Mohandas Narla, DSc, is a distinguished scientist and head of the Laboratory of Red Cell Physiology at New York Blood Center.
How did you get your start in hematology?
I became a hematologist by accident. After coming from India in 1968, I got my PhD in chemical engineering from Washington University in St. Louis. Biomedical engineering was just starting, and one of my professors, Dr. Robert Hochmuth, wanted to work on the engineering aspects of blood flow. I thought, why not? Anything with blood would be challenging to study, so that’s how I started working on red blood cells.
After I finished my PhD, I was very lucky to get a biomedical research position in Paris at a hematology research institute where I worked for three years under the mentorship of two outstanding French hematologists, Drs. Marcel Bessis and Gil Tchernia. This experience led me to pursue a career in hematology research.
Where did your career go from there?
While in Paris, I met Dr. George Brecher, who was on a sabbatical from the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). My wife, who is a pathologist, couldn’t work in Paris, and we were looking for an opportunity to return to the U.S. Dr. Brecher helped me get a position at UCSF, and my wife joined the residency program there as well. It worked out very well for both of us.
I spent 13 years at UCSF pursuing my hematology research career and raising our children before moving across the San Francisco Bay to the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. They had a strong biology program studying the effects of radiation on the production of blood cells. I headed a group in hematology research there, and it was a wonderful experience. While I was there, the director of the lab called and asked me if I could serve as interim director of the human genome project. I didn’t know much about the project, but he encouraged me to take the position. My feeling in life is whenever you get an opportunity, keep an open mind, and you can learn a lot. I took the job, indeed learned a lot, and it proved to be a valuable experience in my career.
After 12 years, I decided I needed a change and was offered a position as the director of the research institute at New York Blood Center. By then, I was a senior investigator with 25 years of research experience and wanted to focus on mentorship and attracting new talent to the field. I told my wife I’d be back to the West Coast in five years, but I’ve been here for 21 years now.
You mentioned one of the things that drew you to New York Blood Center is your ability to focus on mentorship. What is your mentorship philosophy?
I am here today because of the great mentors I had. When I started, I knew very little about hematology. These mentors identified problems where they thought I might be able to contribute to this field using my engineering and basic science background.
From the beginning, I always knew if I could get into a position to mentor, I’d like to emulate those who played a major role in getting me where I am today.
The second thing I strongly believe is that mentorship is about the future of the field. I think it’s important to keep the field moving forward as the problems are never fully solved. This entails attracting a talented pool of young people.
One of the challenges ASH is facing is that fewer young people are pursuing careers in classical hematology. As part of an initiative started several years ago, ASH has made a commitment to train people not only in research but also for clinical care in classical hematology at 10 institutions. I’m very proud of this initiative.
What role has ASH played in your career?
It’s the only professional society I’ve belonged to for all these years. I’ve been at every ASH annual meeting since 1976. The meeting in 2026 will be my 50th annual meeting. I’m very proud of that.
I served for 10 years as an associate editor of Blood and have served on several ASH committees, including the Nominating and Awards Committees. Finally, a few years ago, I ran for vice president and was elected. I’ll soon assume the role of the president of ASH.
Why is it important for you to be so involved in ASH?
When I started my research career, biology was a very descriptive science. You’d see things, describe them, and infer what it meant. However, there was very little quantitation. I thought with my engineering background, I could bring the quantitation of how cells behave and how they perform their function to the field.
I’ve been working on red cells for 50 years now since my doctoral dissertation, and I still get up in the morning and wonder why I don’t fully understand all aspects of the red blood cell. I firmly believe that to make any kind of significant scientific contributions, you must pick a subject that fascinates you and keep working on it. You’ll never feel you understand it as deeply as you’d want, but if you don’t try, nothing will happen.
What are some of your proudest research accomplishments?
Globally, anemia is a major health problem, and from the very beginning, I wanted to understand the mechanistic basis for anemia. I’ve developed deeper insights into what happens to red cells when you become iron deficient, what happens when you have thalassemia or sickle cell disease (SCD), and how it compromises red cell function.
A large number of groups and individuals around the country and the world spent a lot of time and effort developing a comprehensive understanding of red cell biology. I am very pleased that my research group and I played a role in these developments.
In the last 15 years, my lab has shifted its focus to studying how red cells are made in bone marrow. Now we and others have developed new methodologies to produce red cells from hematopoietic stem cells in vitro. Such strategies should enable us to study the basis for decreased red cell production in various disorders.
How do you think your unique background will shape your term as ASH president?
I think I can bring a global hematology perspective. In my 50-year career, I’ve collaborated with people from France, England, Italy, Australia, Japan, Thailand, and West Africa. This allows me to have a global perspective for the field of hematology.
Globally, many of the developing countries cannot afford to use the treatments we have here because of the cost factors. Therefore, I truly believe we need to pay significantly more attention to address these inequalities. We at ASH are committed to addressing these inequalities, and I’m very proud of that. We have several global awards for individuals living in other countries, including one that brings hematologists from other countries here to train them for a year.
What goals do you have for your term?
One thing I worry about is while we have embarked on lots of exciting programs, many of our members may not be fully aware of these initiatives despite our significant communication efforts. We need to address this issue.
To be a good scientist and have a good career, you need to be passionate about what you want to do. When people ask me what they should work on, I never answer them because they need to be passionate about what interests them, not what someone else thinks is interesting.
What do you like to do in your free time?
The best thing for me is traveling around the world. I go to places around the world to work and talk science with my colleagues. They have now become dear friends. During these visits, we talk not just about science, but also different aspects of life.
Dr. Narla, second from right, his wife, son, and daughter are
all members of ASH.
What can you share about your family?
I have a son who is in Michigan. He’s a physician/scientist and works on cancer genetics, and my daughter is a pediatric hematologist/oncologist at Stanford University. My wife is a practicing pathologist. All four of us are members of ASH. When people are running for office, I tell them, “You better be nice to the Narla family because you can get four votes from us.”
What do you see for the future of hematology?
The future is very bright indeed. Traditionally, hematology has always been at the forefront of biomedical research. For example, SCD was identified more than 70 years ago as the first molecular disease by Dr. Linus Pauling, which subsequently led to detailed understanding of the pathophysiology of the disease and development of innovative therapeutic strategies, including recent advances in gene therapy. I anticipate similar significant breakthroughs in managing many classical and malignant hematologic disorders. This optimistic view is bolstered by large increases in the number of ongoing clinical trials being pursued to manage hematologic disorders, including rare disorders such as SCD and Diamond-Blackfan anemia. These efforts are being led by academic and practicing hematologists, biotech companies, big pharma. I am also encouraged by the global nature of these clinical efforts. These efforts will have high potential to make major impacts on health around the world. ASH is fully committed to encouraging such efforts.
Are there any final thoughts you would like to add?
I just want to emphasize that ASH is my second home, and I intend to continue supporting its many great programs. I’ve been involved with the ASH Foundation from the beginning, and I am amazed how much it is accomplishing to support various programs. During my year of presidency, I would like to keep moving these efforts forward.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.