Gulshan Sunavala-Dossabhoy, PhD

Gulshan Sunavala-Dossabhoy, PhD

Associate Professor

Smart therapeutics for cancer control and for limiting normal tissue toxicity of cancer therapies.

A majority of patients that undergo radiation for head and neck cancer and a substantial number of patients that undergo total-body irradiation (TBI) prior to bone marrow transplantation suffer from off-target effects of head and neck radiation such as salivary gland hypofunction and oral mucositis.  A pressing issue in cancer therapy is the mitigation of off-target toxicity that impairs the patient’s quality of life, nutritional status, and the compliance to cancer treatments.  Normal tissue toxicity limits the use of high-dose cancer therapy and is invariably responsible for cancer treatment interruptions. Engineering target selectivity is the focus of the lab in redesigning radioprotective therapies. Smartness in gene therapy, direct protein transfer, and small molecule therapies can limit radiation effects on normal tissues while sensitizing cancer cells - thus achieving the benefit of improved cancer control without undue morbidity.  

Mody BM, Sunavala G, Umarji HR, John A, SankheS, Sagotia P. (1990) Gingival examination – a diagnostic flowchart for oraldiseases. Journal Indian Dental Association.1990; 61(5): 116-117, 61(7): 164-165, 61(8): 188-189.

         

2.      Sunavala G, John A. Dental radiographic manifestations in chronic renal failure. Journal Indian DentalAssociation. 1991; 62(4): 71-73.

 

3.      John A. Sunavala,G. Hemangiomas: vascular malformations: Review and case reports. Journal Indian Academy Oral Medicine.1991; 2:57-60.

 

4.      John A, Dhruva NH, Umarji HR, Mody BM, Sunavala G. Chediak Higashi Syndrome: A case report and review. Journal Indian Academy Oral Medicine. 1991; 2: 77-80.

 

5.      Sunavala G, John A. Rotational panoramic radiography: Troubleshooting errors and their manifestations. Journal Indian Academy OralMedicine.1992; 6: 34-37.

 

6.      Sunavala G. An unusual case of elongated hyperplastic condyle dueto poor postural habits. Dental Dialogue: Journal of the Maharashtra State Branch, Indian Dental Association 1992; 1: 15-16.

 

7.     Spielman AI, Nagai H, Sunavala G, Dasso M, Huque T, Brand JG. (1995) Second messenger assays. In Experimental Cell Biology of Taste and Olfaction: Current Techniques and Protocols. Chapter 3.7,pg 203-210. Eds. A.I. Spielman and J.G. Brand, CRC Press Inc., Boca Raton, FL.

 

8.      Spielman AI, Nagai H, Sunavala G, Dasso M,Breer H, Boekhoff I, Huque T, Whitney G, Brand JG. Rapid kinetics of second messenger production in bitter taste. American Journal Physiology 1996; 270 (3 Pt 1): C926-C931.

 

9.      Zaidi M, Shankar VS, Adebanjo OA, Anthony F, PazianasM, Sunavala G, Spielman AI,Rifkin BR. (1996) Regulation of extracellular Ca+2–sensing in rat osteoclasts by femtomolar calcitonin concentrations. American Journal Physiology 1996; 271 (3 Pt 2):F637-F644.

 

10.  D’Souza RN, Cavender A, Sunavala G, Alvarez J, Ohshima T, Kulkarni AB, MacDougall M. Gene expression patterns of murine dentin matrix protein 1 (Dmp1) and dentinsialophosphoprotein (DSPP) suggest distinct developmental functions in vivo. Bone Mineral Research. 1997; 12: 2040-2049.

 

11.  Spielman AI, Sumavali, Harmony JAK, Stuart WD, Leyden JJ, Turner G, Vowels BR, Lam WC, YangS, Preti, G. Identification and immunohistochemical localization of protein precursors to human axillary odors in apocrine glands and secretions. Archives Dermatology. 1998; 134:813-818.

 

12.  Yan W, Sunavala G, Rosenzweig S, Dasso M, Brand JG, Spielman AI. Bitter taste transduced by PLCb2-dependent rise inIP3 and a-gustducin-dependent fall in cyclic nucleotides. American Journal Physiology. 2001; 280: C742-751.

 

13.  Li Y, DeFatta R, Anthony B, Sunavala G, De BenedettiA. A translationally regulated Tousled kinase phosphorylates histone H3 and confers radio resistance when overexpressed. Oncogene. 2001; 20: 726-738.

 

14.  Sunavala G, Yan W, Brand JG, Spielman AI (2002) Rapid kinetic measurements in chemosensory systems. In: Methods in Chemosensory Research. Chapter 9, pg 207-238. Eds. Simon SA and Nicolelis MAL (CRC Series: Methods and New Frontiers in Neuroscience, Eds. Simon SA and Nicolelis MAL) CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.

