Professional headshot of a person with gray hair wearing a light dress shirt and patterned red tie, photographed against a teal background.

FACULTY

Frank Culicchia

Department Head/Chairman

Neurosurgery

Academic Office:

LSU School of Medicine
2021 Perdido Street
CALS 8204
New Orleans LA 70112
504-568-2646

 

Clinical Office:

University Medical Center
2000 Canal Street
New Orleans, LA 70112
504-340-6976

www.culicchianeuro.com

Bio

As the clinical professor and chairman of the Department of Neurosurgery at LSU Health Science Center in New Orleans, I head the cerebrovascular, brain tumor, and the skull base program. Our glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) program is an active research program, with extensive collaboration with the Bazan group in Neuroscience Center of Excellence.  One of his research members, Dr. Walter Lukiw, and I have collaborated well in the past, including work on the genetic regulatory mechanisms in growth and invasiveness of GBM.  In addition, the collaboration with the multidisciplinary team, led by Dr. Krzysztof Reiss, resulted in the development of the Center for Translational Viral Oncology (CTVO) that supports the development of novel approaches for diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of virus-associated malignancies. In particular, I was serving as a clinical mentor for Dr. Donna Neumann who received R01 grant and graduated from the Phase 1 CTVO. I am also very excited to continue my close collaboration with the CTVO team during the Phase 2 renewal for which am serving again as a clinical mentor for Dr. Monika Rak (Project #4). 

Our neurosurgery team, recently ranked among the top 10% in the country, has outstanding experience in diagnosing and surgical treatment of patients with GBM. With a well-developed research staff that has experience in managing the scientific and regulatory aspects of human research, my GBM program is perfectly suited to complete this research team.

Education

Graduate/Medical School: 
Doctor of Medicine
Tulane University School of Medicine 
New Orleans, LA 

Residency:
Tulane University School of Medicine
New Orleans, LA  

Fellowship: 
Fellow, Barrow Neurological Institute
St. Josephs Hospital and Medical Center
Phoenix, AZ 

