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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Mechanisms Of Cell Death Initiated In Herpes Simplex Virus Thymidine Kinase Expressing Colon Tumor Cells Treated With Ganciclovir And Ucn-01, Christina Elizabeth Ahn
Mechanisms Of Cell Death Initiated In Herpes Simplex Virus Thymidine Kinase Expressing Colon Tumor Cells Treated With Ganciclovir And Ucn-01, Christina Elizabeth Ahn
Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences
Metastatic colon carcinoma is the second leading cause of death from malignancy in the United States, and development of more effective treatments is essential. Heterologous expression of Herpes Simplex Virus Thymidine Kinase (HSVtk) in combination with the prodrug, ganciclovir (GCV), has shown great promise for the genetic therapy of many cancers, but most patients have had only a partial or minimal response to the therapy. After screening a panel of two drug combinations, our laboratory has shown that the combination of GCV and the protein kinase inhibitor UCN-01 (7-hydroxystaurosporine) enhances tumor cell death more effectively than either drug alone. However …
The Antitumor Agent, Arglabin-Dma, Preferentially Induces Apoptosis In Human Colon Tumor Cells, Sung Wook Kwon
The Antitumor Agent, Arglabin-Dma, Preferentially Induces Apoptosis In Human Colon Tumor Cells, Sung Wook Kwon
Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences
Arglabin-DMA, an analog of farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP), reportedly inhibits farnesyltransferase (FTase) directly by competitively blocking the binding of Ras protein and its posttranslational modification, as suggested in previous studies. But, the mechanisms by which Arglabin-DMA inhibits tumor growth in vivo and in vitro are still relatively poorly characterized. To determine the mechanism by which this drug inhibits tumor growth, the effects of Arglabin-DMA in two human colon tumor cell lines (mutant K-ras HCT 116 and wild-type ras HT-29) were explored on cell proliferation, apoptosis, and cell cycle kinetics in vitro. In cell viability studies, we showed that Arglabin-DMA …
Developing And Optimizing Conditions For Single Cell Genetic Analysis, Susan Adele Gitlin
Developing And Optimizing Conditions For Single Cell Genetic Analysis, Susan Adele Gitlin
Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences
Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) allows for couples to obtain genetic information at the embryo stage, therefore preventing lethal genetic diseases in their offspring. A recent multi-center study determined a 17% amplification failure rate overall and a 3.4% misdiagnosis rate (ESHRE PGD consortium steering committee, 2002). Experiments presented here were conducted to decrease those rates by optimizing single cell sensitivity and specificity of PGD techniques. Primer extension preamplification (PEP) was used after initial amplification failure, followed by gene specific PCR. Reamplification experiments yielded 54% amplification rates using blastomeres that previously failed amplification. In the clinical trial, four of six blastomeres were …
Regulation Of Sparc Gene Expression By The Activator Protein 1 Transcription Factor, Joseph William Briggs
Regulation Of Sparc Gene Expression By The Activator Protein 1 Transcription Factor, Joseph William Briggs
Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences
Overexpression of the c-Jun proto-oncogene in MCF7 breast cancer cells results in a variety of phenotypic changes related to malignant progression including a shift to estrogen independent growth, increased cell motility and invasion. Concurrent with these phenotypic changes are alterations to cellular gene expression patterns. One gene that becomes highly upregulated is SPARC (secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine). Increased SPARC expression is associated with malignant progression in a variety of different cancers, although little is known regarding the mechanisms of SPARC gene regulation. Therefore, the objectives of this study were: (1) to determine the mechanisms by which c-Jun …
Tumor Response Tcf-4/Β-Catenin Regulatory Elements For Enhancing Cancer Gene Therapies, Saurabh Kumar Gupta
Tumor Response Tcf-4/Β-Catenin Regulatory Elements For Enhancing Cancer Gene Therapies, Saurabh Kumar Gupta
Theses and Dissertations in Biomedical Sciences
Mutations in the adenomatous polyposis coli gene are frequently associated with progression of colon carcinoma and most other types of epithelial carcinomas. This usually results in stabilization of β-catenin protein levels, followed by transactivation of Tcf-4/β-catenin responsive genes. The effectiveness of a Tcf-4/β-catenin transcriptional enhancer element in combination with a c-fos or carcinoembryonic antigen promoter was tested for its ability to act as a tumor specific regulator of gene expression in a panel of human tumor and normal cell lines. Luciferase reporter assays indicated enhanced activity of the Tcf-4/β-catenin transcriptional element only in tumor cell lines, with minimal activities in …