Sujatha Kannan, MBBS
Neurocritical Care
Pediatric Critical Care Medicine
- Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Faculty
About Sujatha Kannan
Professional Titles
- Richard J. Traystman Endowed Chair
- Vice Chair for Research, Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine
Primary Academic Title
Professor of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine
Background
Dr. Sujatha Kannan is professor of anesthesiology and critical care medicine and pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. She is also the Richard J. Traystman Endowed Chair and the Vice Chair for Research for ACCM. She specializes in pediatric critical care with expertise in pediatric neurocritical care. In addition to her role at Johns Hopkins, Dr. Kannan is also a research scientist at the Hugo Moser Researcher Institute at Kennedy Krieger Institute.
Dr. Kannan completed her medical training at the Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research in Pondicherry, India. She conducted residencies in pediatrics at the University Illinois at Chicago and the Children’s Hospital of Michigan. Additionally, she completed a fellowship in pediatric critical care medicine at the Children’s Hospital of Michigan. Dr. Kannan joined the Johns Hopkins faculty in 2011.
Her research focuses on understanding the role of inflammation and immune dysregulation in the brain with a goal to develop therapies for childhood brain injury and neurodevelopmental disorders such as cerebral palsy, Rett syndrome, autism, TBI and CNS infections. In collaboration with the Kannan Rangaramanujam lab at the Center for Nanomedicine, Wilmer Eye Institute, the S. Kannan lab has created and developed novel nanotherapies to specifically target immune cells in the brain to promote repair and regeneration.
Dr. Kannan is a member of the Society for Neuroscience, the Society of Critical Care Medicine, and the Society for Pediatric Research. She is a fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. She has published extensively and has won several awards for her research.
Centers and Institutes
Recent News Articles and Media Coverage
When Research Hits Home, Johns Hopkins University (August 24, 2021)
Hopkins married researchers develop COVID drug during personal tragedy, WMAR, October 14, 2021
Johns Hopkins Professor Leads by Example for Female Entrepreneurs, Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures, (February 7, 2020)
Dr. Sujatha Kannan Inducted into Medical and Biological Engineering Elite, AIMBE (March 28, 2019)
Additional Academic Titles
Professor of Pediatrics
Research Interests
Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Imaging and targeted therapy for perinatal brain injury, Nanotechnology
Lab Website
Sujatha Kannan Lab - Lab Website
- The Sujatha Kannan Lab works to develop therapeutic strategies for preventing perinatal brain injuries from occurring during development. We use a unique combination of nanotechnology, animal model development and in vivo imaging to better understand the mechanism and progression of cellular and metabolic conditions that lead to perinatal brain injury, with a focus on autism and cerebral palsy.
Research Summary
Dr. Kannan's research focuses on understanding the mechanism and progression of the cellular and metabolic derangements leading to brain injury during development, and to use this information to design specific targeted therapy using nanotechnology. She and her team use a unique combination of animal model development, nanotechnology, and in vivo imaging to create these therapeutic strategies, with a special emphasis on cerebral palsy and autism.
Selected Publications
Dai H, Navath RS, Balakrishnan B, Raja Guru B, Mishra M, Romero R, Kannan RM, Kannan S. “Intrinsic targeting of neuroinflammatory cells in the brain by polyamidoamine dendrimers upon subarachnoid administration,” Nanomedicine (Lond). 2010 Nov;5(9):1317-29.
Kannan S, Dai H, Navath RS, Balakrishnan B, Jyoti A, Janisse J, Romero R, Kannan RM. Dendrimer-based Postnatal Therapy for Neuroinflammation and Cerebral Palsy in a Rabbit Model. Science Translational Medicine. 2012 Apr 18;4(130):130ra46.
Kannan S, Saadani-Makki F, Balakrishnan B, Chakraborty P, Janisse J, Xin Lu, Muzik O, Romero R, Chugani DC. “Magnitude of [(11)C]PK11195 binding is related to severity of motor deficits in a rabbit model of cerebral palsy induced by intrauterine endotoxin exposure.” Dev Neurosci. 2011;33(3-4):231-40. doi: 10.1159/000328125. Epub 2011 Jul 28.
Kannan S, Saadani-Makki F, Balakrishnan B, Dai H, Chakraborty P, Janisse J, Muzik O, Romero. R, Chugani D. “Decreased cortical serotonin in neonatal rabbits exposed to endotoxin in utero.” J Cereb Blood Flow Metab. 2011 Feb;31(2):738-49. Epub 2010 Sep 8.
Navath RS, Menjoge AR, Dai H, Romero R, Kannan S, Kannan RM. “Injectable PAMAM dendrimer-PEG hydrogels for the treatment of genital infections: formulation and in vitro and in vivo evaluation.” Mol Pharm. 2011 Aug 1;8(4):1209-23.
Wang B, Navath RS, Menjoge AR, Balakrishnan B, Bellair R, Dai H, Romero R, Kannan S, Kannan RM, “Inhibition of bacterial growth and intramniotic infection in a guinea pig model of chorioamnionitis using PAMAM dendrimers.” Int J Pharm. 2010 Aug 16;395(1-2):298-308.
Patents
- Dendrimers For Sustained Release Of Compounds, 20200390694
- Dendrimer Compositions And Use In Treatment Of Neurological And CNS Disorders, 20170232120
- Dendrimer Compositions And Use In Treatment Of Necrotizing Enterocolitis And Other Gastrointestinal Disorders, 20220080056
- Dendrimer Compositions And Methods For Treatment Of Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome, 20210353762
- Dendrimer based nanodevices for therapeutic and imaging purposes, 10561673
- Compositions And Methods For Treatment Of Peroxisomal Disorders And Leukodystrophies, 20220071923
Honors
- 2020 Award of Excellence in Mentoring, Johns Hopkins SOM Scholarly Concentrations Program
- Fellow, American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering
- Teaching Award, Wayne State University School of Medicine, 1/1/07
- Scholar's Award in Pain Medicine, Pfizer, 1/1/04
- Wolfe Zuelzer Award for Best Fellowship Research Project, Children's Hospital of Michigan, 1/1/02
- Sheldon Brenner Award for Best Resident Research Project, Children's Hospital of Michigan, 1/1/00
Memberships
- American Academy of Pediatrics, Critical Care Section
- International Society for Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism
- Society for Neuroscience
- Society for Pediatric Research
- Society of Critical Care Medicine
Locations
- The Johns Hopkins Hospital
- 1800 Orleans Street, Baltimore, MD 21287
- phone: 410-955-5000
- fax: 410-955-5001
Expertise
Education
Children's Hospital of Michigan
Fellowship, Pediatric Critical Care Medicine, 2003Children's Hospital of Michigan
Residency, Pediatrics, 2000University of Illinois Health Chicago
Residency, Pediatrics, 1998Jawaharlal Institute of Medical Education
Medical Education, MBBS, 1995Board Certifications
Pediatric Critical Care Medicine
American Board of Pediatrics, 2004Pediatrics
American Board of Pediatrics, 2000Insurance
- Aetna
- CareFirst
- Cigna
- First Health
- Geisinger Health Plan
- HealthSmart/Accel
- Humana
- Johns Hopkins Health Plans
- MultiPlan
- Pennsylvania's Preferred Health Networks (PPHN)
- Point Comfort Underwriters
- Private Healthcare Systems (PHCS)
- UnitedHealthcare
- Veteran Affairs Community Care Network (Optum-VACCN)