Rohit Arora

Bio: Rohit Arora is an academic researcher from Guru Nanak Dev University. The author has contributed to research in topics: Isothiocyanate & DMBA. The author has an hindex of 11, co-authored 36 publications receiving 350 citations. Previous affiliations of Rohit Arora include University of Health Science & University of Health Sciences Antigua.

Overexpression of hypoxia-inducible factor and metabolic pathways: possible targets of cancer.

Abstract: Cancer, the main cause of human deaths in the modern world is a group of diseases. Anticancer drug discovery is a challenge for scientists because of involvement of multiple survival pathways of cancer cells. An extensive study on the regulation of each step of these pathways may help find a potential cancer target. Up-regulated HIF-1 expression and altered metabolic pathways are two classical characteristics of cancer. Oxygen-dependent (through pVHL, PHDs, calcium-mediated) and independent (through growth factor signaling pathway, mdm2 pathway, HSP90) regulation of HIF-1α leads to angiogenesis, metastasis, and cell survival. The two subunits of HIF-1 regulates in the same fashion through different mechanisms. HIF-1α translation upregulates via mammalian target of rapamycin and mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathways, whereas HIF-1β through calmodulin kinase. Further, the stabilized interactions of these two subunits are important for proper functioning. Also, metabolic pathways crucial for the formation of building blocks (pentose phosphate pathway) and energy generation (glycolysis, TCA cycle and catabolism of glutamine) are altered in cancer cells to protect them from oxidative stress and to meet the reduced oxygen and nutrient supply. Up-regulated anaerobic metabolism occurs through enhanced expression of hexokinase, phosphofructokinase, triosephosphate isomerase, glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase and down-regulation of aerobic metabolism via pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase and lactate dehydrogenase which compensate energy requirements along with high glucose intake. Controlled expression of these two pathways through their common intermediate may serve as potent cancer target in future.

In vitro evaluation of the α-glucosidase inhibitory potential of methanolic extracts of traditionally used antidiabetic plants.

Abstract: Different plant parts of Roylea cinerea (D. Don) Baill. (Lamiaceae), Clematis grata Wall. (Ranunculaceae), Cornus capitata Wall. (Cornaceae) are traditionally used in the management of diabetes and various other diseases. The air-dried plant parts from different plants were coarsely powdered and macerated in methanol to obtain their crude extracts. The crude extracts were evaluated for their α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. On the basis of results obtained, the methanolic crude extract of Cornus capitata Wall. was further sequentially fractionated in hexane, diethyl ether, ethyl acetate, n-butanol. Fractions obtained were also evaluated for their α-glucosidase inhibitory potential. The kinetic study was performed using Lineweaver Burk plot to evaluate the type of inhibition. Furthermore, in silico analysis was also carried with active sites of the enzyme (PDB ID: 3WY1) using Autodock4. Among all the plant extracts, Cornus capitata extract showed maximum inhibitory activity. Therefore its methanolic extract was further fractionated with the help of different solvents and the maximum activity was shown by the ethyl acetate fraction (IC50 50 μg/mL). Kinetic analysis indicated that Vmax and Km were increased indicating a competitive type of inhibition. In docking studies, among different constituents known in this plant, betulinic acid showed minimum binding energy (− 10.21 kcal/mol). The kinetic and docking studies have strengthened the observation made in the present study regarding the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of Cornus capitata. The study provided partial evidence for pharmacological basis regarding clinical applications of Cornus capitata in the treatment of diabetes suggesting it to be a suitable candidate for the treatment of postprandial hyperglycemia.

Lipid Peroxidation: A Possible Marker for Diabetes

Abstract: Modernization of our lifestyle and absurd eating habits has taken its toll on the human health. People are getting affected by diabetes and this number is on a gradual rise. Diabetes is considered among one of the most deadly disease with a wide variety of symptoms. While diabetes is detected by the blood glucose level and it may only be recorded when the symptoms of this disease starts surfacing and gets beyond any control. Interestingly, a link of this disease has been established with the bacterial infection and directly as well as indirectly with the immune response, thus causing the lipid peroxidation in an indirect way. Lipid peroxidation has also been reported in the patients suffering from diabetes. In this review, we try to establish a critical link between the lipid peroxidation and diabetes. This will help in considering lipid peroxidation as an early marker for diabetes. It will improve the present detection system and thus will help to control this deadly disease.

Methods in Enzymology.

