About the Director

Venkataramana Sidhaye, M.D., Director

Venkataramana Sidhaye is an Associate Professor in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Johns Hopkins. Her research focuses on understanding how the epithelial cells lining the lung interact with pollutants and infections in the air. Since the lung epithelium is the first line of defense, chronic injury from exposure to particles in cigarette smoke and other pollutants can result in lung disease.  Dr. Sidhaye has mentored >50 trainees (high school, college, PhD students and postdoctoral fellows) and is the Associate Program Director for the Physician-Scientist pathway in the Osler Medicine Residency Program, focused on the research career of medical residents. These roles have led to her to be well poised to lead the CSM-SIP program, which is successfully mentoring socioeconomically under-resourced undergraduates from across all U.S. States, Territories, and Tribes towards careers in science, medicine, and allied healthcare careers.