Dr. Ankit Mathur

Biography

Dr. Ankit Mathur earned his Ph.D. in Life Sciences from the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences (INMAS), DRDO, Delhi He has been actively engaged in various biomedical research projects, particularly in cancer stem cell biology and therapeutic resistance. Dr. Mathur has held several prestigious fellowships, including the DBT-Research Associateship (ACBR, University of Delhi), Maharishi Kanad Postdoctoral Fellowship (IoE, Delhi University, at DSPH), and the IPR Fellowship (Institute for Plasma Research, Gujarat). Dr. Mathur has seven years of teaching experience at ACBR, DU, where he taught MSc students in molecular biology, molecular oncology, and stem cell biology.

Dr. Ankit Mathur’s research focuses on cancer stem cell (CSC) biology, tumor heterogeneity, and the molecular mechanisms driving therapeutic resistance in solid and hematological cancers, particularly leukemia. He investigates how CSCs contribute to tumor initiation, progression, and recurrence through phenotypic transitions like EMT and MET, which promote plasticity and invasiveness. His work emphasizes the role of tumor suppressor genes, particularly p73 and ΔNp63, in regulating CSC maintenance, plasticity, and differentiation. Dr. Mathur employs 2D/3D culture models, CSC sorting, molecular profiling, and multicellular oncogenic transformation models to study the impact of low-dose radiation on CSC regulation and its effect on EMT/MET dynamics. He is focused on both therapeutic and diagnostic aspects of leukemia, aiming to discover novel strategies for treatment and early detection, while also working to develop strategies to target CSCs, reverse EMT, and prevent relapse in both leukemia and solid tumors.

Dr. Ankit Mathur was honored with the Global Scholar-in-Training Award (GSITA) by the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR) in 2024 for his outstanding research contributions. He also serves as an Ambassador for the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR).

Publications

• Mathur, A., Bareja, C., Mittal, M., Singh, A. and Saluja, D., 2024. Targeting Cellular Plasticity: Esculetin-Driven Reversion of Stemness and EMT Phenotype in Transforming Cells with Sequential p53/p73 Knockdowns.
• Mathur, A., Gangwar, A. and Saluja, D., 2023. Esculetin releases maturation arrest and induces terminal differentiation in leukemic blast cells by altering the Wnt signaling axes. BMC cancer, 23(1), p.387.
• Mathur, A., Kumar, A., Babu, B. and Chandna, S., 2018. In vitro mesenchymal-epithelial transition in NIH3T3 fibroblasts results in onset of low-dose radiation hypersensitivity coupled with attenuated connexin-43 response. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA)-General Subjects, 1862(3), pp.414-426.
• Mathur, A., Chinnadurai, V., Bhalla, P.J.S. and Chandna, S., 2023. Induction of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in thyroid follicular cells is associated with cell adhesion alterations and low-dose hyper-radiosensitivity. Tumor Biology, 45(1), pp.95-110.
• Bareja, C., Dwivedi, K., Uboveja, A., Mathur, A., Kumar, N. and Saluja, D., 2024. Identification and clinicopathological analysis of potential p73-regulated biomarkers in colorectal cancer via integrative bioinformatics. Scientific Reports, 14(1), p.9894.
• Khan, J., Bareja, C., Dwivedi, K., Mathur, A., Kumar, N. and Saluja, D., 2025. Identification and validation of a metabolic-related gene risk model predicting the prognosis of lung, colon, and breast cancers. Scientific Reports, 15(1), p.1374.
• Chandna, S., Dagur, R.S., Mathur, A., Natarajan, A.T., Harms-Ringdahl, M. and Haghdoost, S., 2014. Agarose overlay selectively improves macrocolony formation and radiosensitivity assessment in primary fibroblasts. International journal of radiation biology, 90(5), pp.401-406.

