Dr. Ansab Akhtar

Assistant Professor

• Ph.D in Pharmacology – Pharmacology Division, UIPS, Panjab University, Chandigarh, 2016-2021
• M.S. (Pharm.) in Pharmacology & Toxicology- JDepartment of Pharmacology & Toxicology, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER), Hyderabad - 2013-2015
• B. Pharmacy- Faculty of Pharmacy, Jamia Hamdard University, New Delhi - 2008-2012

Research Interests

Neuropharmacology, Toxicology, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Depression, and other brain diseases etc., Oxidative stress, Mitochondrial dysfunction, Neuroinflammation, Insulin resistance, Preclinical research, Clinical research

Career Graph

• Completed dissertation project in M.S. on the topic “Cloning, expression and purification of recombinant protein utilizing bacterial expression system” under the supervision of Dr. Sudhir Sahdev, Group leader, Department of Pharmacology, Daiichi Sankyo, Gurgaon, and Dr. VGM Naidu, Assistant Professor in Pharmacology, NIPER- Hyderabad.
• Completed Ph.D from UIPS, Panjab University, Chandiagarh on topic “Brain insulin resistance in Alzheimer’s disease: Targeting phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt/GSK-3β pathway” under the supervision of Dr. Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah, Assistant Professor in Pharmacology, Panjab University, Chandigarh.
• Sanctioned a research grant on the title “Improvement of cognitive function by L-leucine in Drosophila model of Alzheimer’s disease” for SEED Grant at UPES, Dehradun.

Papers published in journals: 16, Book chapter: 2

Papers presented in conferences: 10 (International), 4 (National)

Research profile details:

• ORCID: 0000-0002-4839-4454
• Scopus Author ID: 57203191604
• Google scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=madj_DAAAAAJ

Recent Publications

• Ansab Akhtar, Jatinder Dhaliwal, Priyanka Saroj, Ankit Uniyal, Mahendra Bishnoi, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. (2020). Chromium picolinate attenuates cognitive deficit in ICV-STZ rat paradigm of sporadic Alzheimer’s-like dementia via targeting neuroinflammatory and IRS-1/PI3K/AKT/GSK-3β pathway. Inflammopharmacology (I.F=4.473), volume 28, issue 2, 385-400. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10787-019-00681-7.
• Ansab Akhtar, Mahendra Bishnoi, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. (2020). Sodium orthovanadate improves learning and memory in intracerebroventricular-streptozotocin rat model of Alzheimer’s disease through modulation of brain insulin resistance induced tau pathology. Brain Research Bulletin (I.F=4.077), volume 164C, 83-97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brainresbull.2020.08.001.
• Ansab Akhtar, Jatinder Dhaliwal, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. (2021). 7,8-Dihydroxyflavone improves cognitive functions in ICV-STZ rat model of sporadic Alzheimer’s disease by reversing oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and insulin resistance. Psychopharmacology (I.F=4.53), 238:1991-2009. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-021-05826-7.
• Ansab Akhtar, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah (2020), Insulin signaling pathway and related molecules: Role in neurodegeneration and Alzheimer’s disease. Neurochemistry International (I.F=4.297), volume 135, 104707. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuint.2020.104707.
• Ansab Akhtar, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah (2021), Advances in the pharmacotherapeutic management of post-traumatic stress disorder. Expert Opinion on Pharmacotherapy (I.F=3.889), volume 22:14, 1919-1930. https://doi.org/10.1080/14656566.2021.1935871.
• Angel Joshi, Ansab Akhtar, Priyanka Saroj, Anurag Kuhad, Sangeeta Pilkhwal sah. (2022) Ant-depressant-like effect of Sodium orthovanadate in a mouse model of chronic unpredictable mild stress: European Journal of Pharmacology (I.F=5.195), 919: 174798. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejphar.2022.174798.
• Neerja Saini, Ansab Akhtar, Monika Chauhan, Neelima Dhingra, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. (2020). Protective effect of Indole-3-carbinol, an NF-κB inhibitor in experimental paradigm of Parkinson’s disease: In silico and in vivo studies. Brain Behavior and Immunity (I.F=19.227), volume 90C, 108-137. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbi.2020.08.001.
• Ashish Mourya, Ansab Akhtar, Swati Ahuja, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah, Anil Kumar. (2018). Synergistic action of ursolic acid and metformin in experimental model of insulin resistance and related behavioral alterations. European Journal of Pharmacology (I.F=5.195), volume 835, 31-40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejphar.2018.07.056.
• Swati Ahuja, Ankit Uniyal, Ansab Akhtar, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. (2019). Alpha lipoic acid and metformin alleviates experimentally induced insulin resistance and cognitive deficit by modulation of TLR2 signalling. Pharmacological Reports (I.F=3.024), volume 71, issue 4, 614-623. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pharep.2019.02.016.
• Ankit Uniyal, Raghunath Singh, Ansab Akhtar, Yashika Bansal, Anurag Kuhad, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. (2019). Co- treatment of piracetam with risperidone rescued extinction deficits in experimental paradigms of post-traumatic stress disorder by restoring the physiological alterations in cortex and hippocampus. Pharmacology Biochemistry and Behavior (I.F=3.697), volume 185:172763. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pbb.2019.172763.
• Ankit Uniyal, Raghunath Singh, Ansab Akhtar, Jatinder Dhaliwal, Anurag Kuhad, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. (2019). Pharmacological rewriting of fear memories: A beacon for post-traumatic stress disorder. European Journal of Pharmacology (I.F=5.195), volume 5:17824. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ejphar.2019.172824.
• Jatinder Dhaliwal, Navneet Dhaliwal, Ansab Akhtar, Anurag Kuhad, Kanwaljit Chopra (2020). Beneficial effects of ferulic acid alone and in combination with insulin in streptozotocin induced diabetic neuropathy in Sprague Dawley rats. Life Sciences (I.F=6.78), volume 255, 117856. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lfs.2020.117856.
• Priyanka Saroj, Yashika Bansal, Raghunath Singh, Ansab Akhtar, Rupinder Kaur Sodhi, Mahendra Bishnoi, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah, Anurag Kuhaad (2021). Neuroprotective effects of Roflumilast against Quinolinic acid induced rat model of Huntington's disease through inhibition of NF-κB mediated neuroinflammatory markers and activation of cAMP/CREB/BDNF signalling pathway.
• Jatinder Dhaliwal, Navneet Dhaliwal, Ansab Akhtar, Anurag Kuhad, Kanwaljit Chopra (2022). Tetramethylpyrazine attenuates cognitive impairment via suppressing oxidative stress, neuroinflammation, and apoptosis in type 2 diabetic rats. Neurochemical Research (I.F=3.996). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11064-022-03640-x.
• Kumud Upadhyaya, Priya Kumari Sharma, Ansab Akhtar, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. (2022). Protective effect of Zingerone against depression-like behavior and biochemical changes in chronic stressed rats: Antioxidant effects. Journal of Medicinal Food (I.F=2.786), volume 25 (6): 576-587.
• Faizan Zarreen Simnani, Dibyangshee Singh, Anmol Choudhury, Ansab Akhtar* (2022), Impact of Covid-19 on brain and psychological health, its possible mechanisms, and coping strategies. Recent Patents on Biotechnology (I.F=2.00). http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/1872208316666220617110402.

