Katrin Sak

Dr. Katrin Sak

NGO Praeventio, Tartu, Tartumaa, Estonia
orcid

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

31Years (1996-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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13 November 2019 in Biomolecules
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
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VAVaishali Aggarwal
Vaishali Aggarwal
HTHardeep Singh Tuli
Hardeep Singh Tuli
AVAyşegül Varol
Ayşegül Varol
FTFalak Thakral
Falak Thakral
Mükerrem Betül YererMükerrem Betül Yerer
Mükerrem Betül Yerer
Gautam SethiGautam Sethi
Gautam Sethi
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) play a pivotal role in biological processes and continuous ROS production in normal cells is controlled by the appropriate regulation between the silver lining of low and high ROS concentration mediated effects. Interestingly, ROS also dynamically influences the tumor microenvironment and is known to initiate cancer angiogenesis, metastasis, and survival at different concentrations. At moderate concentration, ROS activates the cancer cell survival signaling cascade involving mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases 1/2 (MAPK/ERK1/2), p38, c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), and phosphoinositide-3-kinase/ protein kinase B (PI3K/Akt), which in turn activate the nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB), matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). At high concentrations, ROS can cause cancer cell apoptosis. Hence, it critically depends upon the ROS levels, to either augment tumorigenesis or lead to apoptosis. The major issue is targeting the dual actions of ROS effectively with respect to the concentration bias, which needs to be monitored carefully to impede tumor angiogenesis and metastasis for ROS to serve as potential therapeutic targets exogenously/endogenously. Overall, additional research is required to comprehend the potential of ROS as an effective anti-tumor modality and therapeutic target for treating malignancies.

1 January 2014 in Pharmacognosy Reviews
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
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Katrin SakKatrin Sak
Katrin Sak
Flavonoids are ubiquitous in nature. They are also in food, providing an essential link between diet and prevention of chronic diseases including cancer. Anticancer effects of these polyphenols depend on several factors: Their chemical structure and concentration, and also on the type of cancer. Malignant cells from different tissues reveal somewhat different sensitivity toward flavonoids and, therefore, the preferences of the most common dietary flavonoids to various human cancer types are analyzed in this review. While luteolin and kaempferol can be considered as promising candidate agents for treatment of gastric and ovarian cancers, respectively, apigenin, chrysin, and luteolin have good perspectives as potent antitumor agents for cervical cancer; cells from main sites of flavonoid metabolism (colon and liver) reveal rather large fluctuations in anticancer activity probably due to exposure to various metabolites with different activities. Anticancer effect of flavonoids toward blood cancer cells depend on their myeloid, lymphoid, or erythroid origin; cytotoxic effects of flavonoids on breast and prostate cancer cells are highly related to the expression of hormone receptors. Different flavonoids are often preferentially present in certain food items, and knowledge about the malignant tissue-specific anticancer effects of flavonoids could be purposely applied both in chemoprevention as well as in cancer treatment.

6 December 2019 in Frontiers in Pharmacology
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Journal Article
Open access
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HTHardeep Singh Tuli
Hardeep Singh Tuli
MTMuobarak Jaber Tuorkey
Muobarak Jaber Tuorkey
FTFalak Thakral
Falak Thakral
Katrin SakKatrin Sak
Katrin Sak
(Dr.)Manoj Kumar(Dr.)Manoj Kumar
(Dr.)Manoj Kumar
Anupam BishayeeAnupam Bishayee
Anupam Bishayee
Background: Genistein is one among the several other known isoflavones that is found in different soybeans and soy products. The chemical name of genistein is 4′,5,7-trihydroxyisoflavone. Genistein has drawn attention of scientific community because of its potential beneficial effects on human grave diseases, such as cancer. Mechanistic insight of genistein reveals its potential for apoptotic induction, cell cycle arrest, as well as antiangiogenic, antimetastatic, and anti-inflammatory effects. Objective: The purpose of this review is to unravel and analyze various molecular mechanisms of genistein in diverse cancer models. Data sources: English language literature was searched using various databases, such as PubMed, ScienceDirect, EBOSCOhost, Scopus, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library. Key words used in various combinations included genistein, cancer, anticancer, molecular mechanisms prevention, treatment, in vivo, in vitro, and clinical studies. Study selection: Study selection was carried out strictly in accordance with the statement of Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses. Data extraction: Four authors independently carried out the extraction of articles. Data synthesis: One hundred one papers were found suitable for use in this review. Conclusion: This review covers various molecular interactions of genistein with various cellular targets in cancer models. It will help the scientific community understand genistein and cancer biology and will provoke them to design novel therapeutic strategies.

