Adjunct Faculty
Adjunct faculty typically have an academic or research appointment at another institution and contribute or collaborate with one or more School of Medicine faculty members or programs.
Adjunct rank detailsLokesh Kumar Sharma, PhD
Assistant Professor AdjunctAbout
Research
Publications
2026
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor-D Improves Lung Vascular Integrity During Acute Lung Injury
Yoon Y, Sharma L, Tang W, Kirk S, Raredon M, Ahangari F, Khoury J, Qian H, Ke Y, Tulapurkar M, Liu R, Luan Y, Yuan Q, Chen L, Birukov K, Simons M, Wu D, Niklason L, Kaminski N, Yuan Y. Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor-D Improves Lung Vascular Integrity During Acute Lung Injury. Circulation Research 2026, 138: e326094. PMID: 41822962, PMCID: PMC13007730, DOI: 10.1161/circresaha.124.326094.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchVEGF-DAcute lung injuryBarrier-protective effectsVascular integrityLung injuryLipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury modelIntravenous administrationTNF-aParacrine signalingModel of acute lung injuryPulmonary vascular integrityLigand-receptor interactionsImmune cell infiltrationAcute lung injury modelLung vascular integrityVEGFR2-dependent signalingLung injury modelEndothelial barrier integrityEndothelial barrier functionRNA sequencing dataMicrovascular endothelial cellsInhibition of VEGFR2Microvascular nichePharmacological blockadeAssociated with pathwaysEpidermal growth factor receptor regulates Beclin-1 in hyperoxic acute lung injury
Harris Z, Korde A, Khoury J, Manning E, Stanley G, Shin Y, Mitchell K, von der Schulenburg A, Sun Y, Hu B, Shin H, Joerns J, Clark B, Placek L, Unutmaz D, Moldobaeva A, Sharma L, Sauler M, Rajagopalan G, Zhang X, Wang H, Ghaedi M, Kang M, Koff J. Epidermal growth factor receptor regulates Beclin-1 in hyperoxic acute lung injury. BMJ Open Respiratory Research 2026, 13: e003323. PMID: 41592865, PMCID: PMC12853440, DOI: 10.1136/bmjresp-2025-003323.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsEpidermal growth factor receptorAcute lung injuryHyperoxic ALIHyperoxic acute lung injuryGrowth factor receptorIn vivo effectsLung injuryOxidant-mediated acute lung injuryFactor receptorIntensive care unit mortalityExposure to high oxygenAlveolar type II cellsDelivery of supplemental oxygenPulmonary cell deathLife-saving therapyPluripotent stem cellsType II cellsNormoxia controlSupplemental oxygenUnit mortalityAlveolar epitheliumBeclin-1Cell death pathwaysStem cellsTherapeutic potentialA clinically interpretable prediction model for acute mortality in patients with pneumonia requiring mechanical ventilation
Hu H, Zu Y, Zhao L, Zhang Q, Zhou G, Xu P, Zhao A, Yin F, Sharma L, Chang D. A clinically interpretable prediction model for acute mortality in patients with pneumonia requiring mechanical ventilation. Respiratory Research 2026, 27: 126. PMID: 41731516, PMCID: PMC12980919, DOI: 10.1186/s12931-026-03581-x.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchArea under the curveDecision curve analysisShort-term mortalityIntensive care unitInterpretable prediction modelsPrecision-recallMechanical ventilationWeb-based calculatorSOFA scoreMachine learning algorithmsOptimal resource allocationClinical net benefitEarly mechanical ventilationHigh-risk patientsEarly risk stratificationMultiple independent cohortsFeature selectionLearning algorithmsHigh-risk populationIndividual risk assessmentPerformance metricsMIMIC-IVPrediction modelUrine outputModel interpretation
2025
Integrative single-cell RNA and ATAC sequencing reveals the impact of chronic cigarette smoking on lung epithelial responses to influenza and hyperoxia
