(March 13, 2024) Atlanta based Dr E. Shyam P. Reddy, Professor and Director of the Cancer Biology Program in the Department of OB/GYN at Morehouse School of Medicine, has devoted three decades of his life to his purpose – finding a cure for cancer. Driven by a deep passion for this mission, he has made significant contributions to cancer research, including the discovery of new genes.
Our passion is to find a cure for cancer. Nothing great can be achieved without passion.
Dr Reddy mentions on his website
Dr E. Shyam P. Reddy
Dr Shyam Reddy and his team’s research has led to the development of several groundbreaking drugs targeting various cancers such as prostate cancer, Ewing Sarcoma, breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, ovarian cancer, cervical cancer, and colorectal cancer. Patents for these drugs are currently in progress.
We are on the brink of a breakthrough in cancer research. This discovery will have a significant impact on multiple types of cancer.
Dr Reddy emphasises on his website
In recognition of his tireless efforts in addressing one of humanity’s greatest crises, the scientist has received numerous awards throughout his career. An outstanding achievement came his way with the $1.25 million GCC Distinguished Cancer Scholar Award from the Governor of Georgia.
In addition to his role at Morehouse School of Medicine, Dr Reddy holds adjunct professorships at the Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University, The University of Alabama, Birmingham, and the Department of Biology at Georgia State University.
Global recognitions
Dr Shyam Reddy has been recognised with several prestigious awards for his outstanding contributions to cancer research. These include the Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Gold Medal at the House of Lords in the UK Parliament, the Mother Teresa Excellence Award by the Integrated Council for Socio-Economic Progress, and the globally renowned Lifetime Achievement Award from IIFS in New Delhi, among others.
Left to Right: Dr Robert Dean, Dr David McLeod, Dr E. Shyam P Reddy, Dr Stephen Brassell, Dr Shiv Srivastava
Korn Dabbransi, former Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand, honoured him with the International Gold Star Award for his exceptional achievements in science and medicine on both national and international levels. He was honoured with the Bharat Award for Excellence, Glory of India Award and Bharat Gaurav Award by the India International Friendship Society in New Delhi. Furthermore, he has been recognized as a CPDR Distinguished Visiting Professor.
Early in his career, Dr Reddy had received accolades such as the INSA Young Scientist Award from the Prime Minister of India, the First Margaret Memorial Award in the UK, the Swebelius Cancer Research Award at Yale University, and the W.W Smith Trust Award.
Significant discoveries
In his tireless pursuit of conquering cancer, Dr Shyam Reddy has made significant strides in understanding the disease at a molecular level. As one of their notable achievements, Dr Reddy and his team has discovered and cloned 22 oncogenes, and meticulously studied their functions.
Particularly noteworthy are his discoveries of ERG -1, ERG-2, ERG-3, and human FLI-1 genes. His findings have been published in prestigious journals such as Science, PNAS, and Oncogene.
Dr E. Shyam P. Reddy with Georgia Cancer Centre for Excellence team
One of Dr Reddy’s groundbreaking findings – the identification of ERG (ETS Related Gene), a crucial member of the ETS family get implicated in various human cancers. Recently, the ERG gene has emerged as a key player in the majority of prostate cancers, with overexpression observed in 50-80 percent of cases.
Dr Reddy emphasises, “ERG serves as both a transcriptional factor and a stem cell factor, exerting its influence not only in prostate cancers but also in Ewing sarcomas and leukaemia.” His research has shed light on the intricate mechanisms that lead to the development of cancer cells and offers hope for more effective treatment strategies in the future.
Other notable genes discovered and studied by the scientist and his team includes human Fli-1, EWS-Fli-1, EWS-erg, TLS-erg, EWSb, TLS/FUS, ELK-1, BRCA1a, BRCA1b, BRCA2a and EWS-ATF-1.
Development of novel drugs
Dr Reddy who has developed several novel drugs for cancer treatment.
We love to collaborate with researchers and industrialists to make joint efforts in eradicating cancer.
Dr E. Shyam P. Reddy
He has discovered that ERG and Fli-1 proteins involved in several cancers are responsible for making cancer cells resistant to chemo-therapeutic agents. “We are targeting these onco-proteins or their functions to develop novel targeted therapeutic agents,” he remarks. “Using this strategy, we have developed several novel drugs that target prostate cancer, Ewing Sarcoma (paediatric cancer), breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, ovarian cancer, cervical cancer, colorectal cancer, etc.,” he mentions. “These drugs appear to be targeted therapeutic agents with no effect on normal cells,” he adds.
Dr E. Shyam P. Reddy with team members of Georgia Cancer Centre for Excellence
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Cancer research without funds is impossible
Driven by his passion to find a cure for cancer, Dr Reddy is actively engaged in securing grants and funding in addition to his research efforts. “We bring funds from NIH, DOD Agencies, SPORE grants etc. But we also need additional funding to take our passion to cure cancer to the next level,” he shares.
His research indicates that there are thousands of non-coding RNAs (30,000-40,000) in cells whose functions are yet to be discovered in the RNA-mediated cellular processes.
NIH, DOD and NSF need to dedicate 1-2 trillion dollars to identify RNA-mediated cellular functions.
Dr E. Shyam P. Reddy
Early years
Hailing from Andhra Pradesh, Dr Shyam Reddy did his schooling across various cities in the state, including Vijayawada, Guntur, Kurnool, and Anantapur. He pursued his BSc and MSc in Chemistry at Andhra University before embarking on his Ph.D. journey in the early 1980s. His doctoral research took place at the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad (under the direction of late Dr PM Bhargava) and the Max Plank Institute in Gottingen, Germany, with his viva-voce conducted at MIT, USA.
During this period, Dr Reddy made significant contributions to research, publishing multiple papers in the prestigious journal Nature, which garnered him the National Young Scientist award conferred by the then Prime Minister of India. The scientist furthered his training with postdoctoral studies in human genetics at Yale University, under the guidance of Prof. Sherman Weissman, a member of the National Academy of Sciences. His exceptional work during this time earned him the Swebelius Cancer Research Award twice.
Dr E. Shyam P. Reddy with his awards, gold medals and certificates
The Indian-origin scientist had begun his career as a research associate at Yale University and subsequently held positions at esteemed institutions such as NCI-Frederick, The Wistar Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Fels Institute for Cancer Research and Molecular Biology, Temple University School of Medicine, Kimmel Cancer Centre, Thomas Jefferson University, and Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia.
Significant associations
- Advisory board member of American Journal of Cancer Science, American Journal of Cancer Biology, and American Journal of Cancer Review
- Editorial board member of J. Haematology & Thromboembolic Diseases
- Member of Editorial board of Gastroenterology and Hepatology (GH), CSC Canada
- Member of editorial board of Scientific World Journal
Follow Dr E. Shyam P. Reddy on LinkedIn and his website
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