Email

vishnu.cuddapah@bcm.edu

Positions

Assistant Professor

Pediatrics
Neurology
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, Texas United States

Investigator

Dan and Jan Duncan Neurological Research Institute
Houston, Texas United States

Addresses

Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute (Lab)

1250 Moursund St
Houston, TX 77030
United States

Education

BA from Tulane University

05/2006 - New Orleans, Louisiana United States

Art History

BS from Tulane University

05/2006 - New Orleans, Louisiana United States

Neuroscience

MD from University of Alabama at Birmingham

05/2015 - Birmingham, Alabama United States

Medical Scientist Training Program

PhD from University of Alabama at Birmingham

10/2013 - Birmingham, Alabama United States

Neurobiology

Certifications

American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology

Professional Statement

As a clinical neurogeneticist, one of the most common challenges I discuss with families is difficulty with sleep. Poor sleep early in life can have lifelong impact, and children with neurodevelopmental disorders are much more likely to not sleep well. Unfortunately, while these associations are well known, we have a limited understanding of the mechanisms driving interactions between neurodevelopmental disorders and sleep dysfunction.

Our group seeks to understand interactions between neurodevelopmental disorders, sleep, and circadian rhythms. We are particularly interested in learning how epilepsy – one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders – is regulated by sleep and circadian rhythms. To do this, we leverage the tractability of fruit flies. By uncovering underlying mechanisms, we hope to identify new therapeutic targets to improve seizure control and gain insight into the biology of sleep.

In parallel, we are trying to understand what causes sleep dysfunction in people. We are involved in efforts to perform genetic sequencing of people with severe sleep or circadian symptoms. Our hope is to translate an understanding of underlying genetic etiologies into novel therapies that improve sleep quality.

Websites

Selected Publications

• Cuddapah VA, Hsu CT, Li Y, Shah HM, Saul C, Killiany S, Guevara C, Shon J, Yue Z, Gionet G, Putt ME, Sehgal A. "Sleepiness, not total sleep amount, increases seizure risk.." bioRxiv. 2023;
• Parthasarathy S, Ruggiero SM, Gelot A, Soardi FC…Kennedy BC, Pena SDJ, Helbig I, Cuddapah VA*. "A recurrent de novo splice site variant involving DNM1 exon 10a causes developmental and epileptic encephalopathy through a dominant-negative mechanism.." American Journal of Human Genetics. 2022; Pubmed PMID: 36413998

Funding

Regulation of seizure timing by circadian rhythms and sleep - #K08NS131602

NIH - National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

Harnessing the fly model system to understand how sleep disruption worsens seizure burden - #Taking Flight Award

CURE Epilepsy

Leveraging fly genetics to identify mechanisms controlling daily oscillations in seizure risk - #Neuroscience Research Training Scholarship

American Academy of Neurology