Deepak Kumar Khajuria, PhD

Research Assistant Professor

Organization:

West Virginia University School of Medicine

Department:

Orthopaedics

Classification:

Faculty

Research Assistant Professor

Organization:

West Virginia University School of Medicine

Department:

Physiology, Pharmacology & Toxicology

Classification:

Faculty

• PhD, Pharmacology, Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, Bengaluru, India, 2014
• MPharm, Pharmacology, Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, Bengaluru, India, 2009
• BPharm, Pharmacy, Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, Bengaluru, India, 2006

Selected Publications

Fracture Biology, Pain, Osteoimmunology, and Bone Repair

1. Khajuria DK, Wee H, Koroneos ZA, Tantawy MA, Lewis GS, Raup-Konsavage WM, Vrana KE, Kamal F, Elbarbary RA.
   Cannabichromene attenuates fracture pain but impairs bone repair in a murine tibial fracture model. Bone. 2026;207:117850.
2. Khajuria DK, Reider I, Kamal F, Norbury CC, Elbarbary RA.
   Distinct defects in early innate and late adaptive immune responses typify impaired fracture healing in diet-induced obesity. Front Immunol. 2023;14:1250309.
3. Khajuria DK, Karuppagounder V, Nowak I, Sepulveda DE, Lewis GS, Norbury CC, Raup-Konsavage WM, Vrana KE, Kamal F, Elbarbary RA.
   Cannabidiol and Cannabigerol, Nonpsychotropic Cannabinoids, as Analgesics that Effectively Manage Bone Fracture Pain and Promote Healing in Mice. J Bone Miner Res. 2023;38(11):1560–1576.
4. Khajuria DK, Nowak I, Leung M, Karuppagounder V, Imamura Y, Norbury CC, Kamal F, Elbarbary RA.
   Transcript shortening via alternative polyadenylation promotes gene expression during fracture healing. Bone Res. 2023;11(1):5.
5. Wee H, Khajuria DK*, Kamal F, Lewis GS, Elbarbary RA.
   Assessment of Bone Fracture Healing Using Micro-Computed Tomography. J Vis Exp. 2022;(190):e64262. *Co-first author.
6. Khajuria DK, Soliman M, Elfar JC, Lewis GS, Abraham T, Kamal F, Elbarbary RA.
   Aberrant structure of fibrillar collagen and elevated levels of advanced glycation end products typify delayed fracture healing in the diet-induced obesity mouse model. Bone. 2020;137:115436.

Osteoporosis and Bone Regeneration: Nanomedicine, Biomaterials, Drug Delivery, and Translational Models

7. Khajuria DK, Karasik D.
   Novel model of restricted mobility induced osteopenia in zebrafish. J Fish Biol. 2021;98(4):1031–1038.
8. Khajuria DK, Vasireddi R, Priydarshi MK, Mahapatra DR.
   Ionic Diffusion and Drug Release Behavior of Core–Shell-Functionalized Alginate–Chitosan-Based Hydrogel. ACS Omega. 2020;5(1):758–765.
9. Kumar VB, Khajuria DK*, Karasik D, Gedanken A.
   Silver and gold doped hydroxyapatite nanocomposites for enhanced bone regeneration. Biomed Mater. 2019;14(5):055002. *Co-first author.
10. Khajuria DK, Kumar VB, Gigi D, Gedanken A, Karasik D.
    Accelerated Bone Regeneration by Nitrogen-Doped Carbon Dots Functionalized with Hydroxyapatite Nanoparticles. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2018;10(23):19373–19385.
11. Kolanthai E, Sindu PA, Khajuria DK, Veerla SC, Kuppuswamy D, Catalani LH, Mahapatra DR.
    Graphene Oxide—A Tool for the Preparation of Chemically Crosslinking Free Alginate–Chitosan–Collagen Scaffolds for Bone Tissue Engineering. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2018;10(15):12441–12452.
12. Khajuria DK, Kumar VB, Karasik D, Gedanken A.
    Fluorescent Nanoparticles with Tissue-Dependent Affinity for Live Zebrafish Imaging. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2017;9(22):18557–18565.
13. Khajuria DK, Vasireddi R, Trebbin M, Karasik D, Razdan R.
    Novel therapeutic intervention for osteoporosis prepared with strontium hydroxyapatite and zoledronic acid: In vitro and pharmacodynamic evaluation. Mater Sci Eng C Mater Biol Appl. 2017;71:698–708.
14. Khajuria DK, Disha C, Vasireddi R, Razdan R, Mahapatra DR.
    Risedronate/zinc-hydroxyapatite based nanomedicine for osteoporosis. Mater Sci Eng C Mater Biol Appl. 2016;63:78–87.
15. Khajuria DK, Razdan R, Mahapatra DR.
    Development, in vitro and in vivo characterization of zoledronic acid functionalized hydroxyapatite nanoparticle based formulation for treatment of osteoporosis in animal model. Eur J Pharm Sci. 2015;66:173–183.
16. Khajuria DK, Razdan R, Mahapatra DR.
    The Combination Therapy with Zoledronic Acid and Propranolol Improves the Trabecular Microarchitecture and Mechanical Property in an Rat Model of Postmenopausal Osteoporosis. J Osteoporos. 2014;2014:586431.
17. Khajuria DK, Razdan R, Mahapatra DR, Bhat MR.
    Osteoprotective effect of propranolol in rat model of postmenopausal osteoporosis: a comparison with zoledronic acid and alfacalcidol. J Orthop Sci. 2013;18(5):832–842.
18. Sahana H, Khajuria DK, Razdan R, Mahapatra DR, Suresh S, Rao RR, Mariappan L.
    Improvement in bone properties by risedronate adsorbed hydroxyapatite novel nanoparticle formulation in rat model of postmenopausal osteoporosis. J Biomed Nanotechnol. 2012;9:1–9.

