Cagla Kayabasi

131I-Zn-Chlorophyll derivative photosensitizer for tumor imaging and photodynamic therapy.

In recent years, the photodynamic therapy studies have gained considerable attention as an alternative method to surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy which is commonly used to fight cancer. In this study, biological potentials of a benzyloxy bearing zinc(II) pheophorbide-a (Zn-PH-A) were investigated via in vivo and in vitro experiments. Zn-PH-A was labeled with (131)I with high efficiency (95.3 ± 2.7%) and its biodistribution studies were investigated on female Albino Wistar rats. The radiolabeled photosensitizer had been intravenously injected into the tail vein, and then the animals were sacrificed at 30, 60 and 120 min post injection. The percent of radioactivity per gram of organs (%ID/g) was determined. The radiolabeled Zn-PH-A showed high uptake in ovary. In addition, photodynamic therapy studies of the photosensitizer were conducted in EMT6, murine mammary carcinoma and HeLa, human cervix carcinoma cell lines. For the photodynamic therapy studies, the cells with Zn-PH-A were exposed to red light (650 nm) at the doses of 10-30 J/cm(2). The results showed that Zn-PH-A has stronger PDT effect in EMT6 than HeLa cell. Our present work demonstrates (131)I-labeled photosensitizer as a bifunctional agent (PDT and nuclear imaging) which could be improved in future by using EMT6 growing tumor in nude mice.

Leishmaniasis in Turkey: first clinical isolation of Leishmania major from 18 autochthonous cases of cutaneous leishmaniasis in four geographical regions.

To report isolation of Leishmania major strains obtained from 18 Turkish autochthonous cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) patients infected with L. major between 2011 and 2014.

Analysis of dysregulated long non-coding RNA expressions in glioblastoma cells.

Long non coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are associated with various biological roles such as embryogenesis, stem cell biology, cellular development and present specific tissue expression profiles. Aberrant expression of lncRNAs are thought to play a critical role in the progression and development of various cancer types, including gliomas. Glioblastomas (GBM) are common and malignant primary brain tumours. Brain cancer stem cells (BCSC) are isolated from both low and high-grade tumours in adults and children, by cell fraction which express neuronal stem cell surface marker CD133. The purpose of this study was to investigate the expression profiles of lncRNAs in brain tumour cells and determine its potential biological function. For this purpose, U118MG-U87MG; GBM stem cell series were used. Human parental brain cancer cells were included as the control group; the expressions of disease related human lncRNA profiles were studied by LightCycler 480 real-time PCR. Expression profiles of 83 lncRNA genes were analyzed for a significant dysregulation, compared to the control cells. Among lncRNAs, 51 lncRNA genes down-regulated, while 8 lncRNA genes were up-regulated. PCAT-1 (-2.36), MEG3 (-5.34), HOTAIR (-2.48) lncRNAs showed low expression in glioblastoma compared to the human (parental) brain cancer stem cells, indicating their role as tumour suppressor genes on gliomas. As a result, significant changes for anti-cancer gene expressions were detected with disease-related human lncRNA array plates. Identification of novel target genes may lead to promising developments in human brain cancer treatment.

Investigation of In vitro PDT Activities and In vivo Biopotential of Zinc Phthalocyanines Using (131)I Radioisotope.

Novel octylthio‐containing asymmetrically substituted Zn(II) phthalocyanine (Zn(II)Pc1) and a symmetric derivative (Zn(II)Pc2) have been prepared to investigate the biological potential and ability to photosensitize singlet oxygen for photodynamic therapy applications. In this study, the singlet oxygen generation potential and in vitro photodynamic activities of these compounds have been tested. Both ZnPcs reveal to be very efficient singlet oxygen generators and promising PSs for PDT applications. In vitro PDT activities of the compounds were evaluated in EMT‐6 murine mammary carcinoma and HeLa human cervix carcinoma cell lines. Moreover, Zn(II)Pc1 displayed the phototoxic effects in the mammary cancer cell line (6.25 μm concentration at 30 J/cm2 light dose and 12.5 μm concentration at 20 J/cm2 light dose), while Zn(II)Pc2 did not show any phototoxic effects both in two cell lines. Zn(II)Pcs were radiolabeled with 131I in high yields. Biodistribution studies revealed that the radiolabeled Zn(II)Pc1 showed significant uptake in l. intestine, pancreas, brain, and ovary, while Zn(II)Pc2 has significant uptake in ovary and pancreas in normal rats. Hence, these Pcs derivatives could be promising candidate for tumor nuclear imaging.

