Xiaoquan Rao, PhD

Research Information

Research Projects

My research focuses on the health effect of environmental pollutants such as particulate matter. Air pollution has been confirmed as an important risk factor for global mortality and cardiovascular disease. Our current projects aim to investigate the underlying mechanisms by which air pollutants promotes diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

The laboratory utilizes the state-of-the-art whole body mouse exposure systems and various molecular, physiologic, immunologic, and imaging approaches to dissect the role of inflammatory regulation and lipid oxidation in air pollution-associated cardiometabolic diseases.

Publications

Selected List of Publications

  1. Rao X, Zhong J, Zhang S, Zhang Y, Yu Q, Yang P, Wang MH, Fulton DJ, Shi H, Dong Z, Wang D, Wang CY. . Circulation. 2011;123:2964-2974
  2. Xu X, Rao X, Wang TY, Jiang SY, Ying Z, Liu C, Wang A, Zhong M, Deiuliis JA, Maiseyeu A, Rajagopalan S, Lippmann M, Chen LC, Sun Q. . Particle and fibre toxicology. 2012;9:40
  3. Rao X, Zhong J, Xu X, Jordan B, Maurya S, Wang T, Huang W, Aggarwal S, Periasamy M, Rajagopalan S, Mehta K, Sun Q. . PloS One. 2013. 8(12):e81364
  4. Zhong J, Rao X, Deiuliis J, Braunstein Z, Narula V, Hazey J, Mikami D, Needleman B, Satoskar AR, Rajagopalan S. . Diabetes. 2013;62:149-157
  5. Rao X, Zhong J, Sun Q. . Life Sci. 2014;116(2):59-66.
  6. Zhong J, Rao X, Braunstein Z, Taylor A, Narula V, Hazey J, Mikami D, Needleman B, Rutsky J, Sun Q, Deiuliis JA, Satoskar AR, Rajagopalan S. . Diabetes. 2014. 63(4):1289-302
  7. Liu C, Xu X, Bai Y, Wang TY, Rao X, Wang A, Sun L, Ying Z, Gushchina L, Maiseyeu A, Morishita M, Sun Q, Harkema JR, Rajagopalan S. . Environ Health Perspect. 2014. 122(1): 17-26
  8. Rao X, Zhong J, Maiseyeu A, Gopalakrishnan B, Villamena FA, Chen LC, Harkema JR, Sun Q, Rajagopalan S. . Circ Res. 2014;115(9):770-80.
  9. Rao X, Patel P, Puett R, Rajagopalan S. . Toxicol Sci. 2015;143(2):231-41.
  10. Rao X, Montresor-Lopez J, Puett R, Rajagopalan S, Brook RD. . Curr Diab Rep. 2015;15(6):603.
  11. Brook RD, Sun Z, Brook JR, Zhao X, Ruan Y, Yan J, Mukherjee B, Rao X, Duan F, Sun L, Liang R, Lian H, Zhang S, Fang Q, Gu D, Sun Q, Fan Z, Rajagopalan S. . Hypertension. 2016;67(1):77-85.
  12. Kankanala SR, Syed R, Gong Q, Ren BX, Rao X*, Zhong J*. . Am J Transl Res. 2016; 8(5):2450-2458.
  13. Münzel T, Sørensen M, Gori T, Schmidt FP, Rao X, Brook J, Chen LC, Brook RD, Rajagopalan S. . Eur Heart J. 2017;38(8):550-556.
  14. Münzel T, Sørensen M, Gori T, Schmidt FP, Rao X, Brook J, Chen LC, Brook RD, Rajagopalan S. . Eur Heart J. 2017;38(8):557-564.
  15. Ramanathan M Jr, London NR Jr, Tharakan A, Surya N, Sussan TE, Rao X, Lin SY, Toskala E, Rajagopalan S, Biswal S. . Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 2017;57(1):59-65.

Education

Doctor of Philosophy
Molecular Biology
Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology
2011
Bachelor of Science
Clinical Medicine
Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology
2006

Residencies, Internships and Fellowships

Postdoctoral
The University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore
2013
Postdoctoral
The Ohio State University
2010

Additional Information

  • 2008-2010: Visiting Student, Medical College of Georgia--Augusta, GA