Ankit Sabharwal, Ph.D.

Ankit Sabharwal, Ph.D., has broad research experience in the field of human and zebrafish mitochondrial biology and genomics. He is focused on developing rare genetic disease models in zebrafish using new gene-editing tools for mtDNA and nuclear-encoded mitochondrial proteins. Using these systems as a substrate, he is interested in designing therapeutic interventions for these classes of disorders for which there is no cure.

His lab seeks to address the fundamental knowledge gaps in our understanding of how cells regulate mitochondrial genome integrity and inheritance. His lab investigates the basic molecular mechanisms underlying mtDNA information storage and maintenance by focusing on heteroplasmy quality control. He is interested in exploring how mtDNA maintenance operates at the cellular and organismal level. His team established a platform to address these questions by creating zebrafish models capable of tracking the in vivo segregation of specific, loss-of-function alleles. They are leveraging these model systems in a systematic, discovery-driven approach to dissect new principles of organellar genetics, with broad implications for advancing basic understanding of mitochondrial biology, which will help gain insights into the pathobiology of mitochondrial disorders in the future.

Sabharwal obtained his doctoral degree from the Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, India, where he was introduced to the field of rare genetic disorders, including the use of sequencing-based clinical assays, and successfully resolved a novel medical odyssey for a rare mitochondrial disorder with his team. He completed his postdoctoral training at Mayo Clinic, where he was involved in expanding the editing toolbox to engineer mitochondrial DNA and established disease models for mitochondrial disorders. Sabharwal has also been the president of the Research Fellows Association during his postdoctoral training at Mayo Clinic and has been an active participant in the education, outreach and mindfulness activities in the community.