My research mainly focuses on cancer and the molecular mechanisms underlying diseases. I conduct cancer research by utilizing established cancer cell lines or mouse models to study tumor initiation, progression, and treatment. My research involves various techniques such as primary culture, tumor inoculation, histopathology, immunohistochemistry, PCR, qRT-PCR, mutation analysis, Western Blotting, whole mount analysis of mammary glands, carcinogens treatment, cytokine analysis, apoptosis assay, autophagy flux analysis, and other molecular techniques.
EDUCATION
PhD Molecular Pathology / Institute of Pathology, Jena Hospital University, Jena / Germany
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Cancer, Cancer Biology, Molecular Oncology, Autophagy, Apoptosis, Gene Expression, Experimental Oncology, Molecular Carcinogenesis, Cancer Cell Signaling
IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL STUDY OF CD44 AND OCT3/4 EXPRESSION IN COLORECTAL CANCER SAMPLES OF IRAQI PATIENTS NOAH A. MAHMOOD, FIRAS S. SALAH, ZAYNAB S. ABDULGHANY, KHANSAA R. AL-SAADI, HAYDER A. HASSOON, et al. Experimental Oncology, 2025 Background. Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancer types diagnosed globally with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Several biomarkers are associated with cancer stem cells present in various solid tumors, including CRC. Aim. This study aimed to investigate the expression of CD44 and OCT3/4 cancer stem cell markers in samples of CRC biopsies and benign colon tumors of Iraqi patients using the immunohistochemical (IHC) technique. Materials and Methods. The IHC analysis was used to determine CD44 and OCT3/4 expression levels in tissue samples of 42 CRC cases and 18 benign neoplasms. Results. The findings revealed a significant increase in high expression levels of CD44 in CRC cases (81%) vs 23% in benign tumor tissue samples. Similarly, a significant rise in OCT3/4 expression was observed in CRC cases (66%) compared to benign tumors (29%). The expression levels of CD44 and OCT3/4 were significantly associated with the CRC stages. Conclusion. Our data indicated that CD44 and OCT3/4 may play a role in CRC progression.
Effect of temperature changes on the expression of cancer stem cell protein CD-44 and TAU protein in AMGM-5 cancer cell line: An immunocytochemistry study Zaynab Saad Abdulghany International Journal of Medical Biochemistry, 2025 Sur-Objectives: Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) has long been one of the most common and particularly invasive malignant gliomas. High-grade gliomas are highly prone to relapse and associated with poor prognosis. This study tests the hypothesis that hyper-thermal conditions could influence TAU and CD-44 protein expression by increasing temperature in glioblastoma cancer cell line culture. Methods: AMGM cancer cells were cultured and maintained under normal growth conditions, then separated into two groups: one group was cultured at 37°C, and the other at 40°C. After 24 hours of growth, cells underwent immunocyto-chemistry (ICC) to visualize the localization of TAU and CD-44 markers. Results: The results show that fewer AMGM cells remained stable enough to grow at 40°C; these cells lost their fusiform shape and became spherical compared to cells grown under normal conditions. Additionally, an increase in microen-vironmental temperature significantly affected TAU protein expression in the nucleus of AMGM cells, with a 71.4% increase at 40°C. In contrast, the expression of CD-44, typically expressed on the cell membrane of AMGM cells, decreased by 42.9% at 40°C. Conclusion: Changes in the microenvironment may affect glioblastoma cell line development by influencing the cancer stem cell marker CD-44 and the microtubule-stabilizing protein TAU. These markers could serve as potential targets for the treatment and prevention of glioblastoma.
