Dhimant Desai, PhD
Professor, Molecular and Precision Medicine
Experimental Therapeutics, Penn State Cancer Institute
Biography
Dr. Dhimant Desai is a Professor in the Department of Molecular and Precision Medicine and Co-Director of the Organic Synthesis Shared Resources (OSSR) at Penn State College of Medicine.
Dr. Desai is a medicinal chemist whose laboratory focuses on the design, synthesis, and evaluation of small molecules chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic agents for cancer and other diseases. His work encompasses melanoma, lung and colon cancers, leukemia, fatty liver disease, and neurological disorders. His research interests include structure–activity relationships, organoselenium compounds, tobacco-specific nitrosamines and their metabolites, cytodifferentiating agents, nitric oxide inhibitors, and DNA adducts.
His research also integrates animal bioassays, isotopically and radiolabeled compounds, pharmacokinetic and tissue-distribution studies, and analytical methods for the characterization of natural products, hemp, and plant extracts. Through these multidisciplinary approaches, his work aims to advance the discovery and development of novel agents for cancer prevention and treatment.