Dr. Ravinder Nagpal is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutrition and Integrative Physiology. He received his Ph.D. in Food & Dairy Microbiology from the National Dairy Research Institute in Haryana, India, and undertook postdoctoral training in gut microbiology at Juntendo School of Medicine in Tokyo and Wake Forest School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C.

His research focuses on understanding the role of the gut microbiome in aging-associated intestinal and neurocognitive health. The overarching goals of his research program are to identify elements of gut dysbiosis, uncover the mechanisms of beneficial versus pathogenic microbes and metabolites in host physiology, and leverage this knowledge to develop novel nutritional and pharmacological interventions. These interventions aim to foster a healthier microbiome and alleviate gut, cardiometabolic, and neurodegenerative disorders, including obesity, type-2 diabetes, and Alzheimer’s disease. Specifically, the ongoing research in his microbiome lab is centered on unveiling the cellular, molecular, and microecological mechanisms underlying the following: investigating the role of gut microbiome dysbiosis and entero-septic pathobiome elements in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, exploring the interaction of the gut microbiome with specific nutritional interventions, dietary components, and pre/probiotics in the context of metabolic and neurodegenerative health, and examining the role of maternal and neonatal microbiome elements concerning the developmental origins of health and disease.

Dr. Nagpal's team utilizes cutting-edge and high-throughput microbiological, metagenomic, computational, and preclinical models to gain a comprehensive understanding of specific bacteriome, mycobiome, and metabolome factors and their interactions with the host physiological system. His lab engages in extensive multidisciplinary collaborations with experts in gerontology, neuroscience, microbiology, nutrition/food sciences, cell/molecular biology, immunology, sepsis, and clinical care. Their principal mission is to gain advanced and inclusive insights into this intricate and fascinating area of research.