 

15.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Li Y, Williams B, De Benedetti A. Dominant negative mutant of TLK1, causes chromosome missegregation and aneuploidy in normal breast epithelial cells. BMC Cell Biology. 2003; 4:16.

 

16.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Fowler M, De Benedetti A. Translation of the radio resistance kinase TLK1B is induced by gamma-irradiation through activation of mTOR and phosphorylation of 4E-BP1. BMC Molecular Biology. 2004; 5:1.

 

17.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Balakrishnan S, Sen S, Nuthalapaty S, De Benedetti A.The radio resistance kinase TLK1B protects the cells by promoting repair of double strand breaks. BMC Molecular Biology2005; 6:19.

 

18.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Van Dyke M. Combinatorial identification of a novelconsensus sequence for the covalent DNA-binding polyamide Tallimustine. Biochemistry 2005; 44: 2510-2522.

 

19.  Van Dyke MW, Van Dyke N, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. REPSA: General combinatorial approach for identifying preferred ligand-DNA binding sequences. Methods 2007; 42:118-127.

 

20.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, De Benedetti A. Tousled homolog, TLK1, binds and phosphorylates Rad9 – TLK1 acts as a molecular chaperone in DNA repair. DNA Repair (Amst) 2009; 8: 87-102. doi:10.1016/j.dnarep.2008.09.005. Epub 2008 Nov 5.

 

21.  Palaniyandi S, Odaka Y, Green W, Abreo F, Caldito G, DeBenedetti A, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Adenoviral delivery of Tousled kinase for the protection salivary glands against ionizing radiation damage. Gene Therapy 2011; 18: 275-282. doi: 10.1038/gt.2010.142.Epub 2010 Nov 4.

 

22.  Ronald S, Sunavala-DossabhoyG, Adams L, Williams J, DeBenedetti A. The expression of Toulsed kinase in CaP cell lines and its relation to radiation and DSB repair. Prostate2011; 71: 1367-1373. doi:10.1002/pros.21358. Epub 2011 Feb 14.

 

23.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Palaniyandi S, Clark C, Nathan CO, Abreo FW, CalditoG. Analysis of eIF4E and eIF4E-BP mRNAs in head and neck cancer. Laryngoscope 2011; 121: 2136-2141. doi: 10.1002/lary.22144. Epub 2011 Sep 6.

 

24.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Palaniyandi S, Richardson C, De Benedetti A, Schrott L, Caldito G. TAT-mediated delivery of Tousled protein to salivary glands protects against radiation-induced hypofunction. International Journal Radiation Oncology Biology Physics. 2012; 84: 257-265. doi:10.1016/j.ijrobp.2011.10.064. Epub 2012 Jan 26.

 

25.  Shanmugam PS, Dayton R, Abreo FW, Caldito G, Klein R, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Recombinant AAV9-TLK1B administration ameliorates fractionated radiation-induced xerostomia. Human Gene Therapy. 2013; 24: 604-612. doi:10.1089/hum.2012.235.

 

26.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Abreo F, Timiri Shanmugam PS, Caldito G. Histopathologic grading of oral mucositis. Oral Diseases. 2015; 21: 355-360. doi: 10.1111/odi.12287.Epub 2014 Sep 30.

 

27.  Nair RP, Zheng C, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Retro-ductal submandibular gland instillation and localized fractionated irradiation in a rat model of salivaryhypofunction. JoVE. 2016; 110. doi:10.3791/53785.

 

28.  Timiri Shanmugam PS, Nair RP, De Benedetti A, CalditoG, Abreo F, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Tousled kinase activator, gallic acid, promotes homologous recombinational repair and suppresses radiation cytotoxicity in salivary gland cells. Free Radical Biology Medicine. 2016; 93:217-26. doi: 10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2015.12.029. E pub 2016 Feb 15.

 

29.  Timiri Shanmugam PS, Nair RP, De Benedetti A, Caldito G, Abreo F, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G.DNA damage response and repair data with pharmacological modulators of Tousled.Data Brief. 2016; 7: 1073–1077. doi:  10.1016/j.dib.2016.03.075

 

30.  Passineau M, Baum BJ, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. (2017) Salivary gland gene therapy. In: Regeneration of Salivary Glands. Ed. Carpenter G.  World Scientific Publishing Co Inc. July 2019. ISBN:978-981-3143-43-2. doi: 10.1142/10128.