Autophagy induction using Resveratrol enhances the anti-cancer efficacy of Doxazosin in breast cancer cells Ali Sami Ahmed Alhayali, Waseem Ali Hasan, Firas Subhi Salah Bionatura, 2023 The combination of anti-cancer drugs improves effectiveness compared to the mono-therapy scenario by targeting key pathways synergistically or in an additive way. Doxazosin (DOX) and Resveratrol (RES) are reported to have an anti-cancer impact against different cancer cells. Aim: To evaluate the anti-cancer properties of Doxazosin and Resveratrol, each alone or in combination, in inhibiting breast cancer cell proliferation. Methods: MCF-7 cancer cells were seeded to a confluent monolayer and treated with 100, 50, 25, 12.5, 6.25, and 3.12 µM of each drug alone and as a combination. Cytotoxicity was evaluated using dimethyl thiazolyl diphenyl tetrazolium salt (MTT) assay and colony formation assay. The immunocytochemistry technique was conducted to evaluate caspase-3 and GABARAP expression. Results: All the drugs have a significant effect on cancer cell proliferation. The combination treatment of Doxazosin-Resveratrol has a more cytotoxic effect than each drug alone, as well as in colony formation of MCF-7 cancer cells. In combination treatment, caspase-3 had a higher expression pattern than other treatments. Resveratrol treatment elevated GABARAP expression in cancer cells, indicating the induction of the autophagy process. Conclusion: Although each drug has its characteristic result of a cytotoxic effect, the combination of Doxazosin and Resveratrol synergizes the inhibition of MCF-7 cancer cell proliferation. Keywords: Resveratrol; Doxazosin; combination; MCF-7; Autophagy.
EVALUATION OF ANTIOXIDANTS ENZYMES AND AUTOPHAGY GENES IN THE BLOOD OF IRAQI SMOKER VOLUNTEERS Noah A. Mahmood, Firas S. Salah, Zaynab S. Abdulghany Wiadomosci Lekarskie Warsaw Poland 1960, 2023 The aim: In this study, we investigated the expression level of LC3A, LC3B, Beclin1, and ATG5 in the blood of smokers as well as non-smokers volunteers. On the other hand, total antioxidant status (TAS), catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in the same individuals were measured. Material and methods: About 5 ml of blood was collected from 55 smokers (workers in a coffee shop) and 24 non-smokers volunteers. The blood was divided into two parts: 2.5 ml collected in a K2-EDTA tube that was used for RNA extraction to estimate the autophagic genes including LC3A, LC3B, Beclin1, and ATG5 by using of qRT-PCR and for hematological studies. The other part – was centrifuged to obtain the serum samples to measure TAS, CAT, and SOD by spectrophotometrical method. Results: The fold expression of autophagy genes was significantly increased in the blood of smokers as compared to non-smokers’ individuals at (p ≤ 0.05). On the other hand, TAS, CAT, and SOD were significantly increased in smokers as compared with non-smokers individuals at (p ≤ 0.05). The hematological study revealed increased hemoglobin concentration and hematocrit in the smoker’s blood as compared to nonsmokers’ individuals. No significant variation was found in other hematological parameters in the smoker’s individual as compared to non-smokers at (p ≤ 0.05). Conclusions: Our results indicate that smoke exposure may induce autophagy genes through increased antioxidant status and antioxidant enzymes, and the better way to be healthy is to quitting smoking.
Interleukin-17A is involved in mechanical hyperalgesia but not in the severity of murine antigen-induced arthritis Matthias Ebbinghaus, Gabriel Natura, Gisela Segond von Banchet, Susanne Hensellek, Martin Böttcher, et al. Scientific Reports, 2017 Interleukin-17A (IL-17A) is considered an important pro-inflammatory cytokine but its importance in joint diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is unclear. It has also been reported that IL-17A may induce pain but it is unclear whether pro-inflammatory and pro-nociceptive effects are linked. Here we studied in wild type (WT) and IL-17A knockout (IL-17AKO) mice inflammation and hyperalgesia in antigen-induced arthritis (AIA). We found that the severity and time course of AIA were indistinguishable in WT and IL-17AKO mice. Furthermore, the reduction of inflammation by sympathectomy, usually observed in WT mice, was preserved in IL-17AKO mice. Both findings suggest that IL-17A is redundant in AIA pathology. However, in the course of AIA IL-17AKO mice showed less mechanical hyperalgesia than WT mice indicating that IL-17A contributes to pain even if it is not crucial for arthritis pathology. In support for a role of IL-17A and other members of the IL-17 family in the generation of pain we found that sensory neurones in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) express all IL-17 receptor subtypes. Furthermore, in isolated DRG neurones most IL-17 isoforms increased tetrodotoxin- (TTX-) resistant sodium currents which indicate a role of IL-17 members in inflammation-evoked sensitization of sensory nociceptive neurones.
