The Western diet is high in substances called high-glycation end products that keep the immune system in a vigilant inflammatory state. When an individual is also food allergic, the presence of allergens may provoke an excessive response that mimics a normal mechanism for eliminating dead or dying tissue. The combination can be deadly.
Raj Tiwari, Ph.D., is the Interim Chair and Professor of Microbiology and Immunology, Associate Professor of Otolaryngology and Graduate Program Director. Dr. Tiwari joined the NYMC faculty in 1996 and has maintained an active, funded research program in immunological aspects of cancer biology. Dr. Tiwari received his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in biochemistry from the University of Calcutta in India and completed his postdoctoral training at the University of Toronto in Canada and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. Prior to joining the NYMC community, he held faculty positions at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and at New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center.