1 February 2021 in Seminars in Cancer Biology
Verified
Journal Article
Closed access
DKDharambir Kashyap
Dharambir Kashyap
HTHardeep Singh Tuli
Hardeep Singh Tuli
Mükerrem Betül YererMükerrem Betül Yerer
Mükerrem Betül Yerer
ASAjay Sharma
Ajay Sharma
Katrin SakKatrin Sak
Katrin Sak
Anupam BishayeeAnupam Bishayee
Anupam Bishayee

6 May 2019 in Biomolecules
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
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DKDharambir Kashyap
Dharambir Kashyap
VGVivek Kumar Garg
Vivek Kumar Garg
HTHardeep Singh Tuli
Hardeep Singh Tuli
Mükerrem Betül YererMükerrem Betül Yerer
Mükerrem Betül Yerer
Katrin SakKatrin Sak
Katrin Sak
SSSardul Singh Sandhu
Sardul Singh Sandhu
Despite advancements in healthcare facilities for diagnosis and treatment, cancer remains the leading cause of death worldwide. As prevention is always better than cure, efficient strategies are needed in order to deal with the menace of cancer. The use of phytochemicals as adjuvant chemotherapeutic agents in heterogeneous human carcinomas like breast, colon, lung, ovary, and prostate cancers has shown an upward trend during the last decade or so. Flavonoids are well-known products of plant derivatives that are reportedly documented to be therapeutically active phytochemicals against many diseases encompassing malignancies, inflammatory disorders (cardiovascular disease, neurodegenerative disorder), and oxidative stress. The current review focuses on two key flavonols, fisetin and quercetin, known for their potential pharmacological relevance. Also, efforts have been made to bring together most of the concrete studies pertaining to the bioactive potential of fisetin and quercetin, especially in the modulation of a range of cancer signaling pathways. Further emphasis has also been made to highlight the molecular action of quercetin and fisetin so that one could explore cancer initiation pathways and progression, which could be helpful in designing effective treatment strategies.

20 December 2012 in Chemotherapy Research and Practice
Verified
Journal Article
Open access
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Katrin SakKatrin Sak
Katrin Sak
Chemotherapy has been used for cancer treatment already for almost 70 years by targeting the proliferation potential and metastasising ability of tumour cells. Despite the progress made in the development of potent chemotherapy drugs, their toxicity to normal tissues and adverse side effects in multiple organ systems as well as drug resistance have remained the major obstacles for the successful clinical use. Cytotoxic agents decrease considerably the quality of life of cancer patients manifesting as acute complaints and impacting the life of survivors also for years after the treatment. Toxicity often limits the usefulness of anticancer agents being also the reason why many patients discontinue the treatment. The nutritional approach may be the means of helping to raise cancer therapy to a new level of success as supplementing or supporting the body with natural phytochemicals cannot only reduce adverse side effects but improve also the effectiveness of chemotherapeutics. Various plant-derived compounds improve the efficiency of cytotoxic agents, decrease their resistance, lower and alleviate toxic side effects, reduce the risk of tumour lysis syndrome, and detoxify the body of chemotherapeutics. The personalised approach using various phytochemicals provides thus a new dimension to the standard cancer therapy for improving its outcome in a complex and complementary way.