Systematic evaluation of the biological variance within the Raman based colorectal tissue diagnostics Nadine Vogler, Thomas Bocklitz, Firas Subhi Salah, Carsten Schmidt, Rolf Bräuer, et al. Journal of Biophotonics, 2016 Being among the most common cancers worldwide screening and early diagnosis of colorectal cancer is of high interest for the health system, the patients and for research. Raman microspectroscopy as a label‐free, non‐invasive and non‐destructive technique is a promising tool for an early diagnosis. However, to ensure a reliable diagnosis specially designed statistical analysis workflows are required. Several statistical approaches have been introduced leading to varying results in the overall accuracy, sensitivity and specificity. In this study a systematic evaluation of different statistical analysis approaches has been performed using a colon cancer mouse model with genotypic identical individuals. Based on the inter‐individual Raman spectral variances a measure for the biological variance can be estimated. By applying a leave‐one‐individual‐out cross‐validation a clinically relevant discrimination of healthy tissue versus adenoma and carcinoma with an accuracy of 95% is shown. Furthermore, the transfer of a model from tissue to biopsy specimen is demonstrated.
Tumor suppression in mice lacking GABARAP, an atg8/lc3 family member implicated in autophagy, is associated with alterations in cytokine secretion and cell death F S Salah, M Ebbinghaus, V Y Muley, Z Zhou, K R D Al-Saadi, et al. Cell Death and Disease, 2016 GABARAP belongs to an evolutionary highly conserved gene family that has a fundamental role in autophagy. There is ample evidence for a crosstalk between autophagy and apoptosis as well as the immune response. However, the molecular details for these interactions are not fully characterized. Here, we report that the ablation of murine GABARAP, a member of the Atg8/LC3 family that is central to autophagosome formation, suppresses the incidence of tumor formation mediated by the carcinogen DMBA and results in an enhancement of the immune response through increased secretion of IL-1β, IL-6, IL-2 and IFN-γ from stimulated macrophages and lymphocytes. In contrast, TGF-β1 was significantly reduced in the serum of these knockout mice. Further, DMBA treatment of these GABARAP knockout mice reduced the cellularity of the spleen and the growth of mammary glands through the induction of apoptosis. Gene expression profiling of mammary glands revealed significantly elevated levels of Xaf1, an apoptotic inducer and tumor-suppressor gene, in knockout mice. Furthermore, DMBA treatment triggered the upregulation of pro-apoptotic (Bid, Apaf1, Bax), cell death (Tnfrsf10b, Ripk1) and cell cycle inhibitor (Cdkn1a, Cdkn2c) genes in the mammary glands. Finally, tumor growth of B16 melanoma cells after subcutaneous inoculation was inhibited in GABARAP-deficient mice. Together, these data provide strong evidence for the involvement of GABARAP in tumorigenesis in vivo by delaying cell death and its associated immune-related response.
