Journal of Cancer Science and Clinical Oncology

Dr. Anthony J. Berdis has over 25 years of research experience in studying the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which DNA polymerases replicate normal and damaged DNA. Of particular interest are the contributions made by Dr. Berdis’ group on studying the activity of terminal deoxynuleotidyl transferase (TdT) and developing nucleoside analogs to selectively inhibit its activity in certain forms of leukemia. Dr. Berdis is a tenured faculty member in the Department of Chemistry and the Center for Gene Regulation in Health and Disease at Cleveland State University (Cleveland, Ohio). He is an internationally recognized expert in the field of the synthesis and biological testing of novel nucleoside and nucleotide analogs as both therapeutic and diagnostic agents target DNA polymerase activity. To date, he has published over 60 research papers and several book chapters on topics including nucleoside analogs and their use as chemotherapeutic agents. His research has been funded by several federal agencies including the National Institutes of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Department of Defense. Dr. Berdis’ research has led to new models for how DNA polymerases misreplicate damaged DNA, a process known as translesion DNA synthesis. These models invoke the contribution of pi-electron density and nucleobase hydrophobicity as predominant factors influencing polymerase activity on damaged DNA. In recognition for his efforts in translesion DNA synthesis, Dr. Berdis was presented the Henry W. Menn Memorial Award from the Skin Cancer Foundation. In addition, Dr. Berdis holds several patents related to the development and applications of his novel nucleotide analogs as therapeutic and diagnostic agents Several of these patents are leveraged by Red5 Pharmaceuticals, LLC. Dr. Berdis received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of North Texas in 1993 under the direction of Professor Paul F. Cook, Ph.D., an international expert in the field of mechanistic enzymology. After receiving his doctoral degree, Dr. Berdis received an NIH sponsored postdoctoral fellowship to pursue research under the direction of Professor Stephen J. Benkovic, a world renowned enzymologist and bio-organic chemist. During his post-doctoral training, Dr. Berdis published extensively on several areas including the development of catalytic antibodies as novel biocatalysts, in vitro studies of the protein complexes involved in DNA replication, and epigenetic modifications catalyzed by DNA methyltransferases.

Chemical and biological studies of DNA replication, DNA repair, and nucleoside metabolism as it relates to cancer biology and the development of chemotherapeutic and diagnostic agents. Basic science endeavors focus on elucidating the molecular and cellular mechanisms for the maintenance of genomic fidelity utilizing kinetic methodologies, site-directed mutagenesis, and medicinal chemistry. Information from these basic science studies guide pre-clinical efforts to develop small molecule inhibitors of DNA polymerization and repair pathways that can be used to potentiate the effects of existing chemotherapeutic agents.