Focus on Faculty

Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine University of Rochester Medical Center 601 Elmwood Avenue, Box 626 Rochester, NY 14642

FOCUS ON FACULTY RAJNISH BHARADWAJ, M.D., PH.D.

Neuro and autopsy pathologist Rajnish Bharadwaj joined the faculty in late 2018, embodying the term “physician-scientist” through his work in both clinical and research settings. When he is not signing out cases, Bharadwaj, who has a Ph.D. in cell regulation, runs his own research lab that studies molecular mechanisms of neurodegeneration that has implications for disorders like Parkinson’s disease and Neurodegeneration with Brain Iron Accumulation Information (NBIA).

While at medical school in India, he became aware of the large gaps in our understanding of the pathogenesis of human diseases and became interested in basic research. He came to the U.S. to pursue graduate studies at UT Southwestern, studying mechanistic basis of aneuploidy, a hallmark of cancer. After graduate school, his dilemma was whether to go for a residency or a postdoctoral fellowship. He chose the latter because he had developed an interest in studying neurobiology using model organisms, a field that was completely new to him. He did a postdoctoral fellowship at Johns Hopkins but decided to advance his medical training afterwards, realizing that a parallel career in medicine, though challenging, offers professional stability while opening new avenues for research.

This journey brought Bharadwaj to the Pacific Northwest, where he completed a combined AP/NP fellowship at University of Washington. He notes the similarities pathology shared with his work exploring neurodegenerative disease —albeit at a different spatial scale— during his post-doctorate studies. Pathology had many of the aspects of basic research that he found enjoyable, namely, examining disease processes under the microscope. That continues to this day. He says the importance of reaching the right diagnosis is what drives him to bring his best to every case that comes across his desk.

“What I enjoy most is knowing that I am providing extremely important information for patient care,” he said. “This can be nerve-wracking at times, especially neuro frozens, but we provide diagnoses, which require a lot of finesse and have significant consequences for the patient.”

After completing his fellowship, he was drawn to Rochester for its high neurosurgical volume that would lend itself well to his training and expertise. Another motivating factor was the opportunity to have his own lab. Upon visiting, he found that URMC had a vibrant research community and an inviting atmosphere. Indoors, at least. He jokes that making the move from Seattle meant “trading rain for snow” but says he and his family enjoy the natural beauty