Biology Commons^™

It Takes 2 Antioxidants To Tango: The Interaction Between Manganese Superoxide Dismutase And Glutathione Peroxidase-1, Dede N. Ekoue, Alan M. Diamond

Turkish Journal of Biology

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are generated during mitochondrial oxidative metabolism. Accumulation of ROS without an effective antioxidant response can lead to oxidative stress, resulting in macromolecular damage that is implicated in the etiology of various diseases including cancer. ROS detoxification is regulated by various antioxidant proteins, specifically manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD), which catalyzes the conversion of superoxide into H_{2}O_{2}, and the subsequent conversion of H_{2}O_{2} into water is catalyzed by glutathione peroxidase 1 (GPx-1). In vitro and in vivo evidence supports a conflicting role of MnSOD in tumor biology and indicates that an interaction between MnSOD and GPx-1 can modulate …

Triumph Or Tragedy: Progress In Cancer, Ayşe Şebnem Erenler, Hi̇kmet Geçki̇l

Turkish Journal of Biology

Cancer is probably the number one research area among all human endeavors, receiving the largest portion of science funding in most countries. This is because cancer remains one of the oldest conundrums among all human maladies. Although we now have a greater understanding of the biological and molecular basis of cancer, its diagnosis and therapy still pose great challenges. In this review, our aim is not to establish a comprehensive understanding of cancer, which is essentially impossible, but to outline, in a more provocative way, why cancer research in the pursuit of a cure did not live up to its …

The Role Of Abc Transporters In Anticancer Drug Transport, Serhan Karvar

Turkish Journal of Biology

The main clinical problem in cancer treatment is the development of multidrug resistance. Tumors can be intrinsically drug-resistant or develop resistance to chemotherapy. Multidrug resistance can develop by diverse mechanisms including decreased rate of drug uptake, increased drug efflux, alterations in drug metabolism, mutation of drug targets, activation of DNA repair mechanisms, and evasion of apoptosis. The use of modern genomic, proteomic, bioinformatic, and systems biology approaches has resulted in a substantial increase in our ability to identify molecular mechanisms that are involved in multidrug resistance in cancer and to find drugs that may block or reverse the development of …

Noncoding Rnas And Cancer, Hesna Begüm Akman Tuncer, Ayşe Eli̇f Erson Bensan

Turkish Journal of Biology

New and diverse groups of noncoding RNAs are beginning to be discovered. These noncoding RNAs are grouped based on their sizes, genomic positions, or distinctive functions ranging from the regulation of chromatin structure and gene expression to genome stability maintenance. Among noncoding RNAs, microRNAs are the best studied and understood small RNAs with direct and indirect roles in normal and in cancer cells. Given the high rate of transcription from noncoding parts of the genome, other noncoding elements are also of great interest. It is also of interest to understand that there may be interesting cases of crosstalk and/or coregulation …

Identification Of New Genes Required For The Maintenance Of Chromosome Integrity In Drosophila Melanogaster, Francesca Ceprani, Franco Spirito, Roberto Piergentili

Turkish Journal of Biology

Although genome-wide RNA interference (RNAi) screens for mitotic genes are not new in the literature, most of them lack the cytological characterization of the cell karyotype as for chromosome integrity. Here, the effects of RNAi on chromosome structure in S2 cultured cells of Drosophila melanogaster were analyzed. The cytological phenotype of 1132 genes selected by coexpression with known mitotic genes was scored. Cytological and statistical analysis of the treated cells allowed the identifying of 81 loci whose inactivation brings a level of chromosome breakage significantly higher than in the control. Many of the genes characterized in the present work had …

Failure Of Immunological Cells To Eradicate Tumor And Cancer Cells: An Overview, Rohit Sharma, Daizee Talukdar, Parth Malik, Tapan K. Mukherjee

Turkish Journal of Biology

Inflammation can be broadly understood as a successive immune response of an organism's immune system towards nonnative or foreign antigens. This is a protective mechanism of the immune system, mediated by diverse immunological cells, to ensure homeostasis of an individual. Once activated, these immunological cells release a number of cytokines, chemokines, reactive oxygen species, reactive nitrogen species, histamines, prostaglandins, and other materials leading to inflammation. Tumor cells express altered proteins due to mutations of their genes, DNA modifications such as histone modification, DNA methylation, or other mechanisms of altered protein expression. The body's immunological cells actively recognize these altered proteins, …

