Pomila Singh's Home Page

Pomila Singh, Ph.D.

The major research interests of my laboratory at The University of Texas Medical Branch are in the area of hormones and growth factors in the growth and differentiation of gastrointestinal cancers.

Credentials

Ph.D., All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, India, 1979
Professor, Departments of Anatomy & Neurosciences, and Human Biological Chemistry & Genetics and Internal Medicine

Cell Biology Graduate Program

Human Biological Chemistry & Genetics

Research Program

Dr. Singh's laboratory is conducting research in the area of hormones and growth factors as it relates to cancer. Her laboratory has published more than 105 papers, and she has trained several postdoctoral fellows and graduate students. Dr. Singh's laboratory is currently funded by NIH grants to investigate the role of autocrine growth factors (gastrin, IGF-II, IGF-BPs) in colon carcinogenesis and the growth and differentiation of cancer cells. On-going projects involve the generation of knockout and transgenic mice, investigation of signal transduction and apoptotic pathways, generation of tumor vaccines, receptor characterization, colon carcinogenesis, and transcriptional regulation of specific genes.

Figure Legend:
Transcriptional factors and cis elements known to bind the proximal and distal segments of IGF-II P3 promoter. The ~ nt position of the cis elements along the promoter is indicated. + = up-regulation of promoter activity; - = down-regulation of promoter activity. A = cis element in the proximal promoter region of the IGF-II P-3 promoter. B = cis element recently identified by our laboratory in the distal segment of the P3 promoter. The approximate position of the transcriptional factors that have been shown to bind to the indicated cis elements in the proximal and distal segments of the P3 promoter are indicated. Wt/egr = wilms tumor antigen 1/early growth response element; IPBP4/5 = transcriptional factors that bind the novel cis element IPBP4/5 as described in References 58,59; AP-2 = activating protein 2; Sp1 = Sp1 transcriptional factors, binding GC rich areas; CTF = transcriptional factors binding a novel cis element as described in Reference 59; TBP = TATA box binding proteins; P53 = tumor suppressor protein; TFs = transcriptional factors; P3-D = a novel cis element described by us in J. Biol. Chem. 276: 6937-6944, 2001; CORE = represents the core elements required for optimal activation of the P3 promoter; REG = regulatory elements; EXON 5 = the EXON 5 of IGF-II human promoter.

Selected Publications

Singh, P. IGF System in Growth, Development and Carcinogenesis. J. Clinical Ligand Assay, 23(3): 214-232, 2000.

Singh, P., Dai, B., Wu, H. and Owlia, A. Role of Autocrine and Endocrine Gastrin-Like-Peptides in Colonic Carcinogenesis. Current Opinion in Gastroenterology, 16:68-77, 2000.

Singh, P., Velasco, M., Given, R., Wargovich, M., Varro, A., Wang, T. Mice Over-expressing Progastrin are Predisposed for Developing Aberrant Colonic Crypt Foci in Response to AOM. Am. J. Physiol. Gastrointest. Liver Physiol., 278: G390-G399, 2000.

Singh, P., Velasco, M., Given, R., Varro, A., Wang, T. Progastrin Expression Predisposes Mice to Development of Colon Carcinomas and Adenomas in Response to AOM. Gastroenterology, 119:162-171, 2000.

Wu, H., Rao, G. N., Dai, B., Singh, P. Autocrine Gastrins in Colon Cancer Cells Up-regulate Cytochrome c Oxidase Vb (Cox Vb) and Down-regulate Efflux of Cytochrome c (cyt c) and Activation of Caspase 3. J Biol. Chem., 275:32491-32498, 2000.

Dai, B., Holthuizen, P.E., Wu, H, Singh, P. Identification Of A Novel cis Element Required For Cell-Density-Dependent Down-Regulation of IGF-II P3 Promoter Activity in CaCo2 Cells. J. Biol. Chem., 276: 6937-6944, 2001.

Brown D, Yallampalli U, Owlia A, Singh P. pp60c-Src Kinase mediates growth effects of the full-length precursor progastrin1-80 peptide on rat intestinal epithelial cells, in vitro. Endocrinology 144, 201-11, 2003.

Singh P, Lu X, Cobb S, Miller BT, Tarasova N, Varro A, Owlia A. Progastrin1-80 stimulates growth of intestinal epithelial cells in vitro via high-affinity binding sites. Am.J.Physiol Gastrointest.Liver Physiol 284, G328-G339, 2003.

and Internet guidelines.

Last updated: 04/16/03