Publications link

• 2023 — Bond and Bradley Postdoctoral Travel Award, Pennsylvania State University
• 2021 — Young Investigator Award, ECTS/GEMSTONE Masterclass, American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR)
• 2020 — Young Investigator Award, ECTS/GEMSTONE Masterclass, ASBMR
• 2019 — Young Investigator Travel Grant, ASBMR
• 2017 — Travel Grant, Endocrine Fellows Foundation / ASBMR
• 2016 — Award for Excellence in Research, Israel Society of Skeletal Biology and Medicine
• 2016–2018 — Postdoctoral Fellowship, Council for Higher Education (VATAT), Government of Israel
• 2012–2015 — Senior Research Fellowship, Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Government of India

Positions:

• West Virginia University School of Medicine
  • Research Assistant Professor (2026–present), Department of Orthopaedics
  • Joint Appointment (2026–present), Department of Physiology, Pharmacology & Toxicology
• Indiana University School of Medicine
  • Assistant Research Professor (2025), Department of Orthopaedic Surgery
• Penn State College of Medicine
  • Faculty Researcher (2023–2025), Department of Orthopaedics and Therapy Services
  • Postdoctoral Scholar (2018–2023), Department of Orthopaedics and Therapy Services
• Bar-Ilan University, Israel
  • Postdoctoral Research Associate (2015–2018), Azrieli Faculty of Medicine
• Indian Institute of Science, India
  • Postdoctoral Fellow (2014–2015), Department of Aerospace Engineering

Professional Societies:

• American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR) (2016 - present)
• Orthopaedic Research Society (ORS) (2021 - present)
  • LearnORS Committee (2025 - present)
  • International Section of Fracture Repair (ISFR) Committee (2025 - present)
• Orthopaedic Trauma Association (OTA) (2026 - present)

Dr. Khajuria’s research program seeks to understand how neural, immune, vascular, and skeletal responses coordinate fracture repair and how these processes are disrupted by aging, osteoporosis, and metabolic diseases. A major goal of this work is to identify therapeutic strategies that relieve fracture pain while preserving—or enhancing—the biological processes required for bone regeneration. His research is broadly organized into three interconnected areas:

• Fracture pain and bone repair: Dr. Khajuria studies the biological relationship between nociception and bone regeneration, with particular interest in sensory signaling and neuroimmune mechanisms that influence both pain and healing. His work evaluates non-opioid therapeutic approaches for fracture pain while simultaneously determining their effects on callus formation, remodeling, and functional recovery.
• Osteoimmunology and impaired fracture healing: His research examines how immune cells and inflammatory signaling regulate the successive phases of fracture repair and how these responses are altered in conditions associated with poor bone healing, including obesity, osteoporosis, and aging. This work seeks to identify cellular and molecular pathways that can be therapeutically targeted to restore fracture healing.
• Therapeutic development for osteoporosis, fracture repair, and pain: Dr. Khajuria develops and evaluates small molecules, nanoparticles, extracellular vesicles, biomaterials, and local or bone-targeted delivery strategies to improve fracture healing, treat osteoporosis, and manage fracture-associated pain. His work integrates pharmacology with bone biology to identify therapeutic targets and advance candidate therapies from mechanistic evaluation toward preclinical translation.

Trainees working with Dr. Khajuria gain hands-on experience in in vivo models of fracture healing and osteoporosis, behavioral assessment of pain and function, micro-computed tomography (micro-CT), histology and bone histomorphometry, cellular and molecular analyses, and biomechanical testing. He also welcomes interdisciplinary collaborations involving candidate therapeutics, molecular targets, genetic models, drug-delivery systems, and other translational approaches relevant to bone loss, fracture repair, pain, and musculoskeletal regeneration.