Dr. Kiran Musunuru was recognized for his outstanding achievements in genetic research.
Growing up in Florida as the son of a renowned cardiologist, Kiran Musunuru decided to follow in his dad’s footsteps and become a heart doctor. The twist? He decided he didn’t want to just treat cardiovascular disease: he wanted to figure out how to prevent heart attacks in the first place. This drive has led him to win multiple awards and grants supporting his innovative pursuit to research the link between genetics and the world’s leading killer: heart disease. For this, he is being honored as one of our distinguished alumni.
Before graduating from Harvard College with a degree in biochemical sciences, Musunuru took part in three TIP courses, one of which was chemistry. He then went on to collect his PhD in biomedical sciences from The Rockefeller University, an MD from Weill Cornell Medical College, and his MPH in epidemiology from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. He also completed postdoctoral work at Massachusetts General Hospital and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. In addition, he has contributed to numerous medical textbooks and publications, and has won multiple awards for his research, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. Today you can find Musunuru teaching as an associate professor of cardiovascular medicine and genetics in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.