Books chapters:

• Ansab Akhtar, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. Chromium and Alzheimer’s disease. Editors: Martin, Patel, and Preedy - Vitamins and Minerals in Neurological Disorders. Elsevier. (Book Chapter-accepted).
• Ansab Akhtar, Sangeeta Pilkhwal Sah. ICV-STZ induced insulin resistant in vivo model of sporadic Alzheimer’s disease. Editors-Kumar A, Chopra K, Kuhad A, PS Sangeeta, Pawar S- Animal models for Neurological Neurological Disorders. Bentham Science Publishers. 2021:208-226. http://dx.doi.org/10.2174/97898150396891210101.

Contribution:

• Peer-reviewed as a reviewer for the International peer-reviewed    journals ‘3Biotech, Molecular Neurobiology, Bioengineered, Brain Sciences, Journal of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Journal of Cellular Physiology, Journal of Clinical Medicine, journal of Intelligence, Endocrine Connections, and Medical Hypothesis’.
• Volunteered during workshops and conferences at Panjab University, Chandigarh and NIPER Hyderabad.

Professional Memberships:

• Society for Neuroscience, Member Id: 211007425.
• Australian Neuroscience Society. Membership type: New Member. ANS-105968.
• European Behavioural Pharmacology Society (EBPS). Member number: EBPS01616.
• Federation of European Neuroscience Society. Member id: FENS10412.
• British Neuroscience Association: Membership number: 29900523

Fellowships:

• Awarded UGC-MANF fellowship to conduct PhD research work.
• Qualified GPAT-2013 with all India rank 620 and awarded stipend for M.S program.

Honours and Achievements:

• Awarded FENS Grant to attend FENS 2020 Virtual Forum.
• Awarded IBRO Travel Grant for Neuroscience 2021, Chicago, USA (13th-16th November), organized by SfN.
• Qualified NIPER-JEE-2013 with all India rank 156

Personal Interest

Playing sports, travelling, reading, and writing