Rna Interference Targeting Glucose-Regulated-Protein 78 Induces Hepg2 Cell Apoptosis, Brittany Blackman

Seton Hall University Dissertations and Theses (ETDs)

Cancer is a complex genetic disease that is driven by genetic mutations resulting in chronic, inappropriate cell proliferation. Many current cancer therapies lack specificity towards tumor tissues, ultimately leading to adverse side effects and limited clinical efficacy. Recently, selective cancer cell therapy has examined a well-characterized cell surface marker that is preferentially expressed on tumor cells. The over-expression of an endoplasmic reticulum chaperone protein, 78-kDa glucose-regulated-protein (GRP78), has been observed on the surface of cancer cells, but not on normal tissues. By selectively targeting GRP78 with short-interfering RNA (siRNA), potent GRP78 silencing is anticipated by the RNA interference (RNAi) pathway. …

The Glucose Signaling Network In Yeast, Jeong-Ho Kim, Adhiraj Roy, David Jouandot Ii, Kyu Hong Cho

Faculty Publications

Background

Most cells possess a sophisticated mechanism for sensing glucose and responding to it appropriately. Glucose sensing and signaling in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae represent an important paradigm for understanding how extracellular signals lead to changes in the gene expression program in eukaryotes.

Scope of review

This review focuses on the yeast glucose sensing and signaling pathways that operate in a highly regulated and cooperative manner to bring about glucose-induction of HXT gene expression.

Major conclusions

The yeast cells possess a family of glucose transporters (HXTs), with different kinetic properties. They employ three major glucose signaling pathways—Rgt2/Snf3, …

Development Of Tools To Assess The Effects Of Lunasin On Normal Development And Tumor Progression In Drosophila Melanogaster, Gillian E. Jones

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Soy contains many bioactive molecules known to elicit anti-cancer effects. One such peptide, Lunasin, has been shown to selectively act on newly transformed cells while having no cytotoxic effect on non-tumorigenic or established cancer cell lines. In this study we attempt to understand the developmental effects of Lunasin overexpression in vivo and create reagents that will help us understand Lunasin’s anti tumorigenic effects in an intact organism. cDNA encoding lunasin and EGFP-lunasin were cloned into pUAST and microinjected into Drosophila embryos. Tissue-specific overexpression of EGFP-Lun in the resulting transgenic lines was accomplished by crossing transgenics to various GAL4 driver lines. …

The Importance Of Epigenetic Phenomena In Regulating Activity Of The Genetic Material, Sin Chan

Senior Honors Projects

Genetics has taught us that genes are represented as discrete sequences within a larger DNA molecule found embedded within the chromosomes of a living cell. Collectively these chromosomes and their associated genes carry all of the instructions for life. Until recently, the prevailing thought has been that genes are destiny in the life of an individual since the genes carry the information that determines the general traits and characteristics associated with that individual. The relatively recent understanding of mechanisms that underlie epigenetic phenomena has led to a rethinking of this concept. Epigenetics describes cellular mechanisms that explain how two individuals …

Clinical And Molecular Models Of Glioblastoma Multiforme Survival, R. Piccolo Stephen, J. Frey Lewis

Faculty Publications

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), a highly aggressive form of brain cancer, results in a median survival of 12–15 months. For decades, researchers have explored the effects of clinical and molecular factors on this disease and have identified several candidate prognostic markers. In this study, we evaluated the use of multivariate classification models for differentiating between subsets of patients who survive a relatively long or short time. Data for this study came from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), a public repository containing clinical, treatment, histological and biomolecular variables for hundreds of patients. We applied variable-selection and classification algorithms in a cross-validated design …

Metabolic Rescue Of “Glucose Addicted” Cancer Cells In Vitro, Paolo Vignali

Pursuit - The Journal of Undergraduate Research at The University of Tennessee

Transformations in the glycolytic metabolism of neoplasms modulate their robust cellular division. This characteristic leads to an “addiction” to glucose for continued proliferation and viability. This study investigated whether glucose metabolites could rescue cellular viability in glucose-starvation conditions, a model of the inter-tumoral nutrient-deficient environment. Findings illustrated potential cellular viability rescue with pyruvate addition in glucose-deprived conditions, yet the same potential was not observed with lactic acid, a metabolite that exists at characteristically high concentrations within the intertumoral microenvironment. These results could implicate a predominance of certain metabolic pathways in nutrient-starved cells. Molecular transport capacities across plasma membranes are tied …

