Afshin Beheshti

Appointment Rank: Core-Resident

Dr. Afshin Beheshti is a Professor of Surgery and Computational & Systems Biology at the University of Pittsburgh, where he serves as Director of the Center for Space Biomedicine and Associate Director at the McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine. He is also a Visiting Researcher at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. 

With over two decades of post-PhD research leadership, Dr. Beheshti has made pioneering contributions across space biology, cancer, COVID-19/Long COVID, radiation biology, and mitochondrial medicine. His central focus is understanding how mitochondria and microRNAs (miRNAs) shape disease pathways and stress responses, from Earth to space. A systems biologist by training, he integrates multi-omics data, computational modeling, and experimental biology to identify biomarkers and repurpose therapeutics for clinical and aerospace medicine. 

Previously, he was a Principal Investigator at NASA Ames Research Center. There, he participated with platform development for NASA GeneLab, co-founded and chaired the Multi-Omics Analysis Working Group (also still the current chair), and secured multi-agency funding (NASA, DoD, etc.) to study miRNA/mitochondrial dysfunction under spaceflight, cancer, and pandemic conditions. 

Dr. Beheshti is also the President of two global nonprofit organizations: 

  • COV-IRT (COVID-19 International Research Team), a 200+ member research consortium advancing open science for COVID-19 and Long COVID (www.cov-irt.org). 
  • Kwaai.ai, a technology collective building free, personal artificial intelligence to democratize AI access (www.kwaai.ai). 

In 2024, he co-led the landmark Space Omics and Medical Atlas (SOMA) paper package, coordinating with Nature Portfolio to publish the largest space biology collection to date (https://www.nature.com/immersive/d42859-024-00009-8/index.html). Dr. Beheshti co-authored 22 SOMA papers (9 as senior author), three of which were featured in the August 2024 issue of Nature, including one on the cover (https://www.nature.com/nature/volumes/632/issues/8027). 

Dr. Beheshti’s contributions have been recognized with prestigious awards including the NASA Exceptional Scientific Achievement Medal, the ISS Research & Development Award for Compelling Results in Biology, the NASA Outstanding Service Award, and the One KBR Award. 

His research continues to redefine our understanding of spaceflight-induced disease, aging, and precision countermeasure development,  both on Earth and beyond. 

Dr. Beheshti’s academic foundation began with a B.S. in Physics from the University of Minnesota, followed by an M.S. in Physics and a Ph.D. in Biophysics from Florida State University. This strong physics and biophysics training laid the groundwork for his transition into biology, equipping him with the quantitative skills and interdisciplinary mindset that now define his systems-based approach to biomedical research. 

For more, visit: https://space.pitt.edu 

List of publications:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/afshin.beheshti.1/bibliography/public/ 

Google Scholar:https://scholar.google.ca/citations?user=OXYo7HoAAAAJ&hl=en 

Linkedin:https://www.linkedin.com/in/afshinbeheshti/ 

Other websites and activities: 

Select mention for Dr. Beheshti in the media: 

Featured in the 100th anniversary edition in the New Yorker: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/02/17/can-the-human-body-endure-a-voyage-to-mars 

Featured in Reuters: https://www.reuters.com/science/how-does-space-travel-affect-astronaut-health-2025-02-20 

Featured in the Salon News: https://www.salon.com/2025/03/15/nasa-astronauts-to-return-home-after-major-delay-heres-what-that-time-in-space-does-to-the-body/ 

Featured in the New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/12/science/astronauts-space-health-inspiration4-medical-records.html 

Featured in the Washington Post: https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2024/06/06/covid-cancer-increase-link/ 

Featured in the University of Minnesota Alumni Magazine: https://www.minnesotaalumni.org/stories/the-perils-of-space 

Featured in Spectrum Magazine, The Alumni Magazine of Florida State University’s College of Arts and : https://artsandsciences.fsu.edu/spectrum-winter-2024/article/cosmic-cells