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Breast cancer; metastasis; lung cancer; prostate cancer; medulloblastoma; colorectal cancer; transcription factors; TWIST1; DDX3X; patient-derived xenografts (PDX); bioinformatics ...read more
Dr. Farhad Vesuna is an Instructor of Radiology and Radiological Science in the Johns Hopkins Medicine Cancer Image Research Division. His areas of research expertise is in the field of breast cancer development with a focus metastatic progression. He has worked on deciphering the role of the TWIST1 gene and its targets in breast cancer, such as the estrogen receptor and E-cadherin.
Dr. Vesuna earned his Ph.D. from University of Mumbai.
Dr. Vesuna’s primary research interest is in the field of breast cancer development with a focus metastatic progression. He has worked on deciphering the role of the TWIST1 gene and it’s targets in breast cancer, such as the estrogen receptor and E-cadherin.
Dr. Vesuna is also involved in studying the role of the DDX3X gene in breast, lung, prostate, and brain cancer development as well as developing chemotherapeutic molecules for targeting this gene in various cancers.
The Raman lab is within the Department of Cancer Imaging Research in the Department of Radiology and Radiological Science.
The lab has synthesized (rational drug design) a small molecule inhibitor of DDX3 that shows great promise in treating a variety of cancer types such as lung, breast, brain, etc. In combination with radiation, we demonstrate synergistic effect to ablate tumor growth in an autochthonous preclinical lung cancer model. The drug was recently selected by the NCI to check the drug efficacy to kill cancer cells using the NCI-60 panel of cell lines.
Work has also demonstrated how ER negativity could be achieved by over-expression of Twist in breast cancer cells, and the in vitro finding was confirmed in breast cancer patient samples.
Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Molecular Biology
Genomic pathways modulated by Twist in breast cancer. Vesuna F, Bergman Y, Raman V. BMC Cancer. 2017 Jan 13;17(1):52.
RK-33 Radiosensitizes Prostate Cancer Cells by Blocking the RNA Helicase DDX3. Xie M, Vesuna F, Tantravedi S, Bol GM, Heerma van Voss MR, Nugent K, Malek R, Gabrielson K, van Diest PJ, Tran PT, Raman V. Cancer Res. 2016 Nov 1;76(21):6340-6350.
Twist contributes to hormone resistance in breast cancer by downregulating estrogen receptor alpha. Vesuna F, Lisok A, Kimble B, Domek J, Kato Y, van der Groep P, Artemov D, Kowalski J, Carraway H, van Diest P, Raman V. Oncogene. 2012 Jul 5;31(27):3223-34
Twist modulates breast cancer stem cells by transcriptional regulation of CD24 expression. Vesuna F, Lisok A, Kimble B, Raman V. Neoplasia. 2009 Dec;11(12):1318-28
Twist is a transcriptional repressor of E-cadherin gene expression in breast cancer. Vesuna F, van Diest P, Chen JH, Raman V. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2008 Mar 7;367(2):235-41
Compositions and Methods for Characterizing Breast Cancer
Patent # US Pat. 20,130,059,903 | 01/01/2013
Compositions and Methods for Characterizing Breast Cancer
Patent # WO Pat. 2,011,113,047 | 01/01/2011
Venu Raman Research Lab
720 Rutland Ave
Traylor 217C
Baltimore, MD 21205
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Phone: 410-955-7426
The mission of the AACR is to prevent and cure cancer through research, education, communication, and collaboration.
TWIST protein plays a major role in controlling estrogen resistance in breast cancer, Summit Professional Education, November 2011.
Potential new 'twist' in breast cancer detection, Science Daily, December 2009.
Experimental drug delivers one-two punch to prostate cancer cells, EurekAlert!, November 2016.