Abstract: I read this book the same weekend that the Packers took on the Rams, and the experience of the latter event, obviously, colored my judgment. Although I abhor anything that smacks of being a handbook (like, \"How to Earn a Merit Badge in Neurosurgery\") because too many volumes in biomedical science already evince a boyscout-like approach, I must confess that parts of this volume are fast, scholarly, and significant, with certain reservations. I like parts of this well-illustrated book because Dr. Sj6strand, without so stating, develops certain subjects on technique in relation to the acquisition of judgment and sophistication. And this is important! So, given that the author (like all of us) is somewhat deficient in some areas, and biased in others, the book is still valuable if the uninitiated reader swallows it in a general fashion, realizing full well that what will be required from the reader is a modulation to fit his vision, propreception, adaptation and response, and the kind of problem he is undertaking. A major deficiency of this book is revealed by comparison of its use of physics and of chemistry to provide understanding and background for the application of high resolution electron microscopy to problems in biology. Since the volume is keyed to high resolution electron microscopy, which is a sophisticated form of structural analysis, but really morphology in a modern guise, the physical and mechanical background of The instrument and its ancillary tools are simply and well presented. The potential use of chemical or cytochemical information as it relates to biological fine structure , however, is quite deficient. I wonder when even sophisticated morphol-ogists will consider fixation a reaction and not a technique; only then will the fundamentals become self-evident and predictable and this sine qua flon will become less mystical. Staining reactions (the most inadequate chapter) ought to be something more than a technique to selectively enhance contrast of morphological elements; it ought to give the structural addresses of some of the chemical residents of cell components. Is it pertinent that auto-radiography gets singled out for more complete coverage than other significant aspects of cytochemistry by a high resolution microscopist, when it has a built-in minimal error of 1,000 A in standard practice? I don't mean to blind-side (in strict football terminology) Dr. Sj6strand's efforts for what is \"routinely used in our laboratory\"; what is done is usually well done. It's just that …

In vitro antioxidant properties of rutin

Abstract: Much work has been carried out in recent years on the beneficial effect of phenolic compounds which act as natural antioxidants and help to neutralize free radicals. We analysed the antioxidant activity of the rutin (quercetin-3-rhamnosyl glucoside) using different assays including: total antioxidant activity and reducing power, hydroxyl radical scavenging assay, superoxide radical scavenging assay, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl-hydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assay and lipid peroxidation assay which uses egg yolk as the lipid-rich source. Total antioxidant capacity was determined by the assay based on the decrease in absorbance of β-carotene by the sample. Rutin exhibited strong DPPH radical scavenging activity. At the concentration of 0.05 mg/ml, ascorbic acid (Vc), butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and rutin showed 92.8%, 58.8%, and 90.4% inhibition, respectively. In addition, rutin had effective inhibition of lipid peroxidation. Those various antioxidant activities were compared to standard antioxidants such as BHT and Vc.

Essential Oils as Antimicrobial Agents-Myth or Real Alternative?

Abstract: Herbs and the essential oils derived from them have been used from the beginning of human history for different purposes. Their beneficial properties have been applied to mask unpleasant odors, attract the attention of other people, add flavor and aroma properties to prepared dishes, perfumes, and cosmetics, etc. Herbs and essential oils (EOs) have also been used in medicine because of their biological properties, such as larvicidal action, analgesic and anti-inflammatory properties, antioxidant, fungicide, and antitumor activities, and many more. Many EOs exhibit antimicrobial properties, which is extremely important in fields of science and industry, such as medicine, agriculture, or cosmetology. Among the 250 EOs which are commercially available, about a dozen possess high antimicrobial potential. According to available papers and patents, EOs seem to be a potential alternative to synthetic compounds, especially because of the resistance that has been increasingly developed by pathogenic microorganisms. In this review we summarize the latest research studies about the most-active EOs that are known and used because of their antimicrobial properties. Finally, it is noteworthy that the antimicrobial activities of EOs are not preeminent for all strains. Further investigations should, thus, focus on targeting EOs and microorganisms.

The use of cobalt chloride as a chemical hypoxia model.

Abstract: The use of hypoxia models in cell culture has allowed the characterization of the hypoxia response at the cellular, biochemical and molecular levels. Although a decrease in oxygen concentration is the optimal hypoxia model, the problem faced by many researchers is access to a hypoxia chamber or a CO2 incubator with regulated oxygen levels, which is not possible in many laboratories. Several alternative models have been used to mimic hypoxia. One of the most commonly used models is cobalt chloride-induced chemical hypoxia because it stabilizes hypoxia inducible factors 1α and 2α under normoxic conditions. This model has several advantages, and currently, there is a substantial amount of scattered information about how this model works. This review describes the characteristics of the model, as well as the biochemical and molecular bases that support it. The regulation of hypoxia inducible factors by oxygen and the role of CoCl2 are explained to understand the most accepted bases of the CoCl2 -induced hypoxia model. The different current hypotheses that explain the establishment of hypoxic conditions using CoCl2 are also described. Finally, based on the different observations reported in the literature, we provide a critical review about the scope and limitations of this widely used chemical hypoxia model to be informative to all researchers interested in the field.