Prof. R. P. Singh
Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, India
Title: Characteristic Features and Therapeutic Potential of a L-asparaginase from a Marine Bacterium
Abstract:
L-asparaginase is an antileukemic enzyme that is vital in treating
patients with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) and other blood
cancers. Consequently, the exploration of L-asparaginase has been one of
the prime contemplations of various groups. However, the clinical trial
of L-asparaginase has been observed to elicit several side effects.
Additionally, frequent dosages of this form of enzyme is required due to
its shorter half-life in blood circulation, leading to lower clinical
efficacy and increased treatment cost. Therefore, extensive efforts are
made to attain alternative sources of L-asparaginase with improved
features. In this study, an extracellular glutaminase-free
L-asparaginase-producing Bacillus australimaris NJB19 was selected from
marine resources. The derivation of optimum levels of variables for the
enzyme production resulted in considerably increased yield of
L-asparaginase production. Further, the biochemical analysis of the
protein was conducted for finding out optimum parameters, Km and Vmax.
The structural analysis suggested that the protein was type II
L-asparaginase with no toxin domain. Furthermore, the cytotoxicity of
the produced L-asparaginase was evaluated on three solid tumor cell
lines employing MTT and LDH assays. The cytotoxicity assay showed the
highest cytotoxic activity for MCF-7and to MDA-MB231 and DU-145 cells.
Therefore, glutaminase-free L-asparaginase from marine B. australimaris
NJB19 has a high potential to be exploited commercially for ALL
treatment.
Keywords: Marine, L-asparaginase, Cytotoxicity, Anti-leukemic
Biography:
Prof. R. P. Singh has contributed over three decades of his dedicated
service for research and science education. He is currently a Emeritus
Professor at Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian
Institute of Technology Roorkee, India. Prof. Singh received his
Master’s in Biochemistry from G.B. Pant University of Agriculture &
Technology, India and Doctoral degree in Microbial biochemistry from
Central Drug Research Institute, Lucknow, India. He had continued as a
Research Associate at Institute of Microbial Technology, Chandigarh.
Further he worked at National Institutes of Health, USA and Harvard
Medical School, USA as a Visiting Fellow and as a Research Officer for
more than five years. He was also a visiting faculty for a year at
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, USA. His research interests
primarily include enzyme engineering, biofuels, biopolymers and
targeted drug delivery. He is associated with several International and
National organizations mainly Process Innovation and Process
Intensification Network, UK; European Federation of Biotechnology,
Committees on Genetically Modified Organisms and Food, Food Safety and
Standards Authority of India ; Expert Committees of Department of
Science & Technology and Department of Biotechnology, Govt. of India
and Life Science Research Board, DRDO, Govt. of India. He is a member
of editorial board of journals and had served as a reviewer for several
reputed international journals. He has authored several original
research articles, review papers and book chapters and has one US patent
to his credit. He has supervised 23 doctoral thesis and several
Master’s and Undergraduate dissertations. Prof. Singh had delivered
several invited lectures and had visited countries mainly USA, UK and
Germany. He has handled various research projects till date. He is life
member of several scientific bodies and is on the board and committees
of several institutions.