Dr. Kaliyappan’s research focuses on understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying various cerebrovascular disorders, including ischemic stroke and chronic cerebral hypoperfusion. His current projects investigate the role of NCOA7 in stroke outcomes, particularly through lysosomal dysfunction and sex-specific neurovascular injury, as well as the potential of SPAK inhibition to prevent choroid plexus blood–CSF barrier damage and reduce neuroinflammation in BCAS models. Dr. Kaliyappan has extensive expertise in developing and characterizing rodent models of neurodegenerative and cerebrovascular diseases, employing advanced surgical techniques, behavioral assessments, histological and biochemical analyses, molecular assays, and in vivo imaging methods such as MRI and MRS. His long-term goal is to gain a comprehensive understanding of the complex mechanisms driving neurodegenerative diseases, with the aim of identifying novel biomarkers and developing effective therapeutic strategies.
Education & Training
- Post-Doctoral associate (Neuroscience), State University of New York at Buffalo, Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology
- Post-Doctoral Fellow (Neuroscience), State University of New York at Buffalo, Department of Rehabilitation sciences.
- PhD (Anatomy/Neuroscience), University of Madras, Chennai, India
- MS (Anatomy), University of Madras, Chennai, India
- BS (Zoology), Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, India
Specialized Areas of Clinical, Research and/or Education Interests
- Research: Neurodegenerative & Cerebrovascular diseases; Rodent model of Ischemic Stroke, Cerebral Hypoperfusion & TBI
- Education: Research training and mentoring of undergraduate and graduate students
Professional Organization Membership
- Society for Neuroscience
- American Heart Association
- International Society for Neurochemistry
Honors & Awards
- Conference Fellowship from Alzheimer's Association, Rainwater Charitable Foundation, and CurePSP (2024)
- Bishop Neuroscience Fund Award from University at Buffalo (2023)
- Travel Award for the 26th Meeting of International Society for Neurochemistry (ISN-ESN) in Paris, France (2017)
- Junior research fellowships from Department of Science and Technology, Government of India. (2016)
Selected Recent Publications
Kaliyappan, K., Nakuci, J., Preda, M., Schweser, F., Muldoon, S., & Krishnan Muthaiah, V. P. (2021). Correlation of Histomorphometric Changes with Diffusion Tensor Imaging for Evaluation of Blast-Induced Auditory Neurodegeneration in Chinchilla. Journal of Neurotrauma, 38(23), 3248-3259.
Kaliyappan, K., Sathyamoorthy, Y., Nambi, P., & Radhakrishnan, R. (2021). Aqueous extract of Terminalia arjuna bark attenuates blood-brain barrier disruption in rat model of transient focal cerebral ischemia. Phytomedicine Plus, 1(3), 100092.
Schmitt, R. R., Kaliyappan, K., Muthaiah, V. P. K., Ignatowski, T. A., Prasad, P. N., & Mahajan, S. D. (2021). Blast-induced injury responsive relative gene expression of traumatic brain injury biomarkers in human brain microvascular endothelial cells. Brain Research, 1770, 147642.
Nambi, P., Sathyamoorthy, Y., Kaliyappan, K., & Radhakrishnan, R. (2023). Fucoidan (A Sulfated Polysaccharide) and Cerebroprotein in Combination Alleviate the Neuroinflammation-mediated Neural Damage and Functional Deficits in the Focal Cerebral Ischemia Model of Rat. Neuroscience, 524, 52-64.
Krishnan Muthaiah, V. P., Kaliyappan, K., Thiayagarajan, R., Mahajan, S., & Gunasekaran, K. (2025). Blast‐Overpressure Induced Modulation of PARP‐SIRT‐NRF2 Axis in Stress Signaling of Astrocytes and Microglia. Immunity, Inflammation and Disease, 13(1), e70106.
Kaliyappan, K., Chen, Y. C., & Muthaiah, V. P. K. (2022). Vestibular cochlear manifestations in COVID-19 cases. Frontiers in neurology, 13.
