Sushma Cribbs MD, MSc
- Department of Medicine
Professor
- (404) 321-6111
- skomaku@emory.edu
-
Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center
1670 Clairmont Rd
Pulmonary Medicine, Mailstop 151p
Overview
Dr. Cribbs completed her undergraduate and medical school education (2002) at Boston University. She trained in Internal Medicine at Emory University from 2002-2005. During her residency, she initiated a multi-institutional collaborative effort to examine how body mass index modulates airway inflammation and lung hysteresis in asthma. She secured funding for this project and performed a year of research prior to her fellowship training as a Senior Associate in Emorys Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, extending this project to investigations related to adipokines, eicosanoid lipid mediators, and biomarkers of airway oxidative stress in obese asthmatics.
Dr. Cribbs then pursued her fellowship training at Emory from 2006-2009. Following fellowship, she was recruited to stay at Emory University on faculty as Assistant Professor of Medicine. She has served in a number of leadership positions since joining the faculty including Medical Director of the Pulmonary Clinic at Grady Memorial Hospital, Associate Program Director of the Pulmonary & Critical Care Fellowship Program and Director of Home Oxygen Respiratory Program at the Atlanta VA Hospital.
Dr. Cribbs research is focused on studying the mechanisms by which human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV) affects lung immunity rendering individuals susceptible to lung infections. She is currently leading several collaborative, multi-disciplinary translational research projects to elucidate the mechanisms by which HIV and other infectious insults affect lung immunity rendering individuals susceptible to lung infections and lung injury. These projects integrate our clinical enterprise with basic science researchers, translating science from bedside to bench back to bedside. In addition, she is a co-investigator of the Pulmonary supplement for the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study/WIHS Combined Cohort Study (MACS/WIHS CCS), leading investigations on pulmonary diseases in people living with HIV. With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, she has been involved in COVID-19 multicenter cohort and therapeutics trials, including as site-PI for NIH-funded RECOVER study, investigating post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection. She has been funded through a NIH KL2 Career Development Award from Emory University, the NIH Loan Repayment Program and is currently a Co-Investigator on a number of grants funded by NHLBI. Additionally, she obtained a Masters of Science in Clinical Research (MSCR) degree from Emory's Laney Graduate School. Dr. Cribbs is heavily involved with the Pulmonary & Critical Care Fellowship Program and a variety of committees on a Division and Department level. In addition, she serves on numerous committees within national/international professional organizations including the American Thoracic Society. She is currently based at the VA where she continues to see patients and supervise students, residents and fellows.
Academic Appointment
- Professor of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine
- Professor of Medicine, Morehouse School of Medicine
- Distinguished Physician, Emory University School of Medicine
Education
Degrees
- BA from Boston University
- MD from Boston University School of Medicine
- MSc from Emory University - Laney Graduate School
Research
Focus
- I am currently studying the impact of chronic infection with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) on alveolar macrophage (AM) function. Specifically, I am testing the hypothesis that HIV-1 infection decreases Zn bioavailability and increases oxidative stress within the alveolar space, thereby interfering with immune stimulation of the alveolar macrophage (AM); as a result, individuals with HIV are more susceptible to bacterial and viral airway infections.
Publications
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Alveolar macrophages from persons with HIV mount impaired TNF signaling networks to M. tuberculosis infection.
Nat Commun Volume: 16 Page(s): 2397
03/10/2025 Authors: Kgoadi K; Bajpai P; Ibegbu CC; Dkhar HK; Enriquez AB; Dawa S; Cribbs SK; Rengarajan J -
Measurement of circulating viral antigens post-SARS-CoV-2 infection in a multicohort study.
Clin Microbiol Infect Volume: 30 Page(s): 1599 - 1605
12/01/2024 Authors: Swank Z; Borberg E; Chen Y; Senussi Y; Chalise S; Manickas-Hill Z; Yu XG; Li JZ; Alter G; Henrich TJ -
Differentiation of Prior SARS-CoV-2 Infection and Postacute Sequelae by Standard Clinical Laboratory Measurements in the RECOVER Cohort.
Ann Intern Med Volume: 177 Page(s): 1209 - 1221
09/01/2024 Authors: Erlandson KM; Geng LN; Selvaggi CA; Thaweethai T; Chen P; Erdmann NB; Goldman JD; Henrich TJ; Hornig M; Karlson EW -
Immunomodulators for immunocompromised patients hospitalized for COVID-19: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.
EClinicalMedicine Volume: 69 Page(s): 102472
03/01/2024 Authors: Siempos II; Kalil AC; Belhadi D; Veiga VC; Cavalcanti AB; Branch-Elliman W; Papoutsi E; Gkirgkiris K; Xixi NA; Kotanidou A -
Development of a Definition of Postacute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 Infection.
JAMA Volume: 329 Page(s): 1934 - 1946
06/13/2023 Authors: Thaweethai T; Jolley SE; Karlson EW; Levitan EB; Levy B; McComsey GA; McCorkell L; Nadkarni GN; Parthasarathy S; Singh U -
Lung Function in Women With and Without Human Immunodeficiency Virus.
Clin Infect Dis Volume: 76 Page(s): e727 - e735
02/08/2023 Authors: Wang RJ; Nouraie M; Kunisaki KM; Huang L; Tien PC; Anastos K; Bhandari N; Bhatt SP; Bolivar H; Cribbs SK -
Researching COVID to Enhance Recovery (RECOVER) adult study protocol: Rationale, objectives, and design.
PLoS One Volume: 18 Page(s): e0286297
01/01/2023 Authors: Horwitz LI; Thaweethai T; Brosnahan SB; Cicek MS; Fitzgerald ML; Goldman JD; Hess R; Hodder SL; Jacoby VL; Jordan MR -
Association Between HIV and Prevalence and Manifestations of Asthma: Analysis of the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study and Women's Interagency HIV Study.
J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr Volume: 91 Page(s): 419 - 428
12/15/2022 Authors: Drummond MB; Edmonds A; Ramirez C; Stosor V; Barjaktarevic IZ; Morris A; McCormack MC; Bhatt SP; Alcaide ML; Cribbs SK -
Pulmonary Function Trajectories in People with HIV: Analysis of the Pittsburgh HIV Lung Cohort.
Ann Am Thorac Soc Volume: 19 Page(s): 2013 - 2020
12/01/2022 Authors: Konstantinidis I; Qin S; Fitzpatrick M; Kessinger C; Gentry H; McMahon D; Weinman RD; Tien P; Huang L; McCormack M -
Baricitinib versus dexamethasone for adults hospitalised with COVID-19 (ACTT-4): a randomised, double-blind, double placebo-controlled trial.
Lancet Respir Med Volume: 10 Page(s): 888 - 899
09/01/2022 Authors: Wolfe CR; Tomashek KM; Patterson TF; Gomez CA; Marconi VC; Jain MK; Yang OO; Paules CI; Palacios GMR; Grossberg R