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Altagamoa Al Khames, Main centre of town, end of 90th Street
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Egypt

Heba Darwish

Basic information

Name : Heba Darwish
Title: Professor and head of Biochemistry
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Personal Info: Prof/Heba Darwish,Biochemistry section-Pharmacology,Toxicology and Biochemistry Department.She got her Master and Doctoral degrees from Cairo university.

Education

Certificate Major University Year
PhD Pharmaceutical Sciences Biochemisty " 2004
Masters 1998
Bachelor Pharmaceutical Sciences 1990

Researches /Publications

Role of long noncoding RNAs; BDNF-AS and 17A and their relation to GABAergic dysfunction in Egyptian epileptic patients

Hebatallah Abdulmoaty Mohamed Mahmoud Darwish

Amira A.Shaheen

20/02/2023

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11011-023-01182-x

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Association of LncRNA-PAX8-AS1 and LAIR-2 polymorphisms along with their expression with clinical and subclinical hypothyroidism

Hebatallah Abdulmoaty Mohamed Mahmoud Darwish

02/01/2023

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9807632/

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Circulating lncRNAs HIF1A‑AS2 and LINLK‑A: Role and Relation to Hypoxia‑Inducible Factor‑1α in Cerebral Stroke Patients

Hebatallah Abdulmoaty Mohamed Mahmoud Darwish

rana kamal, Hebatallah A. Darwish, Amira A. Shaheen

01/05/2021

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been recently recognized as key players of gene expression in cerebral pathogenesis. Thus, their potential use in stroke diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy is actively pursued. Due to the complexity of the disease, identifying stroke-specific lncRNAs remains a challenge. This study investigated the expression of lncRNAs HIF1A-AS2 and LINK-A, and their target gene hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) in Egyptian stroke patients. It also aimed to determine the molecular mechanism implicated in the disease. A total of 75 stroke patients were divided into three clinical subgroups, besides 25 healthy controls of age-matched and sex-matched. Remarkable upregulation of lncRNA HIF1A-AS2 and HIF1-α along with a downregulation of lncRNA LINK-A was noticed in all stroke groups relative to controls. Serum levels of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), phosphorylated-Akt (p-Akt), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and angiopoietin-1 (ANG1) as well as their receptors, malondialdehyde (MDA), and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were significantly increased, whereas brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels were significantly decreased particularly in hemorrhagic stroke versus ischemic groups. Eventually, these findings support the role of lncRNAs HIF1A-AS2 and LINK-A as well as HIF1-α in activation of angiogenesis, neovascularization, and better prognosis of stroke, especially the hemorrhagic type.

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Significance of some non-invasive biomarkers in the early diagnosis and staging of Egyptian breast cancer patients.

Hebatallah Abdulmoaty Mohamed Mahmoud Darwish

TMK Motawi, NI Zakhary, TM Salman

01/11/2020

Introduction: Breast cancer is one of the most relevant malignancies among women. Early diagnosis and accurate staging of breast cancer is important for the selection of an appropriate therapeutic strategy and achieving a better outcome. Aim: This study aimed to explore the significance of some non-invasive biomarkers in the early diagnosis and staging of Egyptian breast cancer patients. Subjects and Methods: A total of 135 female patients with physically and pathologically confirmed breast cancer and 40 unrelated controls as well as 40 patients with benign breast mass were enrolled in this study. The malignant breast cancer group was further divided into four groups according to tumor size. Serum levels of carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule-1 (CEACAM1), resistin and visfatin were determined by enzyme immunoassay. Results: Elevated levels of CEACAM1, resistin and visfatin were observed in breast cancer patients when compared with normal control and benign groups. The cutoff values, sensitivities and specificities of these biomarkers were appropriate for the discrimination of breast cancer from controls. Additionally, the serum levels of visfatin increased positively with tumor size and consequently with breast cancer stages. Conclusion: CEACAM1, resistin and visfatin are valuable in early diagnosis of breast cancer, with visfatin being preferentially used in staging.

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miR-26a potentially contributes to the regulation of fatty acid and sterol metabolism in vitro human HepG1 cell model of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Hebatallah Abdulmoaty Mohamed Mahmoud Darwish

Kamal M. Eldeib, and Samy A. Abdel Azim

01/09/2018

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a metabolic-related disorder ranging from steatosis to steatohepatitis, which may progress to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). This study aimed at assessing the regulatory and protective role of miR-26a on lipid metabolism and progression of NAFLD in human HepG2 cells loaded with free fatty acids (FFA). Lentivirus expressing miR-26a or negative control miR was used to transduce HepG2 cells and to establish stable cell lines. Gain or loss of function using an miR-26a inhibitor was used to compare triglyceride content (TG), total cholesterol level (CL), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), malondialdehyde (MDA) and the level of apoptosis. In addition, quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) was used to assess the mRNA levels of lipogenesis, TG synthesis, storage genes, inflammatory and fibrogenic markers, and autophagic besides endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress markers after gaining or losing the function of miR-26a. miR-26a levels decreased in response to FFA in human HepG2 cells. After the establishment of a stable cell line, the upregulation of miR-26a resulted in the downregulation of TG, CL, and MDA levels, through regulating mRNA levels of genes involved in lipid homeostasis, ER stress marker, inflammatory and fibrogenic markers. Nevertheless, there was a marked increment in the mRNA expression of autophagic marker genes. Moreover, miR-26a overexpression protects the cells from apoptosis, whereas inhibition of miR-26a, using an anti-miR-26a oligonucleotide, decreased the expression of miR-26a which potentially contributes to altered lipid metabolism in HepG2 cells loaded with FFA. In conclusion, these findings suggested that miR-26a has a crucial role in regulating fatty acid and cholesterol homeostasis in HepG2 cells, along with the offered protection against the progression of NAFLD in vitro. Hence, miRNAs could receive growing attention as useful noninvasive diagnostic markers to follow the progression of NAFLD and to identify novel therapeutic targets.

