Our Team

Vikas Kumar, MS, PhD, Director

Assistant Professor, Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Anatomy

• Qualitative and Quantiative Proteomics
• Data Analysis
• Redox Proteomics

Vikas is the MSPCF Director. He received his PhD from University of Otago, New Zealand (2011) under Prof Christine Winterbourn, studying cardiac redox proteomics changes. He then did his post-doctoral training through the Cardiovascular Proteomics Center at the Boston University School of Medicine. He has over six years of experience operating a proteomics core and has extensive experience in the field of mass spectrometry-based proteomics. He has designed and executed experiments for global proteomics profiling, quantitative proteomics, and PTMs (phosphorylation, oxidative posttranslational modifications, HNE, acetylation) analysis. Furthermore, he is well versed in many of the available data analysis and pathway analysis software packages. Vikas has developed a novel method to estimate reversible thiol oxidation and its site occupancy using iodo Tandem Mass Tags strategy.

Email: vikas.kumar@unmc.edu

 Kanika Sharma, BS, Research Technologist I

• Qualitative and Quantitative proteomics
• Data Analysis

Kanika joined the MSPCF in 2022 as a Research Technologist I. She holds a Bachelors’s degree in biotechnology. She has more than 5 years of experience in managing Proteomics and Mass Spectrometry Core facility. At the MSPCF, she is involved in designing and conducting proteomics experiments, maintenance of equipment and performing data analysys.  

Kanika is outgoing person and likes socializing/hanging out with friends and family.

Email: kasharma@unmc.edu 

Jongsam (Sam) Ahn, MS, PhD,

Research Coordinator, Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology

• Proteomics Sample Preparation
• Handling Mass Spectrometry

 Jongsam (Sam) Ahn joined MSPCF as Research Coordinator in May 2023. He obtained his Ph.D. in 2001 from Washington State University, studying distribution of γδ T cell marker WC1 ligand using WC1-human IgG1 fusion protein.  He received his post-doctoral training in Microbiology at University of Idaho and UNMC. He has experience of FPLC, HPLC, animal experiments, Staphylococcus aureus metabolism, data analysis, and pathway analysis. At MSPCF, he is involved in conducting proteomics experiments, maintenance of equipment and performing data analysis.

Email : Jongsam.ahn@unmc.edu

Dhananjay Shinde, PhD, Senior Scientist

• Small molecules/Metabolomics

Dhananjay is the Senior Scientist associated with the Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology and MSPCF at UNMC. He completed his PhD from Indian Institute of Chemical Technology (IICT) Hyderabad studying the analytical chemistry. He then moved to Inje University college of Medicine to pursue postdoctoral research fellow in the field of DMPK and pharmacogenomics of small molecules such as, metabolomics, lipidomics and peptides. He has more than 5 years of experience in managing the operations in bio-analytical and mass spectrometry core facilities. He has extensive experience in optimizing, validating and executing the non-targeted/ global and targeted-quantitative metabolomics and lipidomics.

In his free time, Dhananjay enjoys good music and reading books.

Email: dhananjay.shinde@unmc.edu

Mukta Ravi Nayak, MS Microbiology

• Proteomics and Mass Spectrometry

Mukta joined MSPCF as a volunteer in June 2023. She received her Master’s degree in Microbiology from Bhopal, India with 4 months of dissertation in Industrial Toxicology Research Center CSIR lab, Lucknow, India.

Mukta enjoys exercising, yoga and listening to music in leisure time.