The Effect Of Thymidylate Synthase Inhibitors On Bone Marrow Derived Cells In The Intestinal Tumor Microenvironment, Grishma Acharya

Theses and Dissertations

Tumors have come to be known as independently functioning complex organs consisting of cancer cells coexisting with a heterogeneous mixture of host-derived non-neoplastic cells that form the tumor stroma. Tumor survival, progression, and metastasis depend on multiple close interactions between the cancer cells and the tumor stromal cells. These tumor stromal cells are mainly bone marrow derived cells (BMDCs) that are recruited to the primary tumor and sites of metastasis by a variety of signals secreted by the cancer cells. Because of the close interaction between the tumor and the tumor stroma, we propose that tumor stromal cells play an …

Defining The Mechanism Of Enhanced Cellular Invasion Induced By Mechanical Stimulation, Snehal Sunil Ozarkar

Wayne State University Theses

Metastasis is a multistep process driven by various biochemical and mechanical factors, which eventually leads to formation of secondary tumors. The tumor mass is surrounded by basement membrane (BM) and stroma made of various extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins. During metastasis tumor cells disseminate from the primary tumor, breach the BM, invade the stroma, travel through blood and lymph and colonize tissues distant from the primary tumor. Formation of secondary tumors by metastasis is a leading cause of death in cancer patients. Even though plenty of research has been focused on biochemical factors affecting metastasis, information on role of mechanical factors …

Silver Nanoparticles: Cytotoxic, Apoptotic, And Necrotic Effects On Mcf-7 Cells, Hakan Çi̇ftçi̇, Mustafa Türk, Uğur Tamer, Si̇yami̇ Karahan, Yusuf Menemen

Turkish Journal of Biology

The present study was conducted to examine cytotoxic, apoptotic, and necrotic effects of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) on MCF-7 cells. Colloidal AgNPs were fabricated in an alkaline pH environment via reduction of silver nitrate with hydroxylamine hydrochloride. The size of AgNPs was measured by atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and dynamic light scattering. Zeta potential of AgNPs was determined by laser Doppler microelectrophoresis. After exposing MCF-7 cells to AgNPs for 24 h, cytotoxicity was measured by WST-1 assay. Apoptosis and necrosis in MCF-7 cells were detected by Annexin-V-FLUOS immunostaining and double staining of Hoechst dye with propidium iodide. …

Nullomer Derived Anticancer Peptides (Nullops): Differential Lethal Effects On Normal And Cancer Cells In Vitro, Abdelkrim Alileche, Jayita Goswami, William Bourland, Mike Davis, Greg Hampikian

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

We demonstrate the first use of the nullomer (absent sequences) approach to drug discovery and development. Nullomers are the shortest absent sequences determined in a species, or group of species. By identifying the shortest absent peptide sequences from the NCBI databases, we screened several potential anti-cancer peptides. In order to improve cell penetration and solubility we added short poly arginine tails (5Rs), and initially solubilized the peptides in1M trehalose. The results for one of the absent sequences 9R (RRRRRNWMWC), and its scrambled version 9S1R (RRRRRWCMNW) are reported here. We refer to these peptides derived from nullomers as PolyArgNulloPs. A control …

A Study On The Function Of 14-3-3sigma In Regulating Cancer Energy Metabolism, Liem M. Phan, Liem M. Phan

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Metabolic reprogramming has been shown to be a major cancer hallmark providing tumor cells with significant advantages for survival, proliferation, growth, metastasis and resistance against anti-cancer therapies. Glycolysis, glutaminolysis and mitochondrial biogenesis are among the most essential cancer metabolic alterations because these pathways provide cancer cells with not only energy but also crucial metabolites to support large-scale biosynthesis, rapid proliferation and tumorigenesis. In this study, we find that 14-3-3σ suppresses all these three metabolic processes by promoting the degradation of their main driver, c-Myc. In fact, 14-3-3s significantly enhances c-Myc poly-ubiquitination and subsequent degradation, reduces c-Myc transcriptional activity, and down-regulates …