Anti-cancer effect of camptothecin and chloroquine on the inhibition of lung cancer and breast cancer cell proliferation DH Ismael, R Saleem, FS Salah, BS Albhadly, R Hamid, S Shnain Iraqi Journal of Cancer and Medical Genetics 18 (2) , 2025 2025
Expression and significance of ALDH1A1, CD44, and OCT3/4 stem cell markers in glioblastoma tissues: an immunohistochemical study in Iraqi patients ZS Abdulghany, NA Mahmood, FS Salah, K Rana Cellular and Molecular Biology 71 (11), 61-67 , 2025 2025
IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL STUDY OF CD44 AND OCT3/4 EXPRESSION IN COLORECTAL CANCER SAMPLES OF IRAQI PATIENTS NA MAHMOOD, FS SALAH, ZS ABDULGHANY, KR AL-SAADI, ... Experimental Oncology 47 (1), 44-50 , 2025 2025 Citations: 1
Effect of temperature changes on the expression of cancer stem cell protein CD-44 and TAU protein in AMGM-5 cancer cell line: An immunocytochemistry study ZS Abdulghany, NA Mahmood, NM Kareem, FS Salah International Journal of Medical Biochemistry 8 (1), 21 , 2025 2025 Citations: 2
Effect of Iraqi Apricot Seed Extract on Some Physiological Parameters in Male Rats NSK Mohammad, AH Ali, FS Salah Ibn AL-Haitham Journal For Pure and Applied Sciences 37 (4), 129-145 , 2024 2024 Citations: 1
Autophagic genes and antioxidant status during doxorubicin therapy under temperature-stressed conditions in breast cancer cells FS Salah, AT Tawfeeq, NA Mahmood, KR Al-Saadi, TH Jaafar, ... Gene Reports 36, 102009 , 2024 2024
Autophagy Modulators Enhance Antiproliferative Effect of Ibuprofen on Lung Cancer Cells. FS Salah, RT Hamid Iraqi Journal of Cancer & Medical Genetics 17 , 2024 2024
Prunus armeniaca Seeds Extract Inhibits Cell Proliferation and Enhances Cell Death in Cancer Cells NSK Mohammad, AH Ali, LDFS Salah Journal of Survey in Fisheries Sciences 10 (1S), 4178-4195 , 2023 2023 Citations: 4
IN VITRO EVALUATION OF THE EFFECT OF A BOTANICAL COMBINATION ON CANCER CELL CONTROL: IN VITRO EVALUATION OF THE EFFECT OF A BOTANICAL COMBINATION ON CANCER CELL CONTROL MS Hamdia, HA Sundus, SS Firas, AS Khansaa Iraqi Journal of Market Research and Consumer Protection 15 (2), 1-14 , 2023 2023 Citations: 1
Autophagy induction using Resveratrol enhances the anti-cancer efficacy of Doxazosin in breast cancer cells. ASA Alhayali, WA Hasan, FS Salah Bionatura 8 (4) , 2023 2023 Citations: 1
EVALUATION OF ANTIOXIDANTS ENZYMES AND AUTOPHAGY GENES IN THE BLOOD OF IRAQI SMOKER VOLUNTEERS NA Mahmood, FS Salah, ZS Abdulghany INDEXED IN PUBMED/MEDLINE, SCOPUS, EMBASE, EBSCO, INDEX COPERNICUS, POLISH … , 2023 2023 Citations: 1
The Anti-Cancer Synergistic Effect Of Colchicine On Cancer Cells Proliferation (In Vitro Study) And Chloroquine SSB Sidqiy, W Ali, F subhy Al-Taiy Journal of Advanced Sciences and Nanotechnology 1 (4), 158-172 , 2022 2022
Reduction of Tumor Formation in GABARAP Knockout Mice is Associated with Absence of H-ras Mutation FS Salah, I Petersen Iraqi Journal of Cancer and Medical Genetics 15 (1), 7-14 , 2022 2022