 

31.  Nair RP, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Promising gene therapeutics for salivary gland radiotoxicity. AIMS Medical Science. 2016; 3: 329-344. doi:10.3934/medsci.2016.4.329.

 

32.  Orchard E, Green W, Nair RP, Abreo F, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Sildenafil transiently delays early alveolar healing of tooth extraction sockets. Clinics Surgery. 2017; 2:1458.

 

33.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Radioactive iodine: An unappreciated threat to salivary gland function. Oral Diseases.2018; 24:198-201. doi: 10.1111/odi.12774.

 

34.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Preserving salivary gland physiology against genotoxic damage - the Tousled way. Oral Diseases.2018; 24:1390-1398. doi:10.1111/odi.128361111/
odi.12836.

 

35.  Lin LC, Elkashty O, Ramamoorthi M, Trinh N, Liu Y, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Pranzatelli T, Michael DG, Chivasso C, Perret J, Chiorini JA, Delporte C, Tran SD.Cross-contamination of the human salivary gland HSG cell line with HeLa cells:A STR analysis study. Oral Diseases. 2018;24:1477-1483. doi: 10.1111/odi.12920.

 

36.  Nair RP, Timiri Shanmugam PS, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Discretionary transduction of MMP-sensitized Tousled in head and neck cancer. Molecular Therapeutics - Oncolytics. 2019; 14:57-65. doi:10.1016/j.omto.2019.02.003.

 

37.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Smart cell-specific protein therapeutics for head and neck cancer. Oral Diseases. 2020; 26:3-5.doi:10.1111/odi.13203.

 

38.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Spielman AI. Restructuring dental education in a post-COVID-19 era. Oral Diseases. 2022 Apr; 28Suppl 1:920-921. doi: 10.1111/odi.13580.

 

39.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Renin-Angiotensin II-Aldosterone axis in SARS-CoV-2-associated xerostomia. Oral Diseases 2022 Apr; 28Suppl 1(Suppl 1):977-978. doi: 10.1111/odi.13594.

 

40.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Spielman AI. Pandemics and education: a historical perspective. J Dental Education 2021; 85(6):741-746.doi: 10.1002/jdd.12615.

 

41.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Disorder at the start: The contribution of dysregulated translation initiation to cancer therapy resistance. Frontiers in Oral Health Dec; 2:765931. doi: 10.3389/froh.2021.765931.

 

42.  Coletta R, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Orofacial clefts: A compendium on non-syndromic cleft lip and cleft palate. Oral Diseases 2022Jul; 28(5):1301-1304. doi: 10.1111/odi.14238.

 

43.  Xu W, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Spielman AI. Chemo sensory loss in COVID-19. Oral Diseases 2022 Nov; 28 Suppl 2:2337-2346.doi: 10.1111/odi.14300.

 

44.  Umarji HR, Parikh N, Deniz S, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G. Dr. Ani John (1950-2007): An exemplary dental educator and administrator andthe first female President of the Indian Academy of Oral Medicine andRadiology. Oral Diseases. 2023 Mar;29 Suppl 1:893-897. doi: 10.1111/odi.14519.

 

45.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Petti S. Effect of recombinant human thyroid stimulating hormone on long-term salivary gland dysfunction in thyroid cancer patients treated with radioactive iodine. A systematic review. Oral Oncology. 2023 Jan; 136:106280. doi:10.1016/j.oraloncology.2022.106280. Epub 2022 Dec 14.

 

46.  Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Buduneli N. Women pioneers in dental sciences. Oral Diseases. 2023 Mar;29 Suppl 1:857-859. doi:10.1111/odi.14534.

 

47.  Lodi G, Sunavala-Dossabhoy G, Petti S. In defence of open scientific discussion. Reply to McMahon Article. Oral Diseases. 2023May; 29: 1887-1888. doi: 10.1111/odi.14560.

ORCID:0000-0001-9204-6513

LCRC Faculty

Missy Wooley
Population Sciences
Louisiana Tech University
Asim Abdel-Mageed DVM PhD
Therapeutics & Diagnostics
Tulane University School of Medicine
Ramsy Abdelghani, MD
Therapeutics & Diagnostics
Tulane University School of Medicine
Jiri Adamec, PhD
Therapeutics & Diagnostics
LSU Health - New Orleans
Sara Al-Dahir, PharmD, PhD, MPH
Population Sciences
Xavier University
Suresh K. Alahari PhD
Therapeutics & Diagnostics
LSU Health - New Orleans
Ashad Alam, MD, PhD
Tumor Biology
Ochsner Health
Muralidharan Anbalagan, PhD
Therapeutics & Diagnostics
Tulane University School of Medicine
Wayne L. Backes PhD
Tumor Biology
LSU Health - New Orleans