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Home — College of Medicine — Department of Pediatrics — Divisions — Critical Care — Faculty and Staff — Sidharth Mahapatra, MD, PhD

Sidharth Mahapatra, MD, PhD

Associate Professor, Division of Critical Care
Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry
Director for Research, Pediatric Critical Care Medicine

Sidharth Mahapatra, MD, PhD

As a pediatric intensivist with an interest in neurocritical care working in a state with a particularly high incidence of pediatric brain tumors (7th in the nation), I am carving my academic niche studying pediatric medulloblastomas (MB), the most common malignant brain tumor of childhood. Serving as an intersection for my training in molecular neurobiology, my strong interest in translational science, and my burgeoning expertise in pediatric critical care medicine, I hope to significantly impact the long-term survivorship of patients with high-risk medulloblastomas, who suffer high relapse rates and mortality.

My secondary clinical interest lies in the study of acute lung injury and pediatric acute respiratory distress syndrome (PARDS). I am an active member of the Pediatric Acute Lung Injury & Sepsis Investigators (PALISI). We have participated in several landmark studies including the Pediatric Acute Respiratory Distress Incidence and Epidemiology (PARDIE) and are now engaged in the Prone and Oscillator in Pediatrics Clinical Trial (PROSpect) aimed at studying treatment strategies in severe PARDS. Over my career, I aspire to mitigate PARDS in the field of critical care.

About Dr. Mahapatra

Education

Medical School/PhD Program
Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Sciences, North Chicago, IL


Residency
Pediatrics, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, Stanford, CA


Fellowship
Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, Stanford, CA

Research Interests
  • To uncover deregulated molecular pathways triggering aggressiveness that can be targeted therapeutically in pediatric medulloblastomas
  • To develop novel treatment strategies that target these pathways to mitigate long-term morbidity/mortality and reduce recurrence in pediatric medulloblastomas

Lab page

Patient Care
Board Certification
  • Pediatrics
  • Pediatric Critical Care Medicine
Additional Academic Roles
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, Creighton University School of Medicine 
  • Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Creighton University School of Medicine
Active Grants
  1. Team Jack Foundation Award 05/01/2023 – 04/30/2026 Project Title: Deep Investigation of Gene Silencing on 17p13.3 Identifies Targetable Vulnerabilities Informing Novel Therapeutic Strategies for Pediatric Medulloblastomas
  1. Fred & Buffet Pamela Buffet Cancer Center Pilot Project Award 02/02/2023 – 01/31/2025 Project Title: Elucidating Mitochondrial Iron transporter-mediated Ferroptosis in Group 3 Medulloblastoma
  1. Edna Ittner Pediatric Research Fund 07/01/2022 – 06/30/2024 Project Title: Targeting B7-H3 (CD276) Mitigates Tumor Aggressiveness in Group 3 Medulloblastoma
  1. Team Jack Foundation Award 07/01/2021 – 06/30/2025 Project Title: Using Connectivity Mapping to Identify Anti-Neoplastic Agents for High-risk Medulloblastoma
  1. PCCTSDP K12 Scholar Award (K12HD047349) 01/01/2021 – 12/31/2025 Project Title: MiR-1253 potentiates cisplatin response in group 3 medulloblastoma through ferroptosis
Professional Organizations
  • Sigma Xi (1999-present)
  • American Academy of Pediatrics (2009-present)
    • Fellow (2015-present)
    • Section on Critical Care (2016-present)
    • NE Chapter Executive Board (2019-2021)
  • Society for Critical Care Medicine (2012-present)
  • American Federation for Medical Research (2015-present)
    • Western Section Councilor (2015-2017)
    • Midwest Section Chair (2021-2022)
    • National AFMR Chair (2023-2024)
  • Society for Pediatric Research, Junior Section (2016-present)
  • Pediatric Acute Lung Injury and Sepsis Investigators Site Director (2016-present)
  • American Academy of Cancer Research (2017-present)
  • Society for Neuro-Oncology (2018-present)
Honors & Awards
  • Alpha Omega Alpha (2008)
  • Gold Humanism Honors Society (2009)
  • Leonard P. Tow Humanism in Medicine (2009)
  • Dean’s Service Award, Chicago Medical School (2009)
  • Board of Trustees Scholarship Award, Chicago Medical School (2009)
  • Excellence in Teaching, Arnold P. Gold Foundation (2012)
  • Inpatient Fellow of the Year, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital (2015)
  • Travel Award, Western Society for Clinical Investigation (2015)
  • Young Investigator Coaching Program, Society for Pediatric Research (2017)
  • Top 10 Abstract, American Academy of Pediatrics Society for Critical Care (2017)
  • UNeMED New Innovation Contributor, UNMC (2018, 2022)
  • Travel Award, Team Jack Brain Tumor Foundation (2020)
  • K Award, Midwest Clinical and Translational Science Meeting (2021)
  • NCI Loan Repayment Award (2022)
  • Hobart E. Wiltse, MD, PhD Excellence in Medical Education Award (2023)
  • Helping Hands Award for Patient Care Excellence (2024)
Links and Multimedia
Division

University of Nebraska Medical Center

Department of Pediatrics

Pediatric Critical Care Division

8200 Dodge Street

Omaha, NE 68114

four people in lab looking at computer
Mahapatra Lab

Learn about the research projects of Dr. Sidharth Mahapatra's lab.

Dr. Mahapatra's Collective Research Groups

Brain Tumor Research Group (group leader)

Pediatric Cancer Research Group (co-champion)

Pediatric Brain Tumor Group