Publications

  1. Culicchia F, Martinez JA. Problems; Spinal Shock. Emer Med. 7:65-69 (1987).
  2. Baber WW, Numaguchi Y, Nadell JM, Culicchia F, Robinson AE. Eosinophilic granuloma of the cervical spine without vertebrae plana. J Comput Tomogr. 11:346-349 (1989).
  3. Muchmore J, Dunlap J, Culicchia F, Morris D: Deep vein thrombophlebitis and pulmonary embolism in patients with malignant gliomas. South Med J. 82:1352-1356 (1989).
  4. Culicchia F, Spetzler R. Failure of Transluminal Angioplasty in Treatment of Internal Carotid Myointimal Hyperplasia: A Case Report. Neurosurgery 28:148-41, (1991).
  5. Puca A, Spetzler RF, Zabramski JM, Culicchia F. Cardiocirculatory arrest with hypothermia. Experimental study. Ital J Neurol Sci. 12:49-55 (1991).
  6. Ronderos JF, Wiles DA, Ragan FA, Dempsy CV, Culicchia F, Richardson DE. Cranioplasty using gentamicin-loaded acrylic cement: a test of neurotoxicity. Surg Neuro 37:356-360 (1992).
  7. Borresen T, Overstreet J, Truax W, Culicchia F. EEG Monitoring during Carotid Surgery: who should do the monitoring? Clin Electrocephalogr 24:70-77 (1993).
  8. Culicchia F, Brown G. Nursing Dilemmas. Seminars in Neurosurgery. Fisher W (Editor), Thieme Publishing, (1997).
  9. Tompkins J, Culicchia F. Surgical Alternatives to Interventional Neuroradiology Procedures. In: Connors JJ, Wojak J (Editors), Interventional Neuroradiology. (1998).
  10. Liu H, Dawson R, Culicchia F. Unexpected intraoperative hyperkalemia during cerebral angiography and coil embolization of cerebral aneurysm. J Neurosurg Anesthesiol. 17:121-122 (2005).
  11. Culicchia F, Cui JG, Li YY, Lukiw WJ. Upregulation of beta-amyloid precursor protein expression in glioblastoma multiforme. Neuroreport 19:981-985 (2008).
  12. Lukiw WJ, Cui JG, Li YY, Culicchia F. Up-regulation of micro-RNA-221 (miRNA-221; chr Xp11.3) and caspase 3 accompanies down-regulation of the survivin-1 homolog BIRC1 (NAIP) anti-apoptotic protein in glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), J. Neurooncology 91:27-32 (2009).
  13. Cui JG, Li YY, Mahta A, Sethi S, Zhao Y, Culicchia F, Lukiw WJ. Micro-RNA-128 (miRNA-128; chr 2q21.3) down-regulation targets Bmi-1-mediated polycomb silencing and transcription factor E2F3a, key regulators of cell cycle progression. J. of Neurooncology 98: 297-304 (2010).
  14. Pogue AI, Cui JG, Li YY, Zhao Y, Culicchia F, Lukiw WJ. Micro RNA-125b (miRNA-125b) function in astrogliosis and glial cell proliferation. Neurosi Lett 476: 18-22. (2010).
  15. Culicchia, F, Lukiw, W. Genetic Signaling in Glioblastoma Multiforme (GBM): A Current Overview. Neurochemical Mechanisms in Disease. Springer Science + Business Media, LLC. 2011.
  16. Wilk A, Wyczechowska D, Zapata A, Dean M, Mullinax J, Marrero L, Parsons C, Peruzzi F, Culicchia F, Ochoa A, Grabacka M, Reiss K. Molecular mechanisms of fenofibrate-induced metabolic catastrophe and glioblastoma cell death. Mol Cell Biol. 2015 Jan;35(1):182-98. doi: 10.1128/MCB.00562-14. Epub 2014 Oct 20. PubMed PMID: 25332241; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4295376.
  17. Grabacka M, Waligorski P, Zapata A, Blake DA, Wyczechowska D, Wilk A, Rutkowska M. Vashistha H, Ayyala R, Ponnusamy T, Vijay TJ, Culicchia F, Wisniewska-becker A, Reiss K. Fenofibrate subcellular distribution as a rationale for the intracranial delivery through biodegradable carrier. J Physiol Pharmacol. 2015 Apr;66(2):233-47. PMID: 25903954.
  18. Lukiw WJ, Kruck TPA, Percy ME, Pogue AI, Alexandrov PN, Walsh WJ, Sharfman NM, Jaber VR, Zhao Y, Li W, Bergeron C, Culicchia F, Fang Z, McLachlan DRC. Aluminum in neurological disease - a 36 year multicenter study. J Alzheimers Dis Parkinsonism. 2019;8(6):457. doi: 10.4172/2161-0460.1000457. Epub 2018 Nov 29. PMID: 31179161; PMCID: PMC6550484.
  19. Stalinska J, Zimolag E, Pianovich NA, Zapata A, Lassak A, Rak M, Dean M, Ucar-Bilyeu D, Wyczechowska D, Culicchia F, Marrero L, Del Valle L, Sarkaria J, Peruzzi F, Jursic BS, Reiss K. Chemically modified variants of fenofibrate with anti-glioblastoma potential. Translational Oncology 12, 895-907, 2019.
  20. DiGiorgio AM, Wittenberg BA, Crutcher CL 2nd, Kennamer B, Greene CS, Velander AJ, Wilson JD, Tender GC, Culicchia F, Hunt JP. The Impact of Drug and Alcohol Intoxication on Glasgow Coma Scale Assessment in Patients with Traumatic Brain Injury. World Neurosurg. 2020 Mar;135:e664-e670. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2019.12.095. Epub 2019 Dec 24. PMID: 31881342.
  21. Crutcher CL 2nd, Wilson JM, Morrow KD, Shields JA, Lasseigne LM, Culicchia F, Tender G. Management of cerebrospinal fluid leak from cervical gunshot wounds with external ventricular drainage: a small case series. J Surg Case Rep. 2020 Dec 7;2020(12):rjaa484. doi: 10.1093/jscr/rjaa484. PMID: 33343866; PMCID: PMC7736999.
  22. Zhao Y, Arceneaux L, Culicchia F, Lukiw WJ. Neurofilament Light (NF-L) Chain Protein from a Highly Polymerized Structural Component of the Neuronal Cytoskeleton to a Neurodegenerative Disease Biomarker in the Periphery. HSOA J Alzheimers Neurodegener Dis. 2021;7(2):056. doi: 10.24966/AND-9608/100056. Epub 2021 Oct 13. PMID: 34881359; PMCID: PMC8651065.

Clinical Interests

  • Cerebrovascular Surgery
  • Skull Base Surgery
  • Brain Tumors
  • Stereotaxic Radiosurgery
  • Neurocritical Care

Scientific Memberships

Congress of Neurological Surgeons (Schaumburg, IL, USA)

American Association of Neurological Surgeons (Rolling Meadows, IL, USA)

AANS/CNS Joint Section on Cerebrovascular

Louisiana State Medical Society (Baton Rouge, LA, USA)

Jefferson Parish Medical Society (Metairie, LA, USA)

Orleans Parish Medical Society (New Orleans, LA, USA)

New Orleans Neurological Society (New Orleans, LA, USA)