Identification of mechanism of cancer-cell-specific reactivation of hTERT offers therapeutic opportunities for blocking telomerase specifically in human colorectal cancer.

Transcriptional reactivation of hTERT is the limiting step in tumorigenesis. While mutations in hTERT promoter present in 19% of cancers are recognized as key drivers of hTERT reactivation, mechanisms by which wildtype hTERT (WT-hTERT) promoter is reactivated, in majority of human cancers, remain unknown. Using primary colorectal cancers (CRC) we identified Tert INTeracting region 2 (T-INT2), the critical chromatin region essential for reactivating WT-hTERT promoter in CRCs.

Non-canonical roles of canonical telomere binding proteins in cancers.

Reactivation of telomerase is a major hallmark observed in 90% of all cancers. Yet paradoxically, enhanced telomerase activity does not correlate with telomere length and cancers often possess short telomeres; suggestive of supplementary non-canonical roles that telomerase might play in the development of cancer. Moreover, studies have shown that aberrant expression of shelterin proteins coupled with their release from shortening telomeres can further promote cancer by mechanisms independent of their telomeric role.

: an evolutionarily conserved lncRNA essential for licensing coordinated activation of p38 and NFκB in colitis.

Objective: NFκB is the key modulator in inflammatory disorders. However, the key regulators that activate, fine-tune or shut off NFκB activity in inflammatory conditions are poorly understood. In this study, we aim to investigate the roles that NFκB-specific long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play in regulating inflammatory networks.

Nimotuzumab increases the anti-tumor effect of photodynamic therapy in an oral tumor model.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) represents 90% of all oral cancers and is characterized with poor prognosis and low survival rate. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is highly expressed in oral cancer and is a target for cancer therapy and prevention. In this present work, we evaluate the efficacy of photodynamic therapy (PDT) in combination with an EGFR inhibitor, nimotuzumab in oral cancer cell lines and OSCC xenograft tumor model.