Cha P, Zou Z, Nouws J, Brewster R, Dela Cruz C, Sharma L, Yan X, Sauler M. Integrative single-cell RNA and ATAC sequencing reveals the impact of chronic cigarette smoking on lung epithelial responses to influenza and hyperoxia. Respiratory Research 2025, 27: 13. PMID: 41366391, PMCID: PMC12801856, DOI: 10.1186/s12931-025-03393-5.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchChronic CS exposureTranscription factor motif enrichmentCS exposureEpithelial programETS family factorsSusceptibility to acute lung injuryResponse to influenzaMotif enrichmentATAC-seqAcute lung injuryTranscriptional regulationSingle-cell RNAATAC sequencingEpigenetic contextEpithelial subsetsEpithelial responsesProof-of-principle studyLung injuryDifferentiation pathwayChanges in vivoBackgroundCigarette smokingInflammatory signalingAberrant responsesCiliated cellsHyperoxiaA familial case of Birt–Hogg–Dubé syndrome complicated with lung cancer: a case report and literature review
Feng J, Yu Y, Liu Y, Ding Y, Mu J, Jiang R, Sharma L, Jie Z. A familial case of Birt–Hogg–Dubé syndrome complicated with lung cancer: a case report and literature review. Frontiers In Medicine 2025, 12: 1581786. PMID: 40630489, PMCID: PMC12234290, DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2025.1581786.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchFLCN mutationsPulmonary cystsRare familial casesLung cancerLung adenocarcinomaFamilial casesGenetic testingBilateral pulmonary cystsPathogenic FLCN mutationsPrimary lung adenocarcinomaInvasive lung adenocarcinomaAutosomal dominant disorderRenal tumorsSpontaneous pneumothoracesSevere hyperthyroidismClinical courseFLCN geneCutaneous fibrofolliculomasCase reportTumor progressionGermline mutationsPersistent coughDominant disorderTumor suppressor proteinLiver injuryIL‐6 signaling regulates the inflammatory response without impacting pathogen burden during influenza‐associated pulmonary aspergillosis
Sharma L, Singh R, Tolman N, Ngeow C, Duray A, Naghshtabrizi N, Ahmad A, Bain W, Robinson K. IL‐6 signaling regulates the inflammatory response without impacting pathogen burden during influenza‐associated pulmonary aspergillosis. Physiological Reports 2025, 13: e70372. PMID: 40420617, PMCID: PMC12106949, DOI: 10.14814/phy2.70372.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsAF infectionAspergillus fumigatusInterleukin-6IL-6 signalingLung inflammationInfluenza-associated pulmonary aspergillosisInterleukin-6 knockout miceNeutrophilic lung inflammationBronchoalveolar lavage fluidEpithelial cell damageLung capillary permeabilitySusceptibility to opportunistic pathogensPulmonary aspergillosisClinical courseLavage fluidKnockout miceOpportunistic pathogenRAGE levelsEpithelial integrityMouse modelIL-6Pathological inflammationTissue injuryInflammatory responseViral infectionProphylactic anticoagulant therapy is associated with improved survival in ICU patients with non-COVID-19 pneumonia: a retrospective cohort study
Hu H, Zhu Y, Hu R, Zhao L, Zeng X, Wu X, Qiu R, Nie Y, Sharma L, Chang D. Prophylactic anticoagulant therapy is associated with improved survival in ICU patients with non-COVID-19 pneumonia: a retrospective cohort study. Frontiers In Pharmacology 2025, 16: 1597885. PMID: 40406481, PMCID: PMC12095157, DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2025.1597885.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchProphylactic anticoagulant therapyShort-term mortalityKaplan-Meier survival analysisAnticoagulant therapyICU patientsPropensity score matchingPulmonary infectionImproved survivalNon-COVID-19Subgroup analysisNon-COVID-19 pneumoniaDuration of anticoagulant therapyAssociated with improved survivalMultivariate Cox regression modelSurvival analysisEffect of anticoagulant therapyMedical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV databaseCox regression analysisRetrospective cohort studyAssociated with reduced short-term mortalityOptimal administration strategiesCox regression modelsPrognostic factorsAnticoagulation groupCoagulation disordersGlucagon-Like Peptide-1 Is Prognostic of Mortality in Acute Respiratory Failure
