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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
Investigating The Roles Of Δnp63 As A Suppressor Of Migration, Invasion, And Metastasis, Ramon E. Flores Gonzalez
Investigating The Roles Of Δnp63 As A Suppressor Of Migration, Invasion, And Metastasis, Ramon E. Flores Gonzalez
Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)
Cancer is one of the leading causes of death and disease in the world. Considerable resources are spent to study and understand cancer, with the hope of developing new treatments and eventually cures that will help millions of people. Efforts to understand cancer are hindered by its inherent complexity and instability. Nonetheless, understanding the basics of tumor development and progression are the key to focused on studying the role of ΔNp63 in cancer, a p53 family member known to be involved in epithelial development, microRNA biogenesis, and stem cell maintenance. Using the strength of in vivo mouse models, we found …
Alternative Methods For The Treatment Of Chemo-Resistant Cancers, Kaitlyn Wong
Alternative Methods For The Treatment Of Chemo-Resistant Cancers, Kaitlyn Wong
Doctoral Dissertations
Great strides have been made in cancer therapy in the past century, yet it remains one of the leading causes of death in the United States today. This work aimed to shed light on novel methods to treat a variety of aggressive and often chemo-resistant cancers both in vitro and in vivo. The first aim of this work was to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of poly(methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine) (polyMPC) prodrugs compared to standard chemotherapeutic agents. Conjugation of polyMPC to drugs such as doxorubicin (Dox) can result in its improved solubility, prolonged half-life and therapeutic efficacy. PolyMPC and polyMPC-Dox (at a …
Cell Cycle Arrest By Tgfß1 Is Dependent On The Inhibition Of Cmg Helicase Assembly And Activation, Brook Samuel Nepon-Sixt
Cell Cycle Arrest By Tgfß1 Is Dependent On The Inhibition Of Cmg Helicase Assembly And Activation, Brook Samuel Nepon-Sixt
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
Tumorigenesis is a multifaceted set of events consisting of the deregulation of several cell-autonomous and tissue microenvironmental processes that ultimately leads to the acquisition of malignant disease. Transforming growth factor beta (TGFß) and its family members are regulatory cytokines that function to ensure proper organismal development and the maintenance of homeostasis by controlling cellular differentiation, proliferation, adhesion, and survival, as well as by modulating components of the cellular microenvironment and immune system. The pleiotropic control by TGFß of these cell intrinsic and extrinsic factors is intimately linked to the prevention of tumor formation, the specifics of which are dependent on …
Re-Contacting Cancer Genetic Counseling Patients: Expectations Of Patients And Physicians, Zoe Elizabeth Siegel
Re-Contacting Cancer Genetic Counseling Patients: Expectations Of Patients And Physicians, Zoe Elizabeth Siegel
Theses and Dissertations
The landscape of cancer genetic counseling and testing is rapidly evolving. Genetic testing technology is improving, management guidelines are evolving, and genetic testing options are expanding. These frequent updates to the components of cancer genetics have increased the complexity of managing patient care over time. In particular, this raises questions on the duty to re-contact patients as new information becomes available. This study explored healthcare providers’ duty to re-contact through the interests and expectations of patients, including which circumstances warrant re-contacting, which healthcare provider is responsible for re-contacting the patient, and the preferred method of re-contacting. Physicians’ opinions on whether …
Immune Modulating Functions By Soypeptide Lunasin In Cancer Immunotherapy, Chun-Yu Tung
Immune Modulating Functions By Soypeptide Lunasin In Cancer Immunotherapy, Chun-Yu Tung
Open Access Dissertations
Chemotherapy is currently the mainstay of treatment for most cancer patients. Despite its efficacy in eliminating cancer cells, a high percentage of chemotherapy patients eventually relapse or suffer progression of the disease. Immunosurveillance is capable of recognizing and eliminating continuously arising transformed mutant cells, and thus cancer immunotherapy is one of the emerging therapeutic strategies that harnesses the power of the immune system to eradicate chemotherapy-resistant cancerous cells. However, the adverse side effects of chemotherapy impede the therapeutic effects of immunotherapy. Our previous studies demonstrate that lymphoma patients are refractory to clinical immunotherapy because of chemotherapy-induced immune dysfunction. In addition, …
Gsk3Beta-Mediated Ezh2 Phosphorylation Suppresses Methylation Of H3k27 And Ezh2’S Oncogenic Functions, How-Wen Ko
Gsk3Beta-Mediated Ezh2 Phosphorylation Suppresses Methylation Of H3k27 And Ezh2’S Oncogenic Functions, How-Wen Ko
Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)
During the process of tumorigenesis, inactivation of tumor suppressors is a critical step. Enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2), a histone methyltransferase and the enzymatic core subunit of polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2), promotes cell growth and migration through catalyzing trimethylation of histone H3 at Lys 27 (H3K27me3) and plays an important role in tumorigenesis. Its expression can be controlled by phosphorylation. However, the regulation of EZH2 activity by tumor suppressor kinase is not well understood. Glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta (GSK3b), a multifunctional serine/threonine kinase, is involved in many cellular processes. GSK3b also participates in neoplastic transformation, tumor development …
Nipt Results Indicative Of Maternal Neoplasms: Genetic Counselors' Preferences And Attitudes, Meagan E. Giles
Nipt Results Indicative Of Maternal Neoplasms: Genetic Counselors' Preferences And Attitudes, Meagan E. Giles
Dissertations & Theses (Open Access)
Performing non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) on a pregnant woman with a chromosomally abnormal neoplasm may incidentally lead to the diagnosis of cancer due to the coexistence of circulating tumor and placental DNA. Published information regarding NIPT’s accuracy for neoplasm screening is limited, and guidance for patient management is currently lacking. This challenges clinicians’ ability to counsel patients regarding the implications of these results, which often is the responsibility of a genetic counselor. Over three hundred board-eligible/certified genetic counselors were surveyed regarding their awareness, preferences, and attitudes towards NIPT’s ability to indicate maternal neoplasms. Despite 95% of this cohort being aware …
Synthesis And Characterization Of Nanoparticle-Coupled Proteins In Human Serum Albumin, Kyle M. Mahoney
Synthesis And Characterization Of Nanoparticle-Coupled Proteins In Human Serum Albumin, Kyle M. Mahoney
Honors College Theses
Recently, cancer has become an ever-growing issue and has led to many researchers attempt to unravel the mystery of the disease. This research has led to a promising field of treatment: nanotechnology-coupled pharmaceuticals. Nanoparticles act as a whole unit when in conjugation with other molecules and add to the carrier molecule, most often proteins, benefits the nanoparticles themselves possess. One such carrier protein that can be conjugated with nanoparticles is Human Serum Albumin (HSA). Albumin is of interest in cancer research for two reasons: it is native to the human vasculature so it does not elicit immunological reactions, and it …
Alternative Regulation Of Myc In Lung Cancer, Patrick N. Backman
Alternative Regulation Of Myc In Lung Cancer, Patrick N. Backman
Open Access Theses
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States, accounting for 27% of all cancer induced deaths1. In an attempt to create a effective targeted therapy for the treatment of lung cancer, a strategy used to treat an activated KrasG12D/+;p53 R172H/+ transgenic lung cancer mouse model was to deliver a known tumor suppressive microRNA (miRNA) to stop tumor growth. The tumor suppressive miRNA let-7 was lentivirally delivered in the form of its primary transcript, pri-let-7a-1, and resulted in increased lung size and inflammation compared to lungs exposed to a control lentivirus. It was identified …
Structural Characterization And Therapeutic Utility Of The Proton-Coupled Folate Transporter, Michael Roy Wilson
Structural Characterization And Therapeutic Utility Of The Proton-Coupled Folate Transporter, Michael Roy Wilson
Wayne State University Dissertations
Folate is a B9 vitamin essential to DNA synthesis. The proton-coupled folate transporter (PCFT) is a newly discovered proton/folate symporter with an acidic pH optimum and broad expression across a variety of solid tumor types, with limited expression in normal tissues. Several antifolate molecules have been developed as cancer therapeutics, although these classical antifolates display numerous off-target effects due to transport by the ubiquitous reduced folate carrier (RFC). In this dissertation, we determine the roles of multiple PCFT structure/function domains, and develop PCFT-specific antifolates to target solid tumors. We utilize substituted cysteine accessibility methods (SCAM) to identify a novel reentrant …
A Requirement For Y841 In Jak3 Enzymatic Activity And Hematopoietic Cancers, George Steven Martinez
A Requirement For Y841 In Jak3 Enzymatic Activity And Hematopoietic Cancers, George Steven Martinez
Open Access Theses & Dissertations
A medical need exists for successfully treating people afflicted with leukemia, especially those who develop drug resistant forms. Relapse leukemia cases are particularly high within Hispanic populations where this disease is among the most frequently occurring cancer. Fourteen somatic mutations have been reported in Janus tyrosine kinase 3 (Jak3), including M511I and A573V, from patients with various forms of leukemia. To monitor drug sensitivity, a model system was developed. Indeed, many of these mutations have been shown to possess transforming ability in cell lines such as the IL-3 dependent pro-B cell line Ba/F3. As such, Ba/F3 cells were transformed to …