Written by DrHurst
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Saturday, 27 September 2008 09:11 |
| Potent cancer therapies in recent years have included compounds that are able to bind to directly to DNA. One such chemotherapy agent is cisplatin, a simple platinum containing compound, that causes the cross-linking of DNA, leading to programmed cell-death. Because chemotherapy agents, have the common problem of causing damage in healthy as well as diseased tissue, there has been push to design anti-cancer drugs with greater specificity. A possible solution, may come in the form of DNA intercalating complexes. This cobalt centered complex possesses a wide and flat, phenanthroline substituent, that can fit between the groves of the DNA helix. The opposite end of the complex is outfitted with a ferrocene group which can be made to lose or gain an electron, changing the binding affinity of the entire complex to DNA. Such a complex may give rise to programmable medicines that can be designed for a greater specificity for cancer cells. | |
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 24 February 2009 03:55 )
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