Evaluation of cancer imaging potential and photodynamic therapy efficacy of copper (II) benzyloxypheophorbide-a.

Abstract The biological potential of a synthetic copper chlorophyll derivative was investigated via in vivo and in vitro experiments. The Cu-chlorophyll derivative photosensitizer (Cu-PH-A) was labeled with 131I with high efficiency (92.9 ± 4.2%) using the iodogen method. Cell culture studies were performed with the MCF-7 and MDAH-2774 cell lines after radiolabeling. The photosensitizing activity of Cu-PH-A was more effective in MDAH-2774 cells than in MCF-7 cells at a concentration of 50 μM. When the biodistribution in female Albino Wistar rats was examined, uptake of the radiolabeled photosensitizer was maximal in the liver and ovaries after 60 min. It is concluded that radiolabeled Cu-chlorophyll derivative photosensitizer has high uptake in ovaries in normal rats. In addition, the intercellular uptake and PDT efficacy of the Cu-PH-A in MDAH-2774 were good compared with MCF-7 cells. This photosensitizer could be useful for both ovary tumour imaging and PDT.

Nuclear imaging potential and in vitro photodynamic activity of symmetrical and asymmetrical zinc phthalocyanines

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is based on exposing a light-sensitive material that has been localized in target tissues with visible light. In the current study, symmetric Zn(II) octaoctadodecylphthalocyanine (1) and the asymmetrically substituted hydroxyhexyloxy derivative (2) were examined as a multifunctional agent for tumour nuclear imaging and for PDT potential. Zn(II)Pc 1 and Zn(II)Pc 2 were radiolabelled with (131) I using an iodogen method with high efficiency (93.5 ± 3.5% and 93.0 ± 2.8%, respectively) under the optimum conditions. Biodistribution study results showed that radiolabelled Zn(II)Pc 1 had a high uptake in the large intestine and unchanging uptake in the ovary. However, radiolabelled Zn(II)Pc 2 uptake was statically significant in the large intestine, pancreas, ovary and lung. For the PDT studies, EMT6/P (mouse mammary cell line) and HeLa (cervical adenocarcinoma cell line) with Zn(II)Pc 1 and Zn(II)Pc 2 were exposed to red light (650 nm) at 10-30 J/cm(2) . Zn(II)Pc 1 and Zn(II)Pc 2 had a good PDT efficacy in the EMT6/P cell line. In conclusion, radiolabelled Zn(II)Pc 1 might be a promising imaging agent for pancreas, ovary and colon tumours. However, the radiolabelled Zn(II)Pc 2 might be a promising nuclear imaging and PDT agent for colon, lung, pancreas and ovary tumours.

Antileukemic effect of paclitaxel in combination with metformin in HL-60 cell line

Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) is a subtype of AML that is a mixture of hematological malignancy, characterized by a specific translocation t(15;17). The using of all-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) with arsenic trioxide (ATO) or chemotherapeutic agents or both of these agents, composes main treatment strategy of APL. While it is possible to achieve success in treatment of low-risk APL with current treatment regimens, such success is not mentioned in high-risk APL. So, it may develop new approaches for treatment regimens for high-risk APL. In the present study, we aimed to investigate the effects of combinational of a classic anticancer agent paclitaxel and antidiabetic agent metformin on HL-60 APL cell line. The combination dose of paclitaxel and metformin was determined by WST-1 analysis. The effect of combinational dose on apoptosis was assessed in fluorescence microscope after using AnnexinV-EGFP Apoptosis and JC-1 Assay Kit. The effect of combinational dose on cell cycle, apoptosis and differentiation, and signaling pathways were determined investigating gene expression changes by using real time qRT-PCR. The combinational dose of paclitaxel and metformin was determined as 4.8nM and 398.7μM for 72h, respectively. The combination dose significantly increased apoptosis for 48h. In expression changes of genes associated cell cycle, apoptosis, cytokines, co-stimulator molecules, NF-kB and MAP/MAPK pathways, TLRs (Toll-like receptors) were found to be decreased or increased to provide apoptosis or differentiation. Consequently, we suggest that the combination of paclitaxel and metformin can be used as an option assessable for development of new treatment strategies for APL.

