Professor Neeraj Vij

Neeraj Vij, MS, Ph.D. is Assistant Professor, Institute of Nano Biotechnology, Johns Hopkins University and Assistant Professor, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University.
 
His expertise and research interests are:

1. Protein processing of misfolded dF508 CFTR, alpha-1-antitrypsin Z mutant and other conformational mutant proteins.
2. Functional role of VCP/p97 (AAA ATP chaperone) in ERAD, protein aggregation and forward trafficking pathways, and identification of sites for selective interaction and/or post translational modification for therapeutic intervention.
3. Mechanisms of ubiquitination and deubiquitination of misfolded proteins, and identification of substrate specific ubuitinating ligases (E1/E2/E3s) and deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs like Ub C-terminal hydrolases, UCHs or ubiquitin specific proteases, USPs).
4. Chronic airway inflammation with emphasis on the role of PGE-2, IL8 and neutrophil chemotaxis.
5. Immune privilege and wound healing

Neeraj coauthored A Novel Role of the Lumican Core Protein in Bacterial, Selective Inhibition of Endoplasmic Reticulum-associated Degradation Rescues ΔF508-Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Regulator and Suppresses Interleukin-8 Levels Lipopolysaccharide-induced Innate Immune Response, CHOP Transcription Factor Mediates IL-8 Signaling in Cystic Fibrosis Bronchial Epithelial Cells, Pharmacoproteomics of 4-Phenylbutyrate-Treated IB3–1 Cystic Fibrosis Bronchial Epithelial Cells, Lumican suppresses cell proliferation and aids Fas?as ligand mediated apoptosis: implications in the cornea, and Microarray Studies Reveal Macrophage-like Function of Stromal Keratocytes in the Cornea.
 
He earned his M.S. in Microbiology at GK University, India in 1998, was Research Fellow, Institute of Genetics, BRC, Szeged, Molecular Biology and Genetics in 2001, earned his Ph.D. in Biotechnology at the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee in 2001, was Scientific Research Associate, University of Heidelberg, Molecular Immunology in 2002, and Postdoctoral Fellow, Johns Hopkins University, Molecular Biology & Functional Genomics in 2006.