Nasima Akhter - Bangladesh

Nasima Akhter - Bangladesh

Worked on small animals to develop new radiotracer for imaging of sigma receptors in brain that is involved in dementia (Alzheimer's disease), schizophrenia, and also in tumor proliferation. Worked on fetal screening for congenital anomaly, use of nonradioactive iodide adjunct medication with radioiodine therapy in Graves’ disease which would reduce radiation dose cost with better outcome.

Interested in basic research in molecular biology, nuclear neurology, neuropharmacology, nuclear oncology and radionuclide therapy, and also comfortable to do any clinical research.

Medical Officer, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission Working as Nuclear Medicine and Ultrasound specialist in the Center for Nuclear medicine and Ultrasound, Dhaka Medical College Campus.

Management of patients with thyroid disease including reporting of hormones, radionuclide imaging, radionuclide therapy and conventional and advanced ultrasonography, color duplex and high resolution ultrasonography. Doing clinical research on fetal screening for congenital anomaly and usefulness of inactive iodide with radioiodine for treating Graves' disease.

Kanazawa University Graduate School of Medical Science, Japan PhD, Medical science- New tracer development for brain imaging

She worked on development of new radiotracer for imaging of sigma receptor in brain and tumor. I examined a radioiodinated (+)-2-[4-(4-iodophenyl)piperidino] cyclohexanol [(+)-pIV] as a candidate in this matter using a rat model, and found that this is an agent of high potency to delineate density of receptors in vivo. As sigma receptors are over expressed and frequently up-regulated in various types of cancer cells, therefore making ligands that bind to these receptors are attractive vectors for targeting radiation to specific sites for the imaging and therapy of tumors. So, she examined high specific activity radioiodinated (+)-pIV as a tumor-targeting agent in rat and mice and also evaluated the influence of species specificity of different metabolic function in imaging of sigma receptors in tumor. She has also been working on neuroblastoma cell line (SK-N-SH) to find a radioligand with better therapeutic effect.

Five researchers received the 2013 Elsevier Foundation Awards for Early Career Women Scientists in the Developing World for pioneering work that could contribute to lifesaving research in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

The prizes were presented by the Elsevier Foundation, the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD) and TWAS, the academy of sciences for the developing world to build research capacity and advance scientific knowledge throughout the developing world. The award included $5,000 and an all-expenses paid attendance at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) annual meeting in Boston, where the winners received their prizes during a ceremony on February 16. During their stay, they also visited the labs of scientists who will be their mentors.

The winners 

Sub-Saharan Africa: Dr. Adediwura Fred-Jaiyesimi (Pharmacology and medicinal plants), Department of Pharmacognosy, Olabisi Onabanjo University, Nigeria.

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Central and South Asia: Dr. Nasima Akhter (Medical Sciences), Center for Nuclear Medicine and Ultrasound, the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission, and Dhaka Medical College Hospital Campus in Bangladesh.

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Latin America & the Caribbean: Dr. Dionicia Gamboa (Molecular Biology/parasitology), Department of Cellular and Molecular Sciences and Institute of Tropical Medicine “Alexander Von Humboldt, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru.

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East and Southeast Asia and the Pacific: Dr. Namjil Erdenechimeg (Biochemistry), Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Mongolian Academy of Sciences, Mongolia.

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Arab region: Dr. Huda Omer Basaleem (Community and Public Health), Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Aden University, Yemen.