Dr. Safiya Nisar

Research Assistant Professor

Department of Chemistry

University of North Dakota

Presents:

“Cyanine-7 Based NIR Fluorophores for Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment”

Friday, March 27th at 12:20 PM

Abbott Hall Room 138

Bio: Dr. Safiya Nisar is a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry at the University of North Dakota. Her research focuses on developing new fluorescent theranostic probes and nanoprodrugs to advance cancer imaging and targeted chemotherapy.

Dr. Nisar earned her Ph.D. in Chemistry from Amity University, India, where she conducted extensive research on the development of functional materials for cancer therapy.

Following her Ph.D., Dr. Nisar pursued postdoctoral research at the University of North Dakota with Dr. Binglin Sui, where she worked on near-infrared fluorescent probes and nanomedicine platforms for cancer diagnosis and treatment. She has over three years of postdoctoral research experience at UND.

Dr. Nisar has authored 18 research publications in peer-reviewed journals and two book chapters. In Fall 2025, she joined the Department of Chemistry at the University of North Dakota as a Research Assistant Professor, where she continues to develop advanced molecular probes and nanotherapeutic systems for cancer theranostics.

Abstract: Near-infrared (NIR) fluorescent probes have emerged as powerful tools for cancer diagnosis and therapy due to their high sensitivity, deep tissue penetration, and low biological autofluorescence. Among these, Cyanine dyes, particularly Cyanine-7–based probes, have gained considerable attention for biomedical imaging applications. Their extended polymethine conjugation enables strong NIR absorption and emission, making them well-suited for fluorescence-based tumor imaging and their tunability has made them well-suited for photothermal therapy (PTT).

This seminar will discuss the development of cyanine-based probes designed to respond to tumor hypoxia, a key characteristic of the tumor microenvironment. In particular, probes targeting the enzyme Nitroreductase (NTR) are highlighted, as this enzyme is overexpressed under hypoxic conditions in many tumors. The probes are evaluated through in vitro studies in cancer cell lines and in vivo imaging in tumor-bearing mice models, demonstrating selective fluorescence activation in hypoxic environments. These systems enable real-time tumor detection and also offer potential for light-activated therapeutic strategies, like PTT, supporting the development of multifunctional theranostic platforms for cancer diagnosis and treatment.