Department of Biological Sciences

Moira

Faculty Moira Sauane

E-mail address: moira.sauane@lehman.cuny.edu
Phone Number: 718-960-8644
Office: Davis Hall 130 (Lab: Davis Hall 019, 718-960-8730)
Rank: Assistant Professor
Degrees and Source of Degrees: M.Sci., Ph.D.,, Univ. of Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Research Interests

Cancer represents a significant worldwide public health problem. The development of new anti-cancer therapeutic agents and strategies for cancer treatment and diagnosis to combat this terrible disease is therefore of paramount importance. The next generation of cancer therapies is aimed to specifically targeting cancer cells. One such approach is known as gene therapy, and involves inserting genes into individual cells to manipulate or selectively destroy cancer cells. In order to develop an effective gene therapy to treat cancer, more needs to be known about the individual molecules that inhibit tumor growth. In my lab we aim to discover the precise molecular mechanisms by which cancer-therapeutic agents selectively kill cancer cells. Importantly the molecules we study are also involved in immunomodulatory and antiangiogenic processes, properties that can also be harnessed to fight cancer. This type of approaches is essential to producing cutting-edge therapies that are safer and more effective than current cancer treatments.

Publications

  • Sauane, M., Su, Z.Z., Dash, R., Liu, X., Norris, J.A., Sarkar, D, Allegood, J.C., Dent, P., Sarah Spiegel, S., and Fisher, P.B. "Ceramide plays a prominent role in MDA-7/IL-24-induced cancer-specific apoptosis".  J. Cell Physiol. 222(3): 546-55 (2010).
  • Sauane, M., Su, Z.Z., Gupta, P., Lebedeva, I.V., Dent, P., Sarkar, D., and Fisher, P.B “Autocrine regulation of mda-7/IL-24 mediates cancer-specific apoptosis”. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 105(28):9763-8 (2008).
  • Sarkar, D., Lebedeva, I.V., Gupta, P., Emdad, L., Sauane, M., Dent, P., Curiel, D.T., Fisher, P.B.. “Melanoma differentiation associated gene-7 (mda-7)/IL-24: a 'magic bullet' for cancer therapy?”. Expert Opin Biol Ther. 7(5):577-86(2007).
  • Turner, D.P., Moussa, O., Sauane, M., Fisher, P.B., Watson, D.K.. “Prostate-derived ETS factor is a mediator of metastatic potential through the inhibition of migration and invasion in breast cancer”.  Cancer Res. 15;67(4):1618-25 (2007).
  • Sauane, M., Gupta, P., Lebedeva, I.V., Su, Z.Z., Sarkar, D., Randolph, A., Valerie, K., Gopalkrishnan, R.V., and Fisher, P.B.. “N-Glycosylation of MDA-7/IL-24 Is Dispensable for Tumor Cell– Specific Apoptosis and Bystander Antitumor Activity”. Cancer Res. 66: 11869- 11877 (2006).
  • Gupta, P., Su, Z., Lebedeva, I.V.,  Sarkar, D., Sauane, M., Emdad, L., Bachelor, M.A., Grant, S., Curiel, D.T., Dent, P., Fisher, P.B.. “mda-7/IL-24: Multifunctional cancer-specific apoptosis-inducing cytokine”.  Pharmacology & Therapeutics 111: 596 – 628 (2006).
  • Dekanty, A., Sauane, M., Cadenas, B., Coluccio, F., Barrio, M., Casala, J., Paciencia, M., Rogers, F., Coso, O. A., Piwien-Pilipuk, G., Rudland, P. S., and de Asua, L.J.. “Leukemia inhibitory factor induces DNA synthesis in Swiss mouse 3T3 cells independently of cyclin D1 expression through a mechanism involving MEK/ERK1/2 activation”. J Biol. Chem. 281:6136-6143 (2006).
