Biochemistry, Biophysics, and Structural Biology Commons^™

Synthetic Lectins, A Diagnostic And Prognostic Tool For Detecting Glycans In Breast Cancer, Daniel James Gordon

Theses and Dissertations

Cancer diagnostic tools have been pushed to the forefront of medical research because a person’s chance of survival is directly correlated with how early the tumor is identified and treatment is begun. In searching for the subtle differences between healthy and tumor cells, almost every type of cancer has been shown to under, over, or neo express glycans, and these changes in the glycan fingerprint can continue as the disease progresses. This provides a powerful diagnostic opportunity that’s works by screening for glycoproteins and glycosylation patterns that deviate from normal cells.

Boronic acids have a useful and tunable property in …

14-3-3Ζ Regulation Of Metastasis Through Mediation Of Liprin-Α And Liprin-Β, Rachel Hynes

Theses and Dissertations

Cancer is a set of varied and diverse diseases that share common characteristics, such as active proliferation, increased replicative potential, and tissue invasion or metastasis. One protein, 14-3-3ζ, is shown to be upregulated in a number of different cancers and also correlates with poor patient prognosis, recurrence, and mortality. This protein comes from a family of adapter proteins known for their scaffolding ability, pro- and anti-oncogenic capabilities, and affinity for phosphorylated substrates. It has been shown previously to participate in cancer progression, subversion of apoptosis, and to increase chemoresistance. Herein we will discuss the ability of 14-3-3ζ to promote distant-site …

Sorafenib Enhances Pemetrexed-Induced Cytotoxicity Through And Autophagy-Dependent Mechanism In Cancer Cells, Bareford Mary

Theses and Dissertations

Acquired cellular resistance to traditional chemotherapeutics is a common obstacle in the treatment of most cancer cell types. This resistance occurs as a result of changes in the underlying molecular mechanisms of disease progression. The development of novel chemotherapeutic approaches designed to enhance the efficacy of protypical anti-cancer drugs is important in order to overcome this issue. Such approaches will aid in understanding the biomolecular phenomena responsible for drug resistance and disease progression. Combining signaling pathway inhibitors has become an effective strategy for enhancing tumor cell death by targeting multiple pathways known to regulate cell survival. Pemetrexed, an FDA-approved anti-folate …

Crosstalk Between Lysophospatidic Acid (Lpa) And Transforming Growth Factor Beta (Tgfβ) In Breast And Ovarian Cancer Cells, Jinhua Wu

Theses and Dissertations

Lysophosphatidic acid (LPA) and transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ) are platelet-derived intercellular mediators of cell proliferation and motility. LPA is a general growth, survival and motility-stimulating factor in mammalian cells. TGFβ prevents proliferation of normal epithelial cells. However, the growth-inhibitory effect of TGFβ is lost or reduced in most malignant cells. Instead, TGFβ promotes migration and invasion of advanced cancer cells. Since LPA and TGFβ are both present in the blood and tumor microenvironments, we were interested in signal integration and functional outcomes in malignant epithelial cells in an LPA and TGFβ co-stimulatory context. In a subset of breast and …