Cancer Metabolic Imaging & Therapy Lab | Viswanath Lab
Our research program is driven by a bold vision: to uncover how cancer-triggering events reshape the metabolic landscape of both tumors and the immune system and use that knowledge to develop groundbreaking therapies and imaging tools for brain cancer. Through a deeply interdisciplinary approach, we fuse our strengths in metabolomics, immunology, drug discovery, and advanced imaging to craft an integrated strategy that can revolutionize how brain tumors are diagnosed and treated.
Collaboration is at the core of what we do. Our team closely partners with clinical experts at UCSF and other leading institutions, enabling us to rapidly translate discoveries from bench to bedside. Together, we aim to redefine how brain tumors are diagnosed and treated through precision-guided metabolic therapies and imaging.
Research
People
Pavithra Viswanath, PhD - Principal Investigator
Dr. Viswanath is an Associate Professor in Residence in the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at UCSF. With a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, she brings a multidisciplinary approach to biomedical research- blending biochemistry, immunology, drug discovery, and imaging to illuminate new pathways in cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Her work focuses on decoding cancer’s metabolic fingerprints to develop innovative imaging biomarkers and therapeutic strategies. By bridging basic science with clinical application, her work aims to transform how tumors are diagnosed, classified, and treated. At UCSF, Dr. Viswanath leads a close-knit team of biomedical engineers, chemists, and biologists, each bringing a unique lens to the shared mission of advancing cancer care. Together, they investigate how metabolic reprogramming in tumors can be exploited for precision imaging and therapy, striving to push the boundaries of what’s possible in cancer care.
Outside the lab, Dr. Viswanath enjoys reading, hiking, yoga, and playing board games with her husband and children.
Anne Marie Gillespie, Lab Manager
Anne Marie graduated with an MSc from NUIG Ireland. Anne Marie has previously worked with Dr. Charles Epstein and Dr. Sam Hawgood at UCSF.
Georgios Batsios, PhD, Specialist
Georgios is a transplant from a small country town in Northern Greece. After acquiring his diploma in Electrical and Computer Engineering from National Technical University of Athens, Greece, he moved to Switzerland to advance his studies. There he worked as a researcher in ETH Zurich pursuing his PhD in Biomedical Engineering with a focus on MR Imaging. His research in the Viswanath lab focuses on advancing preclinical metabolic imaging of cancer. Specifically, he is developing methods to investigate the metabolism of brain tumor models using 1H, 2H and 13C MR imaging and spectroscopic techniques. Outside the lab he enjoys baking, hiking, strolling the farmer's market, long zoom chats with his family and exploring the beauty of nature with his family.
Kirti Singh, Postdoctoral Scholar
Kirti Singh earned her PhD in molecular pharmacology from Dr. Moniri’s lab at Mercer University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. After graduating she worked at Eli Lilly as a postdoctoral scholar in early phase preclinical drug development for novel target identification and characterization in pulmonary fibrosis. She joined Viswanath lab in November 2024 as a postdoc, with the focus to investigate brain tumor metabolism in preclinical models to advance metabolic imaging and therapy. Apart from lab, she enjoys cooking, hiking, and exploring national parks.
Celine Taglang, PhD, Specialist
Celine obtained her PhD in Chemistry at Paris Saclay University and the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). She developed an enantiospecific C-H activation reaction followed by deuterium incorporation at stereogenic centers, using ruthenium nanoparticles and hydrogen gas. Celine joined UCSF in 2016 to use her experience in medicinal chemistry and radiochemistry to improve 13C labeling and hyperpolarization of biocompatible agents for MRI with applications from enzymatic activity to animal models. Since August 2020, her research in the Viswanath Lab has focused on deuterium magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging with intravenous infusion of nonradioactive 2H-labeled substrates to better reveal metabolism in the brain of animal models and differences between normal brain and tumor tissue. She also likes yoga and challenged herself in 2018 for the San Francisco Marathon. Next step? The NYC marathon!
Nathaniel "Nate" Goodwin, Staff Research Associate
Nate grew up in Charleston, West Virginia and El Paso, Texas prior to attending UC Berkeley where he earned a BS in Chemistry and a BA in Mathematics and Molecular Cellular Biology. After graduating, Nate worked as a high school chemistry teacher in Oakland until 2024 when he joined the Viswanath Lab at UCSF. He now studies metabolism in meningiomas with applications in clinical imaging, targeted therapies, and assessing therapeutic response. Additionally, he is interested in materials science and tunable nanomaterials for targeted therapy. Outside of the lab, Nate loves to pick up new hobbies including biking and fixing up bikes, playing board games, watching reality competition shows, and learning new crafts like crotchet and quilting.
Suresh Udutha, PhD, Postdoctoral Scholar
Dr. Suresh Udutha is a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging at UCSF. He earned his Ph.D. in Chemistry with a specialization in Mass Spectrometry from CSIR–Indian Institute of Chemical Technology in India. His research focuses on investigating metabolic alterations in glioblastoma models and exploring the underlying metabolic pathways involved in disease progression and therapeutic response. He is particularly interested in identifying metabolic biomarkers during combination drug therapies, with the goal of advancing precision medicine in cancer treatment. His work integrates mass spectrometry-based metabolomics to characterize tumor biology and uncover metabolic vulnerabilities that can be targeted therapeutically.
