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George Mason University

Faculty & Staff Directory

Aman Ullah

  • Assistant Professor

    Contact Info

    Aman Ullah Photo
    Name
    Dr. Aman Ullah
    Job Title
    Assistant Professor
    Phone Number
    703-993-7182
    Office Number
    MSN 5B3

    Affiliations

    Departments

    Research Areas

    • Bio-health/Health
    • Biomedical Research

    Education

    • Ph.D. in Computational Biophysics
    Ohio University


    • M.S. in Applied Physics
    University of Massachusetts at Boston


    • M.Sc. in Physics
    University of Peshawar, Pakistan


    • B.S. in Physics and Mathematics
    University of Peshawar, Pakistan

    About

    Dr. Ullah is an Assistant Professor in the School of Systems Biology with over two decades of experience in computational biophysics and cardiac electrophysiology. His research centers on calcium dynamics, Markov chain modeling, and cellular signaling pathways to understand disease mechanisms in cardiac and neural systems. He is involved in multidisciplinary projects that integrate computational biology, cardiology, and neuroscience, using multi-scale modeling, systems bioinformatics, and mechanobiology to investigate how diseases emerge and progress from the molecular level to whole-organ function.

    A major focus of his work is cardiac calcium dynamics and arrhythmias, where high-resolution simulations are used to study how disrupted calcium signaling, genetic mutations, and mechanical stress contribute to rhythm disorders such as CPVT. Dr. Ullah is also involved in projects modeling α7 nicotinic receptor–mediated calcium signaling in neural networks to understand seizure initiation and propagation. By combining biophysical simulations with machine learning and large-scale gene expression analysis, he investigates key molecular pathways involved in calcium dysregulation and explores potential therapeutic targets for neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, as well as seizure and epilepsy.

    Teaching Focus

    An introduction to systems biology


    Introduction to biochemical systems topics include Mathematical modeling, static network Models, mathematics of biological systems, signaling systems, population systems, and Physiological modeling: the heart as an example.

     

    Biochemical and Cellular Systems Modeling

    An introduction to dynamical modeling in cell biology, with a focus on computational approaches and computer-based simulations. This course develops an understanding of core concepts and techniques in computational cell biology and trains students to apply mathematical and computational methods to analyze and model complex cellular systems.


     

    Selected Publications

    Huang, C.-H.; Batarseh, F.A.; Ullah, A. Evaluating the Effectiveness of Machine Learning for Alzheimer’s Disease Prediction Using Applied Explainability. Biophysica 2025, 5, 54. https://doi.org/10.3390/biophysica5040054.

     

    Twum, E., Baranova, A. & Ullah, A. Peripheral blood, lung and brain gene signatures in recovered and deceased patients with COVID-19. In Silico Pharmacol. 13, 159 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40203-025-00450-1.

     

    Ullah, A., Therrien, K., Cressman, J. R., & Kabbani, N. (2025). Computational model of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in thalamic reticular nucleus neurons and their involvement in network states. PLOS ONE, 20(8), e0330635.

     

    Sinclair, P., Jeffries, W., Lebert, N., Saeed, M., Ullah, A., & Kabbani, N. (2025). A predictive machine learning model for cannabinoid effect based on image detection of reactive oxygen species in microglia. PLOS ONE. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0320219.

     

    Khan, K. H., Ullah, A., Islam, S., & Rooman, M. (2025). Entropy generation and Cattaneo–Christov heat flux model for micropolar blood-based magnetized nanofluid flow in the presence of artificial bacteria over a Darcy–Forchheimer porous curved surface. Partial Differential Equations in Applied Mathematics, 14, 101209. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.padiff.2025.101209.

     

    Jafri, M. S., & Ullah, A. (2025). Editorial on special issue: Computational insights into calcium signaling. Biomolecules, 15(4), 485. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom15040485.

