American Heart Association recognizes Tulane physiologist for career accomplishments

High blood pressure and cardiovascular disease affect millions of Americans, and Kailash N. Pandey, PhD, has dedicated his accomplished career to understanding why. The American Heart Association (AHA) Council on Hypertension recently honored Pandey for his decades of research with this year’s Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecture Award.

“Dr. Pandey is an outstanding investigator and a major contributor to our understanding of the molecular mechanisms mediating high blood pressure and cardiovascular dysfunction,” Pandey’s Tulane colleagues, L. Gabriel Navar, PhD, and Paul K. Whelton, MD, wrote in their nomination. “His record of accomplishments and productivity, especially related to natriuretic peptides/receptors and their antagonistic relationship to the pathophysiology of renin-angiotensin system, make him an ideal candidate for this award.”

Dr. Pandey joined Tulane in 1997 and is professor and Vice Chair of Medical Research in the Department of Physiology at Tulane University School of Medicine. He has an outstanding publication record of more than 140 original peer-reviewed research articles, reviews, and book chapters and over 260 abstracts. Pandey has received several grants from AHA, including an Established Investigator Award, and continuous multiple grants from the National Institutes of Health.

“I receive this award with humble gratitude,” said Pandey. “I feel that the work of our trainees, students, and collaborators has been recognized, which might be critical to providing the sustainable ground for the future research in hypertension and cardiovascular disease.”

The Lewis K. Dahl Memorial Lecture was established in 1988 in honor of Dr. Dahl’s pioneering work on the relations between salt, the kidney and hypertension, and for establishing a major genetically based experimental model of hypertension. As the 2022 recipient of the award, Dr. Pandey presented a lecture during the AHA’s Hypertension Scientific Sessions.