Interleukin-17A is involved in mechanical hyperalgesia but not in the severity of murine antigen-induced arthritis M Ebbinghaus, G Natura, G Segond von Banchet, S Hensellek, ... Scientific reports 7 (1), 10334 , 2017 2017 Citations: 59
Pseudo-HE images derived from CARS/TPEF/SHG multimodal imaging in combination with Raman-spectroscopy as a pathological screening tool TW Bocklitz, FS Salah, N Vogler, S Heuke, O Chernavskaia, C Schmidt, ... BMC cancer 16, 1-11 , 2016 2016 Citations: 104
Systematic evaluation of the biological variance within the Raman based colorectal tissue diagnostics N Vogler, T Bocklitz, F Subhi Salah, C Schmidt, R Bräuer, T Cui, ... Journal of biophotonics 9 (5), 533-541 , 2016 2016 Citations: 26
Tumor suppression in mice lacking GABARAP, an Atg8/LC3 family member implicated in autophagy, is associated with alterations in cytokine secretion and cell death FS Salah, M Ebbinghaus, VY Muley, Z Zhou, KRD Al-Saadi, ... Cell death & disease 7 (4), e2205-e2205 , 2016 2016 Citations: 53
M. S4hmitt, A. Stallmach, I. Petersen, J. Popp TW Bocklitz, FS Salah, N Vogler, S Heuke, O Chernavskaia, C Schmidt, ... BMC Cancer 16 (534), 1-11 , 2016 2016 Citations: 8
Impact of gamma-aminobutyric acid receptor-associated protein (GABARAP) on carcinogen-induced tumorigenesis FS Salah Jena, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Diss., 2015 , 2015 2015
Study on Some Epithelial Skin Tumors in Human Khalil H. Al-Jeboori, Nahi Y. Yaseen, Firas Subhi Salah Iraqi Journal of Cancer and Medical Genetics 8 (1), 79-87 , 2015 2015
MOST CITED SCHOLAR PUBLICATIONS
Pseudo-HE images derived from CARS/TPEF/SHG multimodal imaging in combination with Raman-spectroscopy as a pathological screening tool TW Bocklitz, FS Salah, N Vogler, S Heuke, O Chernavskaia, C Schmidt, ... BMC cancer 16, 1-11 , 2016 2016 Citations: 104
Interleukin-17A is involved in mechanical hyperalgesia but not in the severity of murine antigen-induced arthritis M Ebbinghaus, G Natura, G Segond von Banchet, S Hensellek, ... Scientific reports 7 (1), 10334 , 2017 2017 Citations: 59
Tumor suppression in mice lacking GABARAP, an Atg8/LC3 family member implicated in autophagy, is associated with alterations in cytokine secretion and cell death FS Salah, M Ebbinghaus, VY Muley, Z Zhou, KRD Al-Saadi, ... Cell death & disease 7 (4), e2205-e2205 , 2016 2016 Citations: 53
Systematic evaluation of the biological variance within the Raman based colorectal tissue diagnostics N Vogler, T Bocklitz, F Subhi Salah, C Schmidt, R Bräuer, T Cui, ... Journal of biophotonics 9 (5), 533-541 , 2016 2016 Citations: 26
Update from the soft tissue tumour registry in Jena I Petersen, B Günther, K Mildner, F Subhi, T Knösel, A Altendorf-Hofmann, ... Der Pathologe 32 (1), 40-46 , 2011 2011 Citations: 19
Photodynamic Action of low power He-Ne laser on photosensitized human Hep-2 and AMN3 cell lines with Hematoporphyrin derivative in vitro AS Al-Khafaji, AMH Al-Shamery, F Subhi Iraqi Journal of Cancer and Medical Genetics 3 (1), 54-60 , 2010 2010 Citations: 11