The effect of tomatine on metastasis related matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activities in breast cancer cell model

Breast cancer is one of the most common malignancies in women and metastasis is the cause of morbidity and mortality in patients. In the development of metastasis, the matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) family has a very important role in tumor development. MMP-2 and MMP-9 work together for extracellular matrix (ECM) cleavage to increase migration. Tomatine is a secondary metabolite that has a natural defense role against plants, fungi, viruses and bacteria that are synthesized from tomato. In additıon, tomatine is also known that it breaks down the cell membrane and is a strong inhibitor in human cancer cells. In this study, it was aimed to evaluate the effect of tomatine on cytotoxicity, apoptosis and matrix metalloproteinase inhibition in MCF-7 cell lines. Human breast cancer cell line (MCF-7) was used as a cell line. In MCF-7 cells, the IC50 dose of tomatine was determined to be 7.07μM. According to the control cells, apoptosis increased 3.4 fold in 48thh. Activation of MMP-2, MMP-9 and MMP-9\NGAL has been shown to decrease significantly in cells treated with tomatine by gelatin zymography compared to the control. As a result, matrix metalloproteinase activity and cell proliferation were suppressed by tomatine and this may provide support in treatment methods.

The effect of ICRT-3 on Wnt signaling pathway in head and neck cancer: Sogutlu et al.

The effect of Wnt pathway in head and neck cancer could not be elucidated, even though the aberrant Wnt signaling plays a key role in the development of many types of cancer. The inhibitor of β‐catenin responsive transcription (ICRT‐3) blocks the Wnt signaling pathway by binding to β‐catenin, which is a coactivator of the Wnt signaling pathway and a promising agent for inhibiting aberrant signaling. In our study, we aimed to evaluate the effect of ICRT‐3 on the cytotoxicity, apoptosis, cell cycle progression, migration, and gene expressions in head and neck cancer stem cell (HNCSC) and hypopharynx cancer. The effect of this compound on cytotoxicity and cell viability in FaDu and HNCSC line was assessed by using the water‐soluble tetrazolium salt‐1 method. The effect of ICRT‐3 on apoptosis was detected by using Annexin V and caspase‐3, caspase‐9 kit, on cell cycle progression by cycle test plus DNA reagent kit, on gene expression by dual luciferase reporter assay, and on migration activity by wound healing assay in both cell lines. ICRT‐3 was determined to have cytotoxic and apoptotic effect in both cell lines. In addition, it was also found that the administration of ICRT‐3 caused cell cycle arrest and significant decrease in gene expression level and migration ability of the cells.

Analysis of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) expression in hepatitis B patients

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been implicated in numerous biological processes, including epigenetic regulation, cell-cycle control, and transcriptional/translational regulation of gene expression. Differential expression of lncRNAs and disruption of the regulatory processes are recognized as critical steps in cancer development. The role of lncRNAs in hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection is not well understood. Here we analyzed the expression of 135 lncRNAs in plasma samples of 82 HBV patients (classified as chronic patients, inactive carriers, or resolved patients) at diagnosis and at 12 months of treatment in relation to control group (81 healthy volunteers). We also investigated the effect of small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated silencing of lincRNA-SFMBT2 on HBV-positive human liver cancer cell line. lncRNA expression was analyzed by quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR). Chemically synthesized siRNAs were transfected into the cell lines using Lipofectamine 2000 Reagent (Thermo Fisher Scientific). HBV DNA and HBsAg and HBeAg were detected in transfected cultures by real-time PCR and ELISA, respectively, using commercial kits. We observed changes in lncRNA expression in all three HBV groups, compared to control group. Most notably, the expression of anti-NOS2A, lincRNA-SFMBT2, and Zfhx2as was significantly increased and expression of Y5 lncRNA was decreased in chronic HBV patients. A decreased Y5 expression and increased lincRNA-SFMBT2 expression were observed in inactive HBsAg carriers. The expression of HOTTIP, MEG9, and PCAT-32 was increased in resolved HBV patients, and no significant change in the expression of Y5 was observed, compared to control group. siRNA-mediated inhibition of lincRNA-SFMBT2 decreased the level of HBV DNA in human liver cancer cells. Further research is needed to confirm the prognostic as well as therapeutic role of these lncRNAs in HBV patients.