Biomedical subjects

Mukesh Verma

Publications and source records attributed to Mukesh Verma.

23 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

PubMed2002

Epigenetics in cancer: implications for early detection and prevention.

Knowledge of the molecular events that occur during the early stages of cancer has advanced rapidly. The initiation and development of cancer involves several molecular changes, which include epigenetic alterations. Epigenetics is the study of modifications in gene expression that do not involve changes in DNA nucleotide sequences. Modifications in gene expression through methylation of DNA and remodelling of chromatin via histone proteins are believed to be the most important of the epigenetic changes. The study of epigenetics offers great potential for the identification of biomarkers that can be used to detect and diagnose cancer in its earliest stages and to accurately assess individual risk. There has been a recent surge of interest among researchers as variations in the methylation of DNA have been shown to be the most consistent molecular changes in many neoplasms. An important distinction between a genetic and an epigenetic change in cancer is that epigenetic changes can be reversed more easily by use of therapeutic interventions. The discovery of these basic premises should stimulate much future research on epigenetics.

Cell Transformation, Neoplastic↗

PubMed2002

The promise of biomarkers in cancer screening and detection.

Despite the recent decline in the incidence of cancer, long-term mortality rates remain unchanged. One of the most important factors in the survival of cancer is detection at an early stage. Clinical assays that detect the early events of cancer offer an opportunity to intervene and prevent cancer progression. Biomarkers are important molecular signatures of the phenotype of a cell that aid in early cancer detection and risk assessment. Although new information and technologies are clearly important for new biomarker discovery, we face major hurdles in translating new findings into clinical application. Here, we discuss examples of recent advances and limitations in cancer biomarker identification and validation, and the implications for cancer prevention.

Biomarkers↗

PubMed2002

Proteomics for cancer biomarker discovery.

The emergence of novel technologies allows researchers to facilitate the comprehensive analyses of genomes, transcriptomes, and proteomes in health and disease. The information that is expected from such technologies may soon exert a dramatic change in the pace of cancer research and impact dramatically on the care of cancer patients. These approaches have already demonstrated the power of molecular medicine in discriminating among disease subtypes that are not recognizable by traditional pathologic criteria and in identifying specific genetic events involved in cancer progression. This review covers a selection of advances in the realm of proteomics and its promise for cancer biomarker discovery. It also addresses issues regarding sample preparation and specificity and discusses current challenges that need to be overcome. Finally, the review touches on the efforts of the Early Detection Research Network at the National Cancer Institute in promoting biomarker discovery for translation at the clinical level.

Affinity Labels↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Proteomic maps of the cancer-associated infectious agents.

The number of infectious agents associated with cancer is increasing. There is a need to develop approaches for the early detection of the infected host which might lead to tumor development. Recent advances in proteomic approaches provide that opportunity, and it is now possible to generate proteomic maps of cancer-associated infectious agents. Protein arrays, interaction maps, data archives, and biological assays are being developed to enable efficient and reliable protein identification and functional analysis. Herein, we discuss the current technologies and challenges in the field, and application of protein signatures in cancer detection and prevention.

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Serum protein expression profiling for cancer detection: validation of a SELDI-based approach for prostate cancer.

Multiple studies have reported that analysis of serum and other bodily fluids using surface enhanced laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectroscopy (SELDI-TOF-MS) can identify a "fingerprint" or "signature" of spectral peaks that can separate patients with a specific disease from normal control patients. Ultimately, classification by SELDI-TOF-MS relies on spectral differences in position and amplitude of resolved peaks. Since the reproducibility of quantitation, resolution and mass accuracy of the SELDI-TOF-MS, or any high throughput mass spectrometric technique, has never been determined this method has come under some skepticism as to its clinical usefulness. This manuscript describes a detailed design of a three-phase study to validate the clinical usefulness of SELDI-TOF-MS in the identification of patients with prostatic adenocarcinoma (PCA). At the end of this validation study, the usefulness of the general SELDI-TOF-MS approach to identifying patients with PCA will be demonstrated and how it compares with PCA diagnosis by measuring prostate specific antigen.

Adenocarcinoma↗