Platelets And Anti-Angiogenic Resistance In Ovarian Carcinoma, Justin N. Bottsford-Miller

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Background: Resistance to targeted anti-angiogenic therapy is a growing clinical concern given the disappointing clinical impact of anti-angiogenic. Platelets represent a component of the tumor microenvironment that are implicated in metastasis and represent a significant reservoir of angiogenic regulators. Thrombocytosis has been shown to be caused by malignancy and associated with adverse clinical outcomes, however the causal connections between these associations remain to be identified.

Materials and Methods: Following IRB approval, patient data were collected on patients from four U.S. centers and platelet levels through and after therapy were considered as indicators of recurrence of disease. In vitro effects of …

Plant Lectin Can Target Receptors Containing Sialic Acid, Exemplified By Podoplanin, To Inhibit Transformed Cell Growth And Migration, Jhon Ochoa-Alvarez, Harini Krishnan, Yongquan Shen, Nimish Acharya, Min Han, Dean Mcnulty, Hitoki Hasegawa

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

Cancer is a leading cause of death of men and women worldwide. Tumor cell motility contributes to metastatic invasion that causes the vast majority of cancer deaths. Extracellular receptors modified by α2,3-sialic acids that promote this motility can serve as ideal chemotherapeutic targets. For example, the extracellular domain of the mucin receptor podoplanin (PDPN) is highly O-glycosylated with α2,3-sialic acid linked to galactose. PDPN is activated by endogenous ligands to induce tumor cell motility and metastasis. Dietary lectins that target proteins containing α2,3-sialic acid inhibit tumor cell growth. However, anti-cancer lectins that have been examined thus far target receptors …

Increased Geranylgeranylated K-Ras Contributes To Antineoplastic Effects Of Farnesyltransferase Inhibitors., Mandy A. Hall

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

The Ras family of small GTPases (N-, H-, and K-Ras) is a group of important signaling mediators. Ras is frequently activated in some cancers, while others maintain low level activity to achieve optimal cell growth. In cells with endogenously low levels of active Ras, increasing Ras signaling through the ERK and p38 MAPK pathways can cause growth arrest or cell death. Ras requires prenylation – the addition of a 15-carbon (farnesyl) or 20-carbon (geranylgeranyl) group – to keep the protein anchored into membranes for effective signaling. N- and K-Ras can be alternatively geranylgeranylated (GG’d) if farnesylation is inhibited but are …

Matrix Metalloproteinase Genes Are Transcriptionally Regulated By E2f Transcription Factors: A Link Between Cell Cycle Control And Metastatic Progression, Jacqueline Lea Johnson

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The RbµE2F transcriptional regulatory pathway plays a critical role in the cell cycle. Rb is inactivated through multiple waves of phosphorylation, mediated mainly by cyclin D and cyclin E associated kinases. Once Rb is inactivated, cells can enter Sµphase. Collectively, three Rb family members and ten E2F proteins coordinate every additional stage of the cell cycle, from quiescence to mitosis. However the RbµE2F pathway is frequently altered in cancer. Aside from cell proliferation, the RbµE2F pathway regulates other essential cellular processes including apoptosis, cell differentiation, angiogenesis and DNA damage repair pathways, but its role in invasion and cancer progression is …

Sendai Virus-Based Liposomes Enable Targeted Cytosolic Delivery Of Nanoparticles In Brain Tumor-Derived Cells, Veronica Dudu, Veronica Rotari, Maribel Vazquez

Publications and Research

BACKGROUND: Nanotechnology-based bioassays that detect the presence and/or absence of a combination of cell markers are increasingly used to identify stem or progenitor cells, assess cell heterogeneity, and evaluate tumor malignancy and/or chemoresistance. Delivery methods that enable nanoparticles to rapidly detect emerging, intracellular markers within cell clusters of biopsies will greatly aid in tumor characterization, analysis of functional state and development of treatment regimens.

