Mahendra Rao
Vice-President for Regenerative Medicine
The New York Stem Cell Foundation
USA
Mahendra Rao received his MD (MBBS) from Bombay University in India and his PhD in developmental neurobiology from the California Institute of Technology. Dr. Rao is internationally known for his research involving human embryonic stem cells and other somatic stem cells. He has worked in the field for more than twenty years with stints in academia, government and regulatory affairs, and industry.
Dr. Rao has an extensive background teaching medical and graduate students, as well as postdoctoral fellows at institutions including the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, the National Centre for Biological Sciences in Bangalore, India, and the University of Utah School of Medicine.
Dr. Rao has published more than 350 papers on stem cell research and is the co-founder of Q Therapeutics, a neural stem cell company based in Salt lake City, Utah. He is also co-founder of NxCell, based in California. Dr. Rao was the founding director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Center of Regenerative Medicine, and also chief of the Laboratory of Stem cell Biology at the NIH.
Dr. Rao is currently chief strategy officer and chair of the Scientific Advisory Board at Q Therapeutics. He also serves as senior scientific advisor for The New York Stem Cell Foundation.