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Akshay Sharma, MBBS, MSc.
Akshay Sharma, MBBS, MSc.

Akshay Sharma, MBBS, MSc.

Associate Member, St. Jude Faculty

Departments

Education

MBBS – Kasturba Medical College, Manipal University, Mangalore, India
Postdoctoral Fellowship – Emory University, Winship Cancer Center, Atlanta, Georgia
Residency – University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky
Clinical Fellowship St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee

Honors & Awards

Research Interests

  • Gene therapy and gene editing.
  • Bone marrow transplantation for patients with non-malignant hematological conditions.
  • Development of novel reduced intensity and non-myeloablative conditioning regimens.

Selected Publications

Sharma A. How I treat sickle cell disease with gene therapy. Blood Oct 2, 2024. doi: 10.1182/blood.2024024519. PMID: 39356871

Sharma A, Galimard JE, Pryce A, Bhoopalan SV, Dalissier A, Dalle JH, Locatelli F, Jubert C, Mirci-Danicar O, Kitra-Roussou V, Bertrand Y, Fagioli F, Rialland F, Biffi A, Wynn RF, Michel G, Tambaro FP, Al-Ahmari A, Tbakhi A, Furness CL, Diaz MA, Sedlacek P, Bodova I, Faraci M, Rao K, Kleinschmidt K, Petit A, Gibson B, Bhatt NS, Kalwak K, Corbacioglu S. Cytogenetic abnormalities predict survival after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for pediatric acute myeloid leukemia: a PDWP/EBMT study. Bone Marrow Transplant Apr 1;59(4):451-458, 2024.

John TD, Maron G, Abraham A, Bertaina A, Bhoopalan SV, Bidgoli A, Bonfim C, Coleman Z, DeZern A, Li J, Louis C, Oved J, Pavel-Dinu M, Purtill D, Ruggeri A, Russell A, Wynn R, Boelens JJ, Prockop S, Sharma A. Strategic infection prevention after genetically modified hematopoietic stem cell therapies: recommendations from the International Society for Cell & Gene Therapy Stem Cell Engineering Committee. Cytotherapy. 2024 Jul;26(7):660-671. doi: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2024.02.005. Epub 2024 Feb 20. PMID: 38483362; PMCID: PMC11213676.

Sharma A, John TD. Dismantling cost and infrastructure barriers to equitable access to gene therapies for sickle cell disease. Lancet Haematol. 2024 Aug;11(8):e556-e559. doi: 10.1016/S2352-3026(24)00175-3. Epub 2024 Jul 1. PMID: 38964356.

Frangoul H, Locatelli F, Sharma A, Bhatia M, Mapara M, Molinari L, Wall D, Liem RI, Telfer P, Shah AJ, Cavazzana M, Corbacioglu S, Rondelli D, Meisel R, Dedeken L, Lobitz S, de Montalembert M, Steinberg MH, Walters MC, Eckrich MJ, Imren S, Bower L, Simard C, Zhou W, Xuan F, Morrow PK, Hobbs WE, Grupp SA; CLIMB SCD-121 Study Group. Exagamglogene Autotemcel for Severe Sickle Cell Disease. N Engl J Med. 2024 May 9;390(18):1649-1662. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2309676. Epub 2024 Apr 24. PMID: 38661449.

Sharma A, Selukar S, Bi Y, Merlocco A, Morin C, Goode C, Rai P, Towbin JA, Hankins JS, Gottschalk S, Triplett BM, Johnson JN. Impact of Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation on Myocardial Fibrosis in Young Patients with Sickle Cell Disease. Blood. 2024 May 1:blood.2023023028. doi: 10.1182/blood.2023023028. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38691679.

Sharma A, Boelens JJ, Cancio M, Hankins JS, Bhad P, Azizy M, Lewandowski A, Zhao X, Chitnis S, Peddinti R, Zheng Y, Kapoor N, Ciceri F, Maclachlan T, Yang Y, Liu Y, Yuan J, Naumann U, Yu VWC, Stevenson SC, De Vita S, LaBelle JL. CRISPR-Cas9 editing of the HBG1 and HBG2 promoters to treat sickle cell disease. N Engl J Med 389(9):820-832, 2023.

