My current research interests in the Department of Genetics, LSUHSC focus on translational research in breast cancer. In my current capacity, I am pursuing research to target the Notch signaling network in breast cancer. Currently, I am working on three projects.
1) I am the study Director of LSUHSC of our collaboration with Cellestia (https://www.cellestia.com), a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company in Basel, Switzerland. I have successfully led Cellestia’s effort to evaluate In vivo efficacy studies of their lead compound “CB-103” (a novel pan-Notch small molecule inhibitor) in hormone resistant metastatic ER+ breast cancer that resulted in a published paper, where I am a co-corresponding author.
2) I am leading another project where we are modulating gut microbiome by using probiotics to increase efficacy of immunotherapy in mouse model of triple negative breast cancer in a proof of concept study.
3) In addition, I am also actively involved in a collaborative research work with Dr. Rinku Majumder, Dept. of Biochemistry, LSUHSC, where we are investigating the role of Protein S (PS), a potent natural anticoagulant in pancreatic cancer (PC). PC patients have a much higher relative risk of developing venous thromboembolism compared to other cancers and many PC patients have significantly low PS level. Notably, hypoxia drives Notch expression in numerous systems and suppresses PS. We believe hypoxia-signaling axis is amenable to targeted therapy and PS supplementation posits an effective strategy to treat PC.
I serve as a reviewer for peer-reviewed journals like “Oncogene” and “Pharmacology & Therapeutics”, “Frontier” etc. I spent my first 11 years in USA at UNC- Chapel Hill and published in high impact journals. Later, I moved to industry and worked for 6 years in two early stage biotechs in NC. During my one-year (2009-2010) stint as Director- Preclinical studies, I was instrumental in Vascular Pharmaceuticals’ effort to develop and commercialize a humanized antibody against diabetes accelerated heart disorders and supervised five personnel. Subsequently, as Principal Scientist (2011-2016) in Novametics in NC, I supervised three personnel and coordinated the clinical trial of company’s flagship diagnostic assay kit for detecting Lupus anticoagulant in blood. I led and executed the validation of the product in different clinical trial centers, generated SOP, met Subject Matter Experts (SME) and negotiated licensing agreements. I was involved in company’s strategic planning and business operation.
This present NIH grant, if funded will give me an opportunity to leverage my knowledge and experience in in vivo efficacy study design, cancer stem cell, mammospheres, organoids to deliver fruitful execution of one of the aims of the proposal. Moreover, my experience in working with Cellestia and its novel clinical stage pan-Notch inhibitor, CB-103 will help bring the objectives of the overall application to fruition.