M. S4hmitt, A. Stallmach, I. Petersen, J. Popp TW Bocklitz, FS Salah, N Vogler, S Heuke, O Chernavskaia, C Schmidt, ... BMC Cancer 16 (534), 1-11 , 2016 2016 Citations: 8
Prunus armeniaca Seeds Extract Inhibits Cell Proliferation and Enhances Cell Death in Cancer Cells NSK Mohammad, AH Ali, LDFS Salah Journal of Survey in Fisheries Sciences 10 (1S), 4178-4195 , 2023 2023 Citations: 4
Effect of temperature changes on the expression of cancer stem cell protein CD-44 and TAU protein in AMGM-5 cancer cell line: An immunocytochemistry study ZS Abdulghany, NA Mahmood, NM Kareem, FS Salah International Journal of Medical Biochemistry 8 (1), 21 , 2025 2025 Citations: 2
IMMUNOHISTOCHEMICAL STUDY OF CD44 AND OCT3/4 EXPRESSION IN COLORECTAL CANCER SAMPLES OF IRAQI PATIENTS NA MAHMOOD, FS SALAH, ZS ABDULGHANY, KR AL-SAADI, ... Experimental Oncology 47 (1), 44-50 , 2025 2025 Citations: 1
Effect of Iraqi Apricot Seed Extract on Some Physiological Parameters in Male Rats NSK Mohammad, AH Ali, FS Salah Ibn AL-Haitham Journal For Pure and Applied Sciences 37 (4), 129-145 , 2024 2024 Citations: 1
IN VITRO EVALUATION OF THE EFFECT OF A BOTANICAL COMBINATION ON CANCER CELL CONTROL: IN VITRO EVALUATION OF THE EFFECT OF A BOTANICAL COMBINATION ON CANCER CELL CONTROL MS Hamdia, HA Sundus, SS Firas, AS Khansaa Iraqi Journal of Market Research and Consumer Protection 15 (2), 1-14 , 2023 2023 Citations: 1
Autophagy induction using Resveratrol enhances the anti-cancer efficacy of Doxazosin in breast cancer cells. ASA Alhayali, WA Hasan, FS Salah Bionatura 8 (4) , 2023 2023 Citations: 1
EVALUATION OF ANTIOXIDANTS ENZYMES AND AUTOPHAGY GENES IN THE BLOOD OF IRAQI SMOKER VOLUNTEERS NA Mahmood, FS Salah, ZS Abdulghany INDEXED IN PUBMED/MEDLINE, SCOPUS, EMBASE, EBSCO, INDEX COPERNICUS, POLISH … , 2023 2023 Citations: 1
Anti-cancer effect of camptothecin and chloroquine on the inhibition of lung cancer and breast cancer cell proliferation DH Ismael, R Saleem, FS Salah, BS Albhadly, R Hamid, S Shnain Iraqi Journal of Cancer and Medical Genetics 18 (2) , 2025 2025
Expression and significance of ALDH1A1, CD44, and OCT3/4 stem cell markers in glioblastoma tissues: an immunohistochemical study in Iraqi patients ZS Abdulghany, NA Mahmood, FS Salah, K Rana Cellular and Molecular Biology 71 (11), 61-67 , 2025 2025
Autophagic genes and antioxidant status during doxorubicin therapy under temperature-stressed conditions in breast cancer cells FS Salah, AT Tawfeeq, NA Mahmood, KR Al-Saadi, TH Jaafar, ... Gene Reports 36, 102009 , 2024 2024
Autophagy Modulators Enhance Antiproliferative Effect of Ibuprofen on Lung Cancer Cells. FS Salah, RT Hamid Iraqi Journal of Cancer & Medical Genetics 17 , 2024 2024
The Anti-Cancer Synergistic Effect Of Colchicine On Cancer Cells Proliferation (In Vitro Study) And Chloroquine SSB Sidqiy, W Ali, F subhy Al-Taiy Journal of Advanced Sciences and Nanotechnology 1 (4), 158-172 , 2022 2022
Reduction of Tumor Formation in GABARAP Knockout Mice is Associated with Absence of H-ras Mutation FS Salah, I Petersen Iraqi Journal of Cancer and Medical Genetics 15 (1), 7-14 , 2022 2022