006	09/2008	Jan B. Flesche, M.D.	Thesis student, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
01/2007	07/2008	Cora Kaiser	Student, European School of Biotechnology, Strasbourg, France
07/2007	09/2008	Livia S. Gandhi, M.D.	Thesis student, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
09/2007	10/2008	Clemens Moeller, Ph.D.	Post-doctoral fellow, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA
08/2007	07/2009	Wen-Chih Chiang, M.D., Ph.D.	Scientist, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
01/2009	09/2009	Anna Lena Forst, M.Sc.	Student, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands