Browsing by Author "Kaur, Harpreet"

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    Hypoxia-Inducible Factor (HIF): Fuel for Cancer Progression
    (Bentham Science Publ. LTD, 2021) Satija, Saurabh; Kaur, Harpreet; Tambuwala, Murtaza M.; Sharma, Prabal; Vyas, Manish; Khurana, Navneet; Sharma, Neha; Bakshi, Hamid A.; Charbe, Nitin B.; Zacconi, Flavia C. M.; Aljabali, Alaa A.; Nammi, Srinivas; Dureja, Harish; Singh, Thakur G.; Gupta, Gaurav; Dhanjal, Daljeet S.; Dua, Kamal; Chellappan, Dinesh K.; Mehta, Meenu
    Hypoxia is an integral part of the tumor microenvironment, caused primarily due to rapidly multiplying tumor cells and a lack of proper blood supply. Among the major hypoxic pathways, HIF-1 transcription factor activation is one of the widely investigated pathways in the hypoxic tumor microenvironment (TME). HIF-1 is known to activate several adaptive reactions in response to oxygen deficiency in tumor cells. HIF-1 has two subunits, HIF-1 beta (constitutive) and HIF-1 alpha (inducible). The HIF-1 alpha expression is largely regulated via various cytokines (through PI3K-ACT-mTOR signals), which involves the cascading of several growth factors and oncogenic cascades. These events lead to the loss of cellular tumor suppressant activity through changes in the level of oxygen via oxygen-dependent and oxygen-independent pathways. The significant and crucial role of HIF in cancer progression and its underlying mechanisms have gained much attention lately among the translational researchers in the fields of cancer and biological sciences, which have enabled them to correlate these mechanisms with various other disease modalities. In the present review, we have summarized the key findings related to the role of HIF in the progression of tumors.
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    Perfluorocarbons Therapeutics in Modern Cancer Nanotechnology for Hypoxia-induced Anti-tumor Therapy
    (2021) Satija, Saurabh; Sharma, Prabal; Kaur, Harpreet; Dhanjal, Daljeet S.; Chopra, Reena S.; Khurana, Navneet; Vyas, Manish; Sharma, Neha; Tambuwala, Murtaza M.; Bakshi, Hamid A.; Charbe, Nitin B.; Zacconi, Flavia C. M.; Chellappan, Dinesh K.; Dua, Kamal; Mehta, Meenu
    With an estimated failure rate of about 90%, immunotherapies that are intended for the treatment of solid tumors have caused an anomalous rise in the mortality rate over the past decades. It is apparent that resistance towards such therapies primarily occurs due to elevated levels of HIF-1 (Hypoxia-induced factor) in tumor cells, which are caused by disrupted microcirculation and diffusion mechanisms. With the advent of nanotechnology, several innovative advances were brought to the fore; and, one such promising direction is the use of perfluorocarbon nanoparticles in the management of solid tumors. Perfluorocarbon nanoparticles enhance the response of hypoxia-based agents (HBAs) within the tumor cells and have been found to augment the entry of HBAs into the tumor micro-environment. The heightened penetration of HBAs causes chronic hypoxia, thus aiding in the process of cell quiescence. In addition, this technology has also been applied in photodynamic therapy, where oxygen self-enriched photosensitizers loaded perfluorocarbon nanoparticles are employed. The resulting processes initiate a cascade, depleting tumour oxygen and turning it into a reactive oxygen species eventually to destroy the tumour cell. This review elaborates on the multiple applications of nanotechnology based perfluorocarbon formulations that are being currently employed in the treatment of tumour hypoxia.