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  6. Viktor Pastukh, Ph.D.

Viktor Pastukh, Ph.D.

Viktor Pastukh, Ph.D.Instructor
USA Department of Pharmacology

Ph.D.: Institute of Biochemistry, Ukrainian Academy of Sciences, Kiev, Ukraine
Post-doctoral: University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL

Phone: (251) 460-6786
vpastukh@southalabama.edu 

Research Interests

  • Role of mitochondrial DNA damage in endothelial cell apoptosis caused by oxidative stress, role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in lung vessels remodeling;
  • Apoptosis in lung cells;
  • Role glucose, fatty acid and insulin in mitochondrial DNA damage in cardiomyocytes caused by oxidative stress;
  • Insulin-linked regulators of the MPT pore;
  • Role of the T-type Ca2+ channel in osmotic preconditioning;
  • Cell signaling systems (Ca2+, PI 3-kinase/Akt pathway, protein kinase C) after hypoxia and in osmotic preconditioning;
  • Apoptosis in cardiomyocytes;
  • Role of angiotensin II in cardiomyopathy;
  • Cell signaling systems (Ca2+, cyclic nucleotides, inositol system, protein kinases) after irradiation in low doses;
  • Role of 5-lipoxygenase activity in lymphocytes of rat spleen after irradiation.

Representative Publications

  1. Schaffer SW, Pastukh V, Solodushko V, Kramer J, Azuma J. (2002) Effect of ischemia, calcium depletion and repletion, acidosis and hypoxia on cellular taurine content. Amino Acids. 23 (4): 395-400.
  2. Schaffer S, Solodushko V, Pastukh V, Ricci C, Azuma J. (2003) Possible Cause of Taurine-deficient Cardiomyopathy: Potentiation of Angiotensin II Action. J. Cardiovascular Pharmacol. 41(5):751-759.
  3. Grishko V, Pastukh V, Solodushko V, Gillespie M, Azuma J, Schaffer S. (2003) Apoptotic cascade initiated by angiotensin II in neonatal cardiomyocytes: role of DNA damage. Ams J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 285(6):H2364-72.
  4. Pastukh V, Ricci C, Solodushko V, Mozaffari M and Schaffer SW. (2005) Contribution of the PI 3-kinase/Akt survival pathway to osmotic preconditioning. Mol Cell Biochem 269: 59-67.
  5. Pastukh V, Wu S, Ricci C, Mozaffari M and Schaffer SW. (2005) Reversal of hyperglycemic preconditioning by angiotensin II: Role of calcium transport. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol 288:H1965-H1975
  6. Ricci C, Pastukh V, Schaffer SW (2005) Involvement of the mitochondrial permeability transition in angiotensin II-mediated apoptosis. Exp Clin Cardiol, 10(3):160-164
  7. Ricci C, Pastukh V, Leonard J, Wilson G, Schaffer D, Schaffer SW (2008) Mitochondrial DNA damage triggers mitochondrial-superoxide generation and apoptosis Am J Physiol Cell Physiol.294(2):C413-22.
  8. Pastukh V, Ruchko M, Gorodnya O, Wilson GL, Gillespie MN (2007) Sequence-specific oxidative base modifications in hypoxia-inducible genes Free Radic Biol Med. 43(12):1616-26.
  9. Ruchko MV, Gorodnya OM, Pastukh VM, Swiger BM, Middleton NS, Wilson GL, Gillespie MN (2009) Hypoxia-induced oxidative base modifications in the VEGF hypoxic response element re associated with transcriptionally active nucleosomes Free Radic Biol Med. 46(3):352-59