Sharma A, Logan B, Estrada-Merly N, Lehmann LE, Rangarajan HG, Preussler JM, Troy JD, Akard LP, Bhatt NS, Truong TH, Wood WA, Strouse C, Juckett M, Khera N, Rizzo D, Saber W. Impact of public reporting of center-specific survival analysis scores on patient volumes at hematopoietic cell transplant centers. Transplant Cell Ther 29(8):523-528, 2023.

Piel FB, Rees DC, DeBaun MR, Nnodu O, Ranque B, Thompson AA, Ware RE, Abboud MR, Abraham A, Ambrose EE, Andemariam B, Colah R, Colombatti R, Conran N, Costa FF, Cronin RM, de Montalembert M, Elion J, Esrick E, Greenway AL, Idris IM, Issom DZ, Jain D, Jordan LC, Kaplan ZS, King AA, Lloyd-Puryear M, Oppong SA, Sharma A, Sung L, Tshilolo L, Wilkie DJ, Ohene-Frempong K. Defining global strategies to improve outcomes in sickle cell disease: A Lancet Haematology Commission. Lancet Haematol 10(8): e633-e686, 2023.

Morin CE, Sharma A, Selukar S, Beasley G, Merlocco A, Goode C, Rai P, Towbin JA, Hankins JS, Johnson JN. Diffuse myocardial fibrosis occurs in young patients with sickle cell anemia despite early disease-modifying therapy. Blood 141(11):1358-1362, 2023.

Sharma A, Li Y, Huang S, Talleur AC, Suliman A, Qudeimat A, Srinivasan A, Mamcarz E, Madden R, Cheng C, Gottschalk S, Triplett BM. Outcomes of pediatric patients who relapse after first HCT for acute leukemia or MDS. Bone Marrow Transplant 56(8):1866-1875, 2021.

Newby GA, Yen JS, Woodard KJ, Mayuranathan T, Lazzarotto CR, Li Y, Sheppard-Tillman H, Porter SN, Yao Y, Mayberry K, Everette KA, Jang Y, Podracky CJ, Thaman E, Lechauve C, Sharma A, Henderson JM, Richter MF, Zhao KT, Miller SM, Wang T, Koblan LW, McCaffrey AP, Tisdale JF, Kalfa TA, Pruett-Miller SM, Tsai SQ, Weiss MJ, Liu DR. Base editing of haematopoietic stem cells rescues sickle cell disease in mice. Nature Jun 2, 2021. doi: 10.1038/s41586-021-03609-w. Online ahead of print.

Frangoul H, Altshuler D, Cappellini MD, Chen YS, Domm J, Eustace BK, Foell J, de la Fuente J, Grupp S, Handgretinger R, Ho TW, Kattamis A, Kernytsky A, Lekstrom-Himes J, Li AM, Locatelli F, Mapara MY, de Montalembert M, Rondelli D, Sharma A, Sheth S, Soni S, Steinberg MH, Wall D, Yen A, Corbacioglu S. CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing for sickle cell disease and β-thalassemia.  N Engl J Med Jan 21;384(3):252-260, 2021. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2031054. Epub 2020 Dec 5.

Sharma A, Bhatt NS, St Martin A, Abid MB, Bloomquist J, Chemaly RF, Dandoy C, Gauthier J, Gowda L, Perales MA, Seropian S, Shaw BE, Tuschl EE, Zeidan AM, Riches ML, Shah GL. Clinical characteristics and outcomes of COVID-19 in haematopoietic stem-cell transplantation recipients: An observational cohort study. Lancet Haematol Jan 19;S2352-3026(20)30429-4, 2021. doi: 10.1016/S2352-3026(20)30429-4. Online ahead of print.

Last update: November 2024

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