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Combinatorial strategy of epigenetic and hormonal therapies: A novel promising approach for treating advanced prostate cancer

Hebatallah Abdulmoaty Mohamed Mahmoud Darwish

Tarek K. Motawi, Iman Diab, Maged W. Helmy, Mohamed H. Noureldin

01/04/2018

Aims Estrogens act as key factors in prostate biology, cellular proliferation and differentiation as well as cancer development and progression. The expression of estrogen receptor (ER)-β appears to be lost during prostate cancer progression through hypermethylation mechanism. Epigenetic drugs such as 5-aza-2′-deoxycytidine (5-AZAC) and Trichostatin A (TSA) showed efficacy in restoring ERβ expression in prostate cancer cells. This study was designed to explore the potential anti-carcinogenic effects resulting from re-expressing ERβ1 using 5-AZAC and/or TSA, followed by its stimulation with Diarylpropionitrile (DPN), a selective ERβ1 agonist, in prostate cancer cell line PC-3. Main methods Cells were treated with 5-AZAC, TSA, DPN and their combination. Subsequently, they were subjected to proliferation assays, determinations of ERβ1 expression, protein levels of active caspase-3, cyclin D1, β-catenin and VEGF. Key findings Treatment with these drugs exhibited an increase in ERβ1 expression to different extents as well as active caspase-3 levels. Meanwhile, a significant reduction in cyclin D1, VEGF and β-catenin levels was achieved as compared to the vehicle control group (p < 0.05). Interestingly, the triple combination regimen led to the most prominent anti-tumor responses in terms of increased apoptosis, reduced proliferation as well as angiogenesis. Significance The results support the notion that ERβ1 acts as a tumor suppressor protein and suggest that sequential ERβ1 expression and activation can offer significant anti-tumor responses. The study highlights that the strategy of merging epigenetic and hormonal therapies may be beneficial in treating advanced prostate cancer

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Coenzyme Q10 and niacin mitigate streptozotocin-induced diabetic encephalopathy in a rat model.

Hebatallah Abdulmoaty Mohamed Mahmoud Darwish

Tarek K. Motawi, Manal A. Hamed, Nagy S. El-Rigal, Asmaa F. Aboul Naser

01/10/2017

Diabetic encephalopathy is an important complication of diabetes characterized by cognitive impairment, neurochemical and structural abnormalities. This study aimed to investigate the effect of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) and niacin as well as their combination in the treatment of encephalopathy associated with streptozotocin (STZ)- induced diabetes in rats. Glibenclamide (reference diabetic drug) and donepezil hydrochloride (acetylcholinesterase inhibitor) were also evaluated. Diabetes was induced by a single intraperitoneal injection of STZ (60 mg/kg). One month after STZ injection, diabetic rats were treated with the aforementioned drugs for two weeks. The evaluation was done through measuring glucose level, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), interleukin 6 (IL6), DNA degradation as well as serotonin and noradrenaline as neurotransmitters. The present data illustrated that combining CoQ10 and niacin exhibiting the most potent effect in improving the measured parameters and ameliorating some of diabetes complications.

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Carbonic anhydrase inhibition boosts the antitumor effects of imatinib mesylate via potentiating the antiangiogenic and antimetastatic machineries.

Hebatallah Abdulmoaty Mohamed Mahmoud Darwish

Amal A.Abd-El Fattah, NevineFathy, Samia A.Shouman

01/02/2017

Carbonic anhydrase inhibitors have emerged in the past few years as an interesting candidate for the development of novel unconventional strategies. Despite their effect in tumor regression via inhibition of tumor acidification, their potential role is not yet fully elucidated. Herein, we investigated whether acetazolamide (AZ) could modulate imatinib (IM) anticancer activity, both in breast cancer cells (T47D) and in isolated tumor specimens of Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC). The impact of this combination on angiogenesis was evidenced by decreasing PDGF-A expression and enhancing that of TSP-1. In the meantime, AZ significantly suppressed IM-induced attenuation of VEGF secretion in T47D cells, most probably due to NO inhibition. The combination also dramatically decreased the metastatic activity of T47D cells by mitigating the protein levels of MMP-2 and -9 and phosphorylation of p38 MAPK, while increasing the expression of TIMP-1 and -2. In addition, a strong proapoptotic effect was observed in T47D cells after combining AZ and IM in terms of increased caspase-9 and -3 activities. Interestingly, these results were confirmed by the reduction in the isolated tumor volume, MVD, Ki-67 and VEGF expression. Eventually, the study provides a new therapeutic strategy for treating cancer.

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Awards

Award Donor Date
Internal publication Award Cairo University 2015
International Publication Award Cairo University 2014
Supervision of Best PhD Cairo University 2013
International Publication Award Cairo University 2013
International Publication Award Cairo University 2012
Best international published paper in Biochemistry 2012 Faculty of Pharmacy Cairo University 2012
International Publication Award Cairo University 2011

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