  • Su, Z.Z., Emdad, L., Sauane, M., Lebedeva, I.V.*, Sarkar, D., Gupta, P., James, C.D., Randolph, A., Valerie, K., Walter, M.R., Dent, P., and Fisher, P.B. “Unique aspects of mda-7/IL-24 antitumor bystander activity: establishing a role for secretion of MDA-7/IL-24 protein by normal cells”. Oncogene 24, 7552-7566 (2005).
  • Lebedeva, I.V., Sauane, M., Gopalkrishnan, R.V., Sarkar, D., Su, Z.Z., Gupta, P., Nemunaitis, J., Cunningham, C., Yacoub, A., Dent, P., and Fisher, P.B. “mda-7/IL-24: exploiting cancer's Achilles' heel”. Mol Ther 11, 4-18 (2005).
  • Sauane, M., Gopalkrishnan, R.V., Choo, H.T., Gupta, P., Lebedeva, I.V., Yacoub, A., Dent, P., and Fisher, P.B. “Mechanistic aspects of mda-7/IL-24 cancer cell selectivity analysed via a bacterial fusion protein”. Oncogene 23, 7679-7690 (2004).
  • Sauane, M., Lebedeva, I.V., Su, Z.Z., Choo, H.T., Randolph, A., Valerie, K., Dent, P., Gopalkrishnan, R.V., and Fisher, P.B. “Melanoma differentiation associated gene-7/interleukin-24 promotes tumor cell-specific apoptosis through both secretory and nonsecretory pathways. Cancer Res. 64:2988-93 (2004)
  • Sauane, M., Coso, O.A., Giulianelli, S., Giraldes, A.N., Rudland, P.S., and Jimenez de Asua, L. “Leukaemia Inhibitory Factor or Oncostatin M induction of Swiss 3T3 cells does not require mevalonic acid synthesis nor protein isoprenylation to initiate DNA replication”. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 313: 926-930. (2004).
  • Gopalkrishnan, R.V., Sauane, M and Fisher, P.B. “Cytokine and Tumor Cell Apoptosis inducing activity of mda-7/IL-24”. Int Immunopharmacol. 4:635-647 (2004).
  • Sauane, M., Gopalkrishnan, R.V., Lebedeva, I.V., Mei, M.X., Sarkar, D., Su, Z.Z. Kang, D.-c. Dent, P. Pestka, S., and Fisher, P. B. "Mda-7/IL-24 induces apoptosis of diverse cancer cell lines through JAK/STAT-independent pathways." J Cellular Physiol. 196: 334-345. (2003).
  • Sauane, M., Gopalkrishnan, R.V., Sarkar, D., Su, Z.Z., Lebedeva, I.V., Dent, P., Pestka, S., and Fisher, P.B. “Mda-7/IL-24: novel cancer growth suppressing and apoptosis inducing cytokine”. Cytokine and Growth Factor Reviews 14: 35-51. (2003).
  • Su, Z.Z., Lebedeva, I.V., Sarkar, D., Gopalkrishnan, R.V., Sauane, M., Sigmon, C., Yacoub, A., Valerie, K., Dent, P., and Fisher, P.B. “Melanoma differentiation associated gene-7, mda-7/IL-24, selectively induces growth suppression, apoptosis and radiosensitization in malignant gliomas in a p53-independent manner”. Oncogene. 22,1164-1180. (2003).
  • Sarkar, D., Su, Z.Z., Lebedeva, I.V., Sauane, M., Gopalkrishnan, R.V., Valerie, K., Dent, P., and Fisher, P.B. “mda-7 (IL-24) Mediates selective apoptosis in human melanoma cells by inducing the coordinated overexpression of the GADD family of genes by means of p38 MAPK”. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 99: 10054-10059. (2002).
  • Sauane, M., Correa, L., Rogers, F., Krasnapolski, M., Barraclough, R., Rudland, Ph.S. and Jimenez de Asua, L. “Prostaglandin F2a induces cyclin D1 expression and DNA synthesis via early signaling mechanisms in Swiss 3T3 Cells” Biochem. Biophy. Res. Comm 270, 11-16 (2000).
  • Schere Levy, C., Sauane, M., Rudland, Ph.S. and Jimenez de Asua, L. “Leukaemia inhibitory factor induces mitogenesis in Swiss 3T3 cells and selective enhancement via a variety of signalling events” Biochem. Biophy. Res. Comm  236, 814-818 (1997).

]

Back to Faculty & Staff

Last modified: Mar 26, 2012

Text Only Version of Site | Make This Website Talk