RESULTS: Experiments utilized the Sendai virus to achieve in vitro, cytosolic delivery of Quantum dots in cells cultured from Human brain tumors. Using fluorescence microscopy and Transmission Electron Microscopy, in vitro experiments illustrated that these virus-based …

Chemotherapy: The Physiological Cost Of A Cure, Megan Ellis

A with Honors Projects

This project focuses on the common long term side effects of cancer treatments, apart from cure. In addition to physiological function changes, it focuses on the chemical composition of chemotherapy drugs.

Cancer And You, Diah-Aldeen Judeh

A with Honors Projects

This project discusses ways a person can identify cancer and what to do if cancer is present.

Utilization Of Gold Nanostructures In Biomedical Applications, Gamze Tan, Mehmet Ali̇ Onur, Necdet Sağlam

Turkish Journal of Biology

Every living organism on earth owes its viability to its different sizes of nanostructures and the interaction of these structures at the nano size. Nanotechnology gives us an opportunity to understand nanoscale processes in living organisms and interfere with and manipulate them. Today, biocompatible nanosized structures are designed by applying developments in nanotechnology to biomedicine; thus, therapeutic agents are available to reach diseased tissues and even cells. However, it is essential that nanomaterials that would be used for therapeutic aims be targetable to diseased areas and have low toxicity. In addition, these nanomaterials must have high biocirculation and pharmacokinetic properties. …

Migration And Invasion Of Brain Tumors, Richard A. Able, Jr., Veronica Dudu, Maribel Vazquez

Publications and Research

Recent advances in molecular biology have led to new insights in the development, growth and infiltrative behaviors of primary brain tumors (Demuth and Berens, 2004; Huse and Holland, 2010; Johnson et al., 2009; Kanu et al., 2009). These tumors are derived from various brain cell lineages and have been historically classified on the basis of morphological and, more recently, immunohistochemical features with less emphasis on their underlying molecular pathogenesis (Huse and Holland, 2010). The detailed molecular characterization of brain tumors has laid the groundwork for augmentation of standard treatment with patient-specific designed targeted therapies (Johnson et al., 2009; Kanu et …

Computerized Analysis Of Biomarkers In Diagnosis Of Breast Cancer, Jie Li ^, Wei Qian, Jianying Zhang *

COURI Symposium Abstracts, Summer 2011

No abstract provided.

Altered Leptin Signaling On Dendritic Cells As A Potential Mechanism For Cancer Immunotherapy, Lorena Y. De Los Santos

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Leptin is a pleiotropic hormone synthesized primarily by white adipocytes and its receptors are expressed in a variety of tissues and cells such as in the hypothalamus and cells of the immune system. Multiple cell types can produce a considerable amount of leptin such as skeletal muscle, placenta, and osteoblasts to name a few and its synthesis has been shown to be regulated by sex hormones and a broad range of inflammatory mediators. Although leptin has been shown to directly affect immune response, we are interested in how leptin affects dendritic cell function and their ability to induce a proper …

Antimicrobial And Anticancer Activity Of Essential Oils From Guatemalan Medicinal Plants, Andrew B. Miller

Theses and Dissertations

Guatemalan medicinal plants were collected and screened for the presence of essential oils using steam distillation. Oil was found in 63 species from 24 families and was tested in tube dilution assays for activity against Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus mutans, Lactobacillus acidophilus and Candida albicans. Several essential oils were highly active with 20 instances of oils inhibiting the microbes at an MIC of 0.31 µl/ml. Oils were also tested against cancerous and established cell lines using a 15% (v/v) agar-media which was developed to improve essential oil solubility. Assays were performed against three cancer lines: …

Maternal Consumption Of Canola Oil Suppressed Mammary Gland Tumorigenesis In C3(1) Tag Mice Offspring, Gabriela Ion, Juliana A. Akinsete, W. Elaine Hardman

Biochemistry and Microbiology

Background: Maternal consumption of a diet high in omega 6 polyunsaturated fats (n-6 PUFA) has been shown to increase risk whereas a diet high in omega 3 polyunsaturated fats (n-3 PUFA) from fish oil has been shown to decrease risk for mammary gland cancer in female offspring of rats. The aim of this study was to determine whether increasing n-3 PUFA and reducing n-6 PUFA by using canola oil instead of corn oil in the maternal diet might reduce the risk for breast cancer in female offspring.

Methods: Female SV 129 mice were divided into two groups and placed on …