Poster abstract: A data-driven design framework for urban slum housing - Case of Mumbai

The current building assessment tools are limited to building performance analysis with respect to box models derived from the urban morphology of developed countries. Complex socio-technical issues associated with rapidly urbanizing cities like Mumbai are often missed. Here, we forward a conceptual framework for designing slum habitation adheres to norms of energy, health and environmental sustainability. This can enable in designing slum rehabilitation projects such that they are not only energy efficient, but are also acceptable to the occupants. This conceptual framework attempts to bridge the missing link currently existing in the early design stages of slum rehabilitation projects. The proof of the concept is a work currently in progress, hence, here, we only elaborate on the conceptual framework exemplified through three cases of slum rehabilitation houses in Mumbai

Methylation of Wnt7a Is Modulated by DNMT1 and Cigarette Smoke Condensate in Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer

Wnt7a is known to be a tumor suppressor that is lost in NSCLC, but no mechanism of loss has been established. Methylation of promoter regions has been established as a common mechanism of loss of tumor suppressor expression in NSCLC. We previously demonstrated that loss of Wnt7a in non-transformed lung epithelial cell lines led to increased cell growth, altered 3-D culture growth, and increased migration. The Wnt7a promoter has a higher percentage of methylation in NSCLC tumor tissue compared to matched normal lung tissue and methylation of the promoter region leads to decreased activity. We treated H157 and H1299 NSCLC cell lines with 5-Aza-2′-deoxycytidine and detected loss of Wnt7a promoter methylation, increased Wnt7a expression, and increased activity of the Wnt7a lung signaling pathway. When DNMT1 expression was knocked down by shRNA, expression of Wnt7a increased and methylation decreased. Together these data suggest that in NSCLC, Wnt7a is lost by methylation in a subset of tumors and that this methylation is maintained by DNMT1. Restoration of Wnt7a expression through demethylation could be an important therapeutic approach in the treatment of NSCLC

Killing Hypoxic Cell Populations in a 3D Tumor Model with EtNBS-PDT

An outstanding problem in cancer therapy is the battle against treatment-resistant disease. This is especially true for ovarian cancer, where the majority of patients eventually succumb to treatment-resistant metastatic carcinomatosis. Limited perfusion and diffusion, acidosis, and hypoxia play major roles in the development of resistance to the majority of front-line therapeutic regimens. To overcome these limitations and eliminate otherwise spared cancer cells, we utilized the cationic photosensitizer EtNBS to treat hypoxic regions deep inside in vitro 3D models of metastatic ovarian cancer. Unlike standard regimens that fail to penetrate beyond ∼150 µm, EtNBS was found to not only penetrate throughout the entirety of large (>200 µm) avascular nodules, but also concentrate into the nodules' acidic and hypoxic cores. Photodynamic therapy with EtNBS was observed to be highly effective against these hypoxic regions even at low therapeutic doses, and was capable of destroying both normoxic and hypoxic regions at higher treatment levels. Imaging studies utilizing multiphoton and confocal microscopies, as well as time-lapse optical coherence tomography (TL-OCT), revealed an inside-out pattern of cell death, with apoptosis being the primary mechanism of cell killing. Critically, EtNBS-based photodynamic therapy was found to be effective against the model tumor nodules even under severe hypoxia. The inherent ability of EtNBS photodynamic therapy to impart cytotoxicity across a wide range of tumoral oxygenation levels indicates its potential to eliminate treatment-resistant cell populations

Mevalonate Cascade Regulation of Airway Mesenchymal Cell Autophagy and Apoptosis: A Dual Role for p53

Statins inhibit the proximal steps of cholesterol biosynthesis, and are linked to health benefits in various conditions, including cancer and lung disease. We have previously investigated apoptotic pathways triggered by statins in airway mesenchymal cells, and identified reduced prenylation of small GTPases as a primary effector mechanism leading to p53-mediated cell death. Here, we extend our studies of statin-induced cell death by assessing endpoints of both apoptosis and autophagy, and investigating their interplay and coincident regulation. Using primary cultured human airway smooth muscle (HASM) and human airway fibroblasts (HAF), autophagy, and autophagosome formation and flux were assessed by transmission electron microscopy, cytochemistry (lysosome number and co-localization with LC3) and immunoblotting (LC3 lipidation and Atg12-5 complex formation). Chemical inhibition of autophagy increased simvastatin-induced caspase activation and cell death. Similarly, Atg5 silencing with shRNA, thus preventing Atg5-12 complex formation, increased pro-apoptotic effects of simvastatin. Simvastatin concomitantly increased p53-dependent expression of p53 up-regulated modulator of apoptosis (PUMA), NOXA, and damage-regulated autophagy modulator (DRAM). Notably both mevalonate cascade inhibition-induced autophagy and apoptosis were p53 dependent: simvastatin increased nuclear p53 accumulation, and both cyclic pifithrin-α and p53 shRNAi partially inhibited NOXA, PUMA expression and caspase-3/7 cleavage (apoptosis) and DRAM expression, Atg5-12 complex formation, LC3 lipidation, and autophagosome formation (autophagy). Furthermore, the autophagy response is induced rapidly, significantly delaying apoptosis, suggesting the existence of a temporally coordinated p53 regulation network. These findings are relevant for the development of statin-based therapeutic approaches in obstructive airway disease

Key signalling nodes in mammary gland development and cancer. Mitogen-activated protein kinase signalling in experimental models of breast cancer progression and in mammary gland development

Seven classes of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) intracellular signalling cascades exist, four of which are implicated in breast disease and function in mammary epithelial cells. These are the extracellular regulated kinase (ERK)1/2 pathway, the ERK5 pathway, the p38 pathway and the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) pathway. In some forms of human breast cancer and in many experimental models of breast cancer progression, signalling through the ERK1/2 pathway, in particular, has been implicated as being important. We review the influence of ERK1/2 activity on the organised three-dimensional association of mammary epithelial cells, and in models of breast cancer cell invasion. We assess the importance of epidermal growth factor receptor family signalling through ERK1/2 in models of breast cancer progression and the influence of ERK1/2 on its substrate, the oestrogen receptor, in this context. In parallel, we consider the importance of these MAPK-centred signalling cascades during the cycle of mammary gland development. Although less extensively studied, we highlight the instances of signalling through the p38, JNK and ERK5 pathways involved in breast cancer progression and mammary gland development