Chandigarh October 14, 2019

            Centre for Nuclear Medicine, Panjab University, Chandigarh  receivedthe first prize by the International Medical Olympicus Association during the recently held 5^th International Medical Olympiad in Greece. 

The work presented was a part of the CSIR funded project awarded to Dr Vijayta D Chadha as Principal Investigator and Co investigators, Dr D K Dhawan and Dr Neelima D Passi. The research involved radiosynthesis of a novel 5α-reductase inhibitor and evaluation of its cancer targeting potential in experimental model of prostate carcinogenesis. Prostate cancer is the second most frequent malignancy after lung cancer in men and the fifth leading cause of death worldwide. The enzyme 5α-reductase converts testosterone to dihydrotestosterone which is more potent agonist of androgen receptor and its increased levels lead to enlargement of prostate gland. 5α-reductase inhibitors are a class of drugs that contain the metabolic transformation of testosterone thus lowering the manifestation of diseased condition. Considering the 5α-reductase inhibitory activity of the reported oximes and importance of the ester group in increasing the antiandrogenic property, a potent 5α-reductase inhibitor was synthesized for enhanced selectivity towards prostate tissue. The work was carried by Ms Gousia Jan, Research fellow in the project and was presented by Prof D K Dhawan in the said conference.