Rao N.V.S. Mamidi
Adjunct Faculty
Dr. Rao Mamidi joins the Department of Translational Science and Medicine as an Honorary Adjunct Professor, bringing over 25 years of leadership in nonclinical safety, disposition and drug development. He currently serves full-time as Senior Director and Nonclinical Safety Therapeutic Area Leader for Virology at Gilead Sciences. Dr. Mamidi has played a pivotal role in advancing therapies across multiple modalities, including small molecules, monoclonal antibodies, and drug-device combinations. His work has contributed to the successful development and approval of transformative medicines such as teplizumab (Tzield® for type 1 diabetes), canagliflozin (Invokana® for type 2 diabetes), erdafitinib (Balversa® for bladder cancer), niraparib FDC (Akeega® for prostate cancer), macitentan FDC (Opsynvi® for pulmonary hypertension), and darunavir (Prezista® for HIV). Prior to his current role, Dr. Mamidi held key scientific leadership positions at Johnson & Johnson, Sanofi, where he led global nonclinical safety and development strategies, mentored emerging scientists, and supported critical due diligence efforts for in-licensing and acquisitions.
Dr. Mamidi is a board-certified toxicologist with a Ph.D. in Drug Metabolism from Kakatiya University, India. He has authored or co-authored more than 65 peer-reviewed publications and over 70 conference presentations in translational sciences and holds more than 10 U.S. and international patents for innovative solutions to complex discovery and development challenges. His most recent research work has contributed to the development of a novel drug-device combination for targeted bladder therapy for non-invasive muscle bladder cancer, which is currently in advanced clinical trials. Dr. Mamidi’s R&D contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors, including the Johnson Medal, the Philip B. Hofmann Research Award (received twice), the Spark Innovation Award, etc. Through his adjunct role, he aims to share his expertise in translational science by mentoring students and advising on curriculum development to ensure alignment with current industry practices, with the overall goal of fostering collaboration between academia and industry to advance science and research.