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The Role Of The St6gal-I Sialyltrasferase In Protecting Tumor Cells From Hypoxic Stress, Robert Brent Jones

All ETDs from UAB

An emerging concept in cancer biology is that surface glycosylation can play important roles in the regulation of cancer development and progression. Our group and others have shown that ST6Gal-I, a sialyltransferase that adds α2-6-linked sialic acids to N-glycosylated proteins, is upregulated in many cancers. Furthermore, data has indicated that ST6Gal-I acts as a pro-survival factor in a variety of settings, including resistance to chemotherapeutic drugs, radiotherapy resistance, and serum deprivation. The work presented in this dissertation adds to this understanding of ST6Gal-I’s role as a potent pro-survival factor and explores ST6Gal-I’s function in aiding tumor cells to survive hypoxic …