Hansell C, Aneis H, Kitsios G, Bain W, Zhao Y, Suber T, Evankovich J, Sharma L, Ramakrishnan S, Prendergast N, Hensley M, Malik S, Petro N, Patel J, Nouraie S, Dela Cruz C, Zhang Y, McVerry B, Shah F. Glucagon-Like Peptide-1 Is Prognostic of Mortality in Acute Respiratory Failure. Critical Care Explorations 2025, 7: e1247. PMID: 40126931, PMCID: PMC11936568, DOI: 10.1097/cce.0000000000001247.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsGlucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide levelsGlucagon-like peptide-1 levelsGlucose-dependent insulinotropic peptideAcute respiratory failureGlucagon-like peptide-1Respiratory failureIncretin levelsResponse biomarkersMeasure glucagon-like peptide-1Intestinal permeabilityPrognosticator of adverse outcomeSequential Organ Failure Assessment scoreCritical illnessOrgan Failure Assessment scorePeptide-1Acute respiratory distress syndromeAssociated with systemic inflammationMarkers of intestinal permeabilityCirculating interleukin-6 levelsHost response biomarkersSystemic host responseIncretin hormone glucagon-like peptide-1Respiratory distress syndromeInterleukin-6 levelsCritically ill patientsTherapeutic JAK inhibition does not impact lung injury during viral or bacterial pneumonia in male mice
Sharma L, Singh R, Ngeow C, van der Geest R, Duray A, Tolman N, McVerry B, Dela Cruz C, Alcorn J, Bain W, Robinson K. Therapeutic JAK inhibition does not impact lung injury during viral or bacterial pneumonia in male mice. Physiological Reports 2025, 13: e70232. PMID: 39921246, PMCID: PMC11805821, DOI: 10.14814/phy2.70232.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsMurine model of influenzaIL-6 deletionMRSA pneumoniaModel of influenzaInflammatory cell recruitmentIL-6Interferon-stimulated genesMurine modelCell recruitmentJAK inhibitionElevated levels of IL-6Tissue injuryLevels of IL-6IL-6 deficiencyJAK inhibitor baricitinibSuppression of cytokinesLimit tissue injuryLung tissue injurySecondary bacterial infectionInfluenza infectionJAK/STAT signaling pathwayBaricitinib treatmentInhibitory therapyClinical efficacyBacterial burdenDamage sensing through TLR9 regulates inflammatory and antiviral responses during influenza infection
Kim J, Yuan Y, Agaronyan K, Zhao A, Wang V, Gau D, Toosi N, Gupta G, Essayas H, Kaminski A, McGovern J, Yu S, Woo S, Lee C, Gandhi S, Saber T, Saleh T, Hu B, Sun Y, Ishikawa G, Bain W, Evankovich J, Chen L, Yun H, Herzog E, Dela Cruz C, Ryu C, Sharma L. Damage sensing through TLR9 regulates inflammatory and antiviral responses during influenza infection. Mucosal Immunology 2025, 18: 537-548. PMID: 39884393, PMCID: PMC12205908, DOI: 10.1016/j.mucimm.2025.01.008.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchToll-like receptor 9Anti-influenza immunityToll-like receptor 9 activationImpaired viral clearanceViral clearanceMyeloid cellsTissue injuryInflammatory responseInfluenza infectionPersistent inflammationLung injuryTissue damageToll-like receptor 9 deficiencyReceptor 9Toll-like receptor 9 signalingToll-like receptor 9 ligandInfection of immune cellsInfluenza-infected individualsPersistent lung injuryTLR9-/- miceInfected myeloid cellsInflammatory lung injurySensing tissue damageUnmethylated CpG DNA sequencesMitochondrial DNA