Appointments:
Professor Emeritus, Department of Pathology
Affiliations:
Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine
Research Interests:
Anti-cancer potential of natural-source compounds, including cationic antimicrobial peptides and phytochemicals found in common spices; manipulation of T lymphocyte signal transduction for cancer control
Exploring the cancer-fighting potential of food and spice derivatives
Dr. David Hoskin has found that a fragment of milk protein known as lactoferricin triggers the death of cancer cells obtained from a wide range of human malignancies, including breast, colon and ovarian tumours and various leukemias and lymphomas. He is working on methods to deliver lactoferricin and other anti-cancer peptides directly to cancer cells. Dr. Hoskin is also investigating the anti-cancer activity of molecules found in common spices like turmeric and black pepper.
Involvement with BHCRI to date:
Dr. Hoskin is a BHCRI Senior Scientist, has served on the BHCRI Working Group, BHCRI Development Board, CRTP Management Committee, BHCRI Training Committee and has been a supervisor for CRTP trainees.
Phone:
(902) 494-2091
Email:
Contact:
Sir Charles Tupper Medical Building, Dalhousie University Faculty of Medicine, 5850 College Street, P.O. Box 15000, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3H 4R2
Publications:
Ghassemi-Rad J, Fernando W, Holbein BE, and Hoskin DW. 2022. Iron withdrawal with DIBI, a novel 3-hydroxypyridin-4-one chelator iron-binding polymer, attenuates macrophage inflammatory responses. Adv Pharm Bull, in press.
Hoskin DW and Coombs MR. 2022. Editorial: Immune modulation by flavonoids. Front Immunol 13: 899577.
Islam S, Hoque N, Nasrin N, Hossain M, Rizwan F, Biswas K, Asauzzaman M, Rahman S, Hoskin DW, Sultana S, and Lehmann C. 2022. Iron Overload and Breast Cancer: Iron Chelation as a Potential Therapeutic Approach. Life 12: 963.
Malone A, Clark RF, Hoskin DW, and Power Coombs MR. 2022. Regulation of macrophage-associated inflammatory responses by species-specific lactoferricin peptides. Front Bioscience Landmark 27: 043.
Ghassemi-Rad J, Fernando W, and Hoskin DW. 2021. Piperlongumine-loaded nanoparticles inhibit the growth, migration and invasion, and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition of triple-negative breast cancer cells. Int J Func Nutr 2: 1-9.
Delany LM, Farias N, Ghassemi Rad J, Fernando W, Annan H, and Hoskin DW. 2021. The natural alkaloid piperlongumine inhibits metastatic activity and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition of triple-negative breast cancer cells. Nutr Cancer 73: 2397-2410.
Robles-Fort A, Garcia-Robles I, Fernando W, Hoskin DW, Rausell C, and Real MD. 2021. Dual antimicrobial and anticancer activity of PaSK peptide derived from a Tribolium castaneum insect defensin. Microorganisms 9: 222.
Conrad DM, Hilchie AL, McMillan K, Liwski RS, Hoskin DW, and Power-Coombs MR. 2021. The acute phase protein hepcidin has cytotoxic activity against human and mouse myeloma cells. Anticancer Res 41: 601-608.
Gunawardena AN, Rollini A, Rasmussen A, Dauphinee A, Fernando W, Mackinnon S, Wright H, and Hoskin DW. 2021. In vitro anti-cancer activity of Aponogeton madagascariensis anthocyanin extracts. J Nat Health Prod Res 3: 1-17.
Power Coombs MR and Hoskin DW. 2020. Assessing the impact of phytochemicals on immune checkpoints: Implications for cancer immunotherapy. Methods Mol Biol 2111: 161-173.