Prashant Chittiboina, M.D., M.P.H.

Dr. Chittiboina is a neurosurgeon-scientist specializing in translational neurosurgery at the NIH Campus in Bethesda, MD. His lab focuses on on pituitary and inheritable diseases of the central nervous system (CNS). An alumnus of Goa University in India, Dr. Chittiboina completed a neurosurgery residency at LSU Shreveport, and a fellowhship in Neuroendocrine Surgery at the NIH. He is currently a Tenure Track Investigator in NINDS, and runs active clinical practice for central nervous system tumors at the NIH Clinical Center.

As a neurosurgeon and scientist, Dr. Chittiboina studies the epigenomic mechanisms underlying central nervous system tumors. Leveraging an active clinical practice, his lab uses the clinical data and surgical tissues to run a translational research paradigm. The Chittiboina lab’s recent discoveries include identifying targetable pathways in Cushing's disease, advancements in imaging detection of pituitary micro-adenomas that cause Cushing’s disease, and unveiling mechanisms of tumorigenesis in von Hippel Lindau Disease. His work has led to hypothesis-driven clinical trials, offering hope for improved patient outcomes. His contributions to the field has been recognized with prestigious neurosurgical research awards, including the Integra Foundation Award and Young Investigator Award from the American Brain Tumor Association. 

The overarching goal the Chittiboina lab is to understand the mechanisms underlying CNS tumor formation and progression, to identify novel therapeutic targets, and to improve patient outcomes. The Chittiboina lab hopes to provide a comprehensive understanding of the molecular and cellular processes in CNS tumors and create personalized treatment strategies using omics-based approaches, benchtop models, and clinical pipelines.

Research Interests:

The human pituitary gland is a master regulator of the hormonal milieu in health and disease. Pituitary gland is the site of sporadic adenomas (benign tumors) in up to 35% of the general population. Despite its small size (~500mg), adenomas of the pituitary comprise 20% of all primary brain tumors managed by clinicians. Adenomas can cause hormone excess or compression of surrounding brain structures. Despite the prevalence of pituitary adenomas, their underlying mechanisms are poorly understood, and recurrence or progression to aggressive phenotypes remains a significant concern. 

The Neurosurgery Unit for Pituitary and Inheritable Diseases is part of the Surgical Neurology Branch of the NINDS. We are a translational science lab that integrates neurosurgery and science to address the morbidity arising from neuroendocrine tumors of the brain and spinal cord. These include sporadic pituitary tumors and inheritable tumors in VHL and NF2. We rely on syngeneic, pairwise comparisons of the transcriptome, epigenome, proteome and the metabolome to investigate mechanisms of tumor formation and progression.

Our overarching goal is to understand the mechanisms underlying pituitary adenoma formation and progression to identify novel therapeutic targets and improve patient outcomes. We aim to provide a comprehensive understanding of the molecular and cellular processes in pituitary adenomas and create personalized treatment strategies using omics-based approaches, benchtop models, and clinical pipelines.  

Lab Members:

• Debjani Mandal, PhD. Scientist.
• David Asuzu, MD, PhD, PGY4 Neurosurgery Resident, NIH-UVA Program. Post-doc.
• Emma Celano, MD, PGY4 Neurosurgery Resident, Georgetown University. Collaborator.
• Elizabeth Hogan, MD, PGY6 Neurosurgery Resident, George Washington University. Collaborator.
• Diana Nwokoye, BS, Howard Medical School. MRSP.
• Bright Wiafe, BS. Post-bac IRTA.
• Stefan Stoica, BS. Post-bac IRTA.
• Anish Kosanam, BS. Post-bac IRTA.
• Maytal Silberberg, BS. Post-bac IRTA.
• Reinier Alvarez, BS, Florida International University Medical School, Special Volunteer

Selected Publications

2023

1. Chittiboina P, Mandal D, Bugarini A, Asuzu DT, Mullaney D, Mastorakos P, Stoica S, Alvarez R, Scott G, Maric D, Elkahloun A, Zhuang Z, Chew EY, Yang C, Linehan M, Lonser RR (2023)
   Proteostasis Modulation in Germline Missense von Hippel Lindau Disease.
   Clin Cancer Res, 29:2199-2209. PubMed ID: 37018064
    
2. Alvarez R, Hogan E, Asuzu DT, Wu T, Oshegbo G, McGlotten R, Cortes M, Hayes C, Stratakis CA, Tatsi C, Nieman LK, Chittiboina P (2023)
   Diurnal range and intra-patient variability of ACTH is restored with remission in Cushing's Disease.
   J Clin Endocrinol Metab, PubMed ID: 37261392
    
3. Asuzu DT, Bhatt S, Nwokoye D, Hayes C, Cortes M, McGlotten R, Keil M, Tatsi C, Nieman L, Chittiboina P (2023)
   Cortisol and ACTH Measurements at Extubation From Pituitary Surgery Predicts Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis Function.
   J Endocr Soc, 7:bvad025. PubMed ID: 36846212

2022

1. Asuzu DT, Alvarez R, Fletcher PA, Mandal D, Johnson K, Wu W, Elkahloun A, Clavijo P, Allen C, Maric D, Ray-Chaudhury A, Rajan S, Abdullaev Z, Nwokoye D, Aldape K, Nieman LK, Stratakis C, Stojilkovic SS, Chittiboina P (2022)
   Pituitary adenomas evade apoptosis via noxa deregulation in Cushing's disease.
   Cell Rep, 40:111223. PubMed ID: 36001971
    
2. Zhang X, Lou HE, Gopalan V, Liu Z, Jafarah HM, Lei H, Jones P, Sayers CM, Yohe ME, Chittiboina P, Widemann BC, Thiele CJ, Kelly MC, Hannenhalli S, Shern JF (2022)
   Single-cell sequencing reveals activation of core transcription factors in PRC2-deficient malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor.
   Cell Rep, 40:111363. PubMed ID: 36130486
    
3. Curry BP, Alvarez R, Widemann BC, Johnson M, Agarwal PK, Lehky T, Valera V, Chittiboina P (2022)
   Robotic Nerve Sheath Tumor Resection With Intraoperative Neuromonitoring: Case Series and Systematic Review.
   Oper Neurosurg (Hagerstown), 22:44-50. PubMed ID: 35007270

2021

1. Jonasch E, Donskov F, Iliopoulos O, Rathmell WK, Narayan VK, Maughan BL, Oudard S, Else T, Maranchie JK, Welsh SJ, Thamake S, Park EK, Perini RF, Linehan WM, Srinivasan R, (2021)
   Belzutifan for Renal Cell Carcinoma in von Hippel-Lindau Disease.
   N Engl J Med, 385:2036-2046. PubMed ID: 34818478
    
2. Rajendran S, Antonios J, Solomon B, Kim HJ, Wu T, Smirniotopoulos J, Scott G, Benzo S, Hayes C, Heiss JD, Chittiboina P (2021)
   A Prospective Evaluation of Swallowing and Speech in Patients with Neurofibromatosis Type 2.
   J Neurol Surg B Skull Base, 82:244-250. PubMed ID: 33777639
    
3. Alvarez R, Mastorakos P, Hogan E, Scott G, Lonser RR, Wiley HE, Chew EY, Chittiboina P (2021)
   Retrobulbar Hemangioblastomas in von Hippel-Lindau Disease: Clinical Course and Management.
   Neurosurgery, 88:1012-1020. PubMed ID: 33442737