Mohammed Akbar, Ph.D.

GPCR Signaling; Metabolism and Stress; Neurodegeneration; Neuroendocrinology; Neuronal Signaling

Dr. Mohammed Akbar is a Program Officer in the Division of Neuroscience and Behavior at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). His extramural research grant portfolio includes basic studies on neurodegeneration, neuroendocrine, stress and addiction, and other aspects of Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD). He also monitors grant applications on Gut-Brain-Axis and GPCR signal transduction mechanisms.

In addition, Dr. Akbar serves as the project scientist and point of contact for two cooperative agreement awards namely the INIA Stress and INIA Neuroimmune Consortiums. He also oversees the Scientific Monitoring and Research Experience (SMRE) and Partnership to Enhance Alcohol Research at North Carolina (PEAR-NC) at the North Carolina State University (NCSU). As a project scientist, he provides support, guidance, general counsel, and coordination for the project's developmental outcomes.

Dr. Akbar is an active member of the NIAAA-NIDA neuroscience workgroup and serves as an NIAAA point of contact for the WECAN program, which offers young investigators in addiction neuroscience the opportunity to present their innovative work to the extramural community. He is also overseeing DNB's SBIR and STTR award mechanisms specially from new candidates.

Dr. Akbar received his doctorate in neuroendocrinology from the Gunma University School of Medicine, Japan, in G-protein coupled receptor signal transduction mechanisms. He also conducted research on drug development using transcription factors in cancer research at the Chugai Research Institute of Molecular Medicine, Tsukuba, Japan. After joining NIAAA/NIH, he worked in the intramural program for more than a decade before moving to the extramural program of NIAAA. He is committed to overseeing all aspects of AUD, including behavioral phenotypes, genetic and genomic underpinnings of AUD as well as the cellular and molecular effects associated with AUD. His hope is to bridge the existing scientific gaps in AUD and improving the health of AUD subjects thereby accomplishing the NIAAA’s mission.

Hediyal TA, Vichitra C, Anand N, Bhaskaran M, Essa SM, Kumar P, Qoronfleh MW, Akbar M, Kaul-Ghanekar R, Mahalakshmi AM, Yang J, Song B-J, Monaghan TM, Sakharkar MK and Chidambaram SB (2024) Protective effects of fecal microbiota transplantation against ischemic stroke and other neurological disorders: an update. Front. Immunol. 15:1324018. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2024.1324018.

Song BJ, Abdelmegeed MA, Cho YE, Akbar M, Rhim JS, Song MK, and Hardwick JP (2019). Contributing Roles of CYP2E1and Other Cytochrome P450 Isoforms in Alcohol-Related Tissue Injury and Carcinogenesis. J. S. Rhim et al. (eds.), Human Cell Transformation, Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology 1164. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-22254-3_6

Akbar M, Egli M, Cho YE, Song BJ, Noronha A (2018). Medications for alcohol use disorders: An overview. Pharmacol Ther. May:185: 64-85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pharmthera.2017.11.007

Cho YE, Song BJ, Akbar M, Baek MC (2018). Extracellular vesicles as potential biomarkers for alcohol- and drug-induced liver injury and their therapeutic applications. Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2018), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pharmthera.2018.03.009