Noted Indian American nephrologist Dr. Samir M. Parikh is set to take over as Chair of the Department of Internal Medicine at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, Texas on June 15.
As chair of the premier research institution, he will lead a department of nearly 900 faculty members, with more than $108 million in National Institutes of Health funding in fiscal year 2025 and the second-largest Internal Medicine residency program in the nation.
He will also hold the Donald W. Seldin Distinguished Chair in Internal Medicine and Ruth W. and Milton P. Levy Sr. Chair in Molecular Nephrology, according to a university release.
Dr. Parikh, currently Professor and Chief of the Division of Nephrology, joined UT Southwestern in 2021 and holds a secondary appointment in the Department of Pharmacology.
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He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Harvard College, which he earned magna cum laude. He received his medical degree from Vanderbilt University and completed his internal medicine residency training, along with research and clinical fellowships in nephrology, at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, where he was a Harvard Medical School Fellow in General Medicine.
He began his career at Harvard, rising to Professor of Medicine and serving as Co-Director of the Center for Vascular Biology Research and Associate Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess.
In clinical practice, Dr. Parikh specializes in acute kidney injury and chronic kidney disease. His research over the past two decades has focused on aging mechanisms in the vasculature, kidneys, and energy metabolism.
His laboratory has received more than $40 million in support from the NIH and other funders, and his findings have been published in leading journals including Science, Nature, Nature Medicine, and Cell Metabolism.
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Dr. Parikh is an elected member of the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the American Association of Physicians, and the American Clinical and Climatological Association.
His honors include the NIH Outstanding Investigator Award, the American Society of Nephrology and American Heart Association’s Donald W. Seldin Young Investigator Award, and the University of Texas System’s STARs Award. He currently serves as the 59th President of the American Society of Nephrology.
During his presidency, ASN has advanced national research priorities through the Transforming Kidney Health Research initiative and helped lead advocacy efforts culminating in passage of the Honoring our Living Donors (HOLD) Act.
“Dr. Parikh’s commitment to all areas of our mission will further the Department of Internal Medicine and our institution’s national reputation for providing excellent clinical care, advancing meaningful research, and fostering a unique environment for biomedical education,” said Dr. W. P. Andrew Lee, Executive Vice President for Academic Affiars and Provost and Dean of UT Southwestern Medical School.