Rate My Professor Rajesh Katare

Leading the Katare Lab, Professor Katare's research centers on the molecular underpinnings of cardiovascular complications in diabetes, including the pathological roles of microRNAs in diabetic cardiomyopathy, circulating microRNAs as biomarkers for early cardiovascular diagnosis, suicidal autophagy in diabetic hearts, and nanoparticle-mediated RNA delivery for cardiovascular therapy. The lab also explores therapies for diabetic ulcers and tissue engineering for cardiac regeneration. His team has garnered significant funding, such as the Health Research Council of New Zealand Explorer Grant (2022–2024), MBIE Smart Idea Project Grant (2022–2025), Heart Foundation NZ Small Project Grant (2023–2024), and prior support from Otago Medical Research Foundation, Lottery Health Board, and international sources including British Heart Foundation and Diabetes UK. Notable publications encompass highly cited works like "Transplantation of human pericyte progenitor cells improves the repair of infarcted heart through activation of an angiogenic program involving micro-RNA-132" (Nature Medicine, 2011), "Human adult vena saphena contains perivascular progenitor cells endowed with clonogenic and proangiogenic potential" (Nature Protocols, 2010), and recent contributions such as "Exosomal microRNAs in diabetic heart disease" (Cardiovascular Diabetology, 2022) and editorship of "Cardiomyocytes: Methods and Protocols" (Springer, 2024). With over 100 research publications, he delivered his Inaugural Professorial Lecture, "A Roller Coaster Journey through the Molecules of the Heart," in November 2025, underscoring his impact in stem cell therapies, microRNAs, and cardiac regeneration.