     

    Yasmin, H., Jan, U., Saeed, K., Khan, U., Islam, S., Ullah, A., & Muhammad, T. (2024). Analysis of variable fluid properties for three-dimensional flow of ternary hybrid nanofluid on a stretching sheet with MHD effects. Nanotechnology Reviews, 13(1), 20240099. https://doi.org/10.1515/ntrev-2024-0099.

     

    Paudel, R., Jafri, M. S., & Ullah, A. (2024). Gain-of-function and loss-of-function mutations in the RYR2-expressing gene are responsible for the CPVT1-related arrhythmogenic activities in the heart. Current Issues in Molecular Biology, 46(11), 12886–12910. https://doi.org/10.3390/cimb46110767. 

     

    Alvarez, J. A. E., Jafri, M. S., & Ullah, A. (2024, October 28). Using a failing human ventricular cardiomyocyte model to re-evaluate Ca²⁺ cycling, voltage dependence, and spark characteristics. Biomolecules, 14(11), 1371. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom14111371.

     

    Jan, S. U., Khan, U., Abd El-Rahman, M., Islam, S., Hassan, A. M., & Ullah, A. (2023). Effect of variable thermal conductivity of ternary hybrid nanofluids over a stretching sheet with convective boundary conditions and magnetic field. Results in Engineering, 20, 101531. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rineng.2023.101531.

     

    Alvarez, J. A. E., Jafri, M. S., & Ullah, A. (2023). Local control model of a human ventricular myocyte: An exploration of frequency-dependent changes and calcium sparks. Biomolecules, 13(8), 1259. https://doi.org/10.3390/biom13081259. 

     

    McCoy, M. D., A. Ullah, W. J. Lederer and M. S. Jafri (2022). "Understanding Calmodulin Variants Affecting Calcium-Dependent Inactivation of L-Type Calcium Channels through Whole-Cell Simulation of the Cardiac Ventricular Myocyte." Biomolecules 13(1): 72.

     

    Paudel, R., M. S. Jafri and A. Ullah (2022). "The Role of Ca2+ Sparks in Force Frequency Relationships in Guinea Pig Ventricular Myocytes." Biomolecules 12(11): 1577.

     

    Paudel, R., M. S. Jafri and A. Ullah (2023). "Pacing Dynamics Determines the Arrhythmogenic Mechanism of the CPVT2-Causing CASQ2G112+ 5X Mutation in a Guinea Pig Ventricular Myocyte Computational Model." Genes 14(1): 23.

     

    Ullah, A., M. T. Hoang-Trong, W. J. Lederer, R. L. Winslow and M. S. Jafri (2022). "Critical Requirements for the Initiation of a Cardiac Arrhythmia in Rat Ventricle: How Many Myocytes?" Cells 11(12): 1878.

     

    Alomair, L., F. Almsned, A. Ullah and M. S. Jafri (2021). "In silico prediction of the phosphorylation of NS3 as an essential mechanism for dengue virus replication and the antiviral activity of quercetin." Biology 10(10): 1067.

     

    Hoang-Trong, M. T., A. Ullah, W. J. Lederer and M. S. Jafri (2021). "Cardiac alternans occurs through the synergy of voltage-and calcium-dependent mechanisms." Membranes 11(10): 794.

     

    Hoang-Trong, T. M., A. Ullah, W. J. Lederer and M. S. Jafri (2021). "A Stochastic Spatiotemporal Model of Rat Ventricular Myocyte Calcium Dynamics Demonstrated Necessary Features for Calcium Wave Propagation." Membranes 11(12): 989.

     

    King, J. R., A. Ullah, E. Bak, M. S. Jafri and N. Kabbani (2018). "Ionotropic and metabotropic mechanisms of allosteric modulation of α7 nicotinic receptor intracellular calcium." Molecular Pharmacology 93(6): 601-611.

    Contact Info

    Aman Ullah Photo
    Name
    Dr. Aman Ullah
    Job Title
    Assistant Professor
    Phone Number
    703-993-7182
    Office Number
    MSN 5B3

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