2025
"Research is the distance between an idea and its realization."
- David Sarnoff
Repurposing and Validating the FDA-approved UDP-Glucose Ceramide Glucosyltransferase (UGCG) Inhibitor “Eliglustat” as a Potential Intervention for Breast and Oral Cancer Immunotherapy.
This project aims to repurpose Eliglustat, an FDA-approved inhibitor of UDP-glucose ceramide glucosyltransferase (UGCG), as a novel immunotherapeutic for breast and oral cancers. UGCG is a key enzyme in glycosphingolipid biosynthesis, converting ceramide into glucosylceramide, a mechanism that regulates cell survival, membrane organization, and immune signaling. Dysregulation of this pathway in cancer cells leads to tumour progression, immune evasion, and resistance to therapy.
By inhibiting UGCG, Eliglustat is expected to increase intracellular ceramide levels while reducing immunosuppressive glycosphingolipids, thereby sensitizing cancer cells to immune-mediated killing. The project also examines whether Eliglustat enhances immunogenic cell death, improves antigen presentation, and boosts anti-tumour immune activation in breast and oral cancer models. Ultimately, idea is to establish UGCG inhibition as a viable lipid-targeted immunotherapy approach, offering a new, safe, and cost-effective strategy to improve treatment outcomes for patients with breast and oral cancers. This project is supported by the Indian Council for Medical Research