Papers Presented in Conference/Symposia

• An in vitro study of low-dose radiation sensitivity and cellular adhesion protein alterations during progressive stages of neoplastic transformation. Ankit Mathur, Sudhir Chandna. Young Scientist Award Presentation at 2nd Biennial Meeting of Society for Radiation Research (SRR). International Conference on Radiation Research: Impact on Human Healthand Environment (ICRR-HHE 2018), Hyderabad, India.
• Expression of low- dose hyper-radiosensitivity during progressive stages of neoplastic transformation and its association with cellular adhesion alterations. Ankit Mathur, Sudhir Chandna. Young Scientist Award Presentation in International Conferenceon Radiation Biology, November 2016, Chennai, India.
• Differentiation therapy: Esculetin as a potent agent to alter cellular plasticity of leukemic & solid tumor stem cells. Ankit Mathur, Daman Saluja. GSITA Awardee Presentation. AACR Annual Meeting. San Diego. April 2024.
• Esculetin-Mediated Differentiation in Leukemic and Solid Tumor Cancer Stem Cells: A Promising Frontier in Differentiation Therapy Strategies. Ankit Mathur, Daman Saluja. Annual Congress of the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR), Rotterdam, Netherlands, 10-13 June 2024.
• Induction of terminal differentiation in leukemic blast cells with esculetin: Role of “axis shifts” of Wnt signaling. Ankit Mathur, Daman Saluja. Oral Presentation at Frontiers in Biomedical Research 2022, University of Delhi, India.
• The Wnt axis switch in the induction of terminal differentiation in leukemic blast cells by a natural compound: Esculetin. Ankit Mathur, Daman Saluja. Invited Talk. 3rd World Congress on Translational Cancer Research and Immunotherapy [WCTCRI]. 3-5, February, 2023.
• The Non-Binary On: Off Switch of The Wnt Signaling Axes in Esculetin Mediated Leukemic Blast Cell Differentiation. Ankit Mathur, Daman Saluja Poster Presentation. 42nd Annual Conference of the Indian Association for Cancer Research, IACR 2023. Tata Memorial Centre, ACTREC Mumbai.
• Metabolic Reprogramming of Cancer Cells: Effect of Mutational Status of P53, A Tumor Suppressor Protein. Jiyauddina, Asad Ur Rehmana, Ankit Mathur, Naveen Kumar Bhatrajuc, Anannya Tulid ,Mohammad Askandar Iqbale , Daman Saluja. Poster Presentation (Awarded as Best Poster). 42nd Annual Conference of the Indian Association for Cancer Research, IACR 2023. Tata Memorial Centre, ACTREC Mumbai.
• Cross-talk between canonical/non-canonical wnt components upon esculetin mediated leukemic blast cell differentiation. Ankit Mathur, Aman Gangwar, Daman Saluja. Poster Presentation at Frontiers in Biomedical Research 2022, University of Delhi, India.
• Deciphering the role of p53 and its mutants in cancer cell metabolism. Jiyauddin, Asad Ur Rehman, Ankit Mathur, Himanshi Sharma, Ujjwal Kumar, Mohammad Askandar Iqbal, Daman Saluja. Poster Presentation at Frontiers in Biomedical Research 2022, University of Delhi, India.
• Esculetin suppresses EMT phenotype in colon carcinoma cells and induces differentiation in leukemic blast cells accompanying reduced cancer stem cell properties. Ankit Mathur, Daman Saluja. Poster Presentation at Virtual Keystone Symposia “Tissue Plasticity: Preservation and Alteration of Cellular Identity; October 2020.
• Interconversion of epithelial and mesenchymal phenotypes during oncogenic progression induces lowdose hyper-radiosensitivity and cellular adhesion alterations. Poster Presentation in Ankit Mathur, Sudhir Chandna. Poster presentation at 14th Indo-Australian Biotechnology Conference, ACTREC, October 2018, Navi Mumbai.
• Phenotypic microevolution of progressively transforming cells triggers onset of low dose hyperradiosensitivity and altered cell adhesion dynamics. Poster Presentation. Ankit Mathur, Sudhir Chandna. 11th Symposium on Frontiers in Biomedical Research | 19-21 February, 2018, University of Delhi, February, 2018. Delhi, India.
• Low-dose hyper-radiosensitivity at progressive stages of neoplastic transformation is associated with altered cell-cell interactions. Ankit Mathur, Sudhir Chandna. Oral Presentation in International Conference on Radiation Research: Impact on Human Health and Environment, February 2016, Navi Mumbai, India.
• Low-dose hyper-radiosensitivity and alterations in adhesion protein profiles during early stagesof cellular transformation. Ankit Mathur, Sudhir Chandna. Poster Presentation in 35th Annual Convention of Indian Association for Cancer Research, February 2015, Jaipur, India.
• Alteration in cell-cell interaction and cellular radiosensitivity during early stages of cellular transformation. Ankit Mathur, Sudhir Chandna. Poster Presentation in 41st Annual Meeting of the European Radiation Research Society, September 2014, Rhodes, Greece.
• Radiation–induced transformation and hyper-radiosensitivity survival response of transformed NIH3T3 murine fibroblast cell line. Ankit Mathur, Shalini Raik, Sudhir Chandna. Poster Presentation in International Conference on Radiation Biology (ICRB-2012) on Cosmic Radiation to Cancer Therapeutics and 11th Biennial Meeting of the Indian Society of Radiation Biology, November 2012, ACTREC, Tata Memorial Centre, Navi Mumbai, India.
• A novel agarose overlay technique for improving colony forming efficiency of primary fibroblast cells: A simpler alternative to feeder cell supplementation, Chandna S, Dagur RS, Mathur A, Natarajan AT, Harms-Ringdahl M and Haghdoost S. Poster Presentation in International Conference on Radiation Biology (ICRB-2012) on Cosmic Radiation to Cancer Therapeutics and 11 th Biennial Meeting of the Indian Society of Radiation Biology, November 2012, ACTREC, Tata Memorial Centre, Navi Mumbai, India.