Anti-cancer drugs daunomycin

Simulation Study of the Molecular Mechanism of Intercalation of the Anti-Cancer Drug Daunomycin into DNA... 

A. Mukheijee, Entropy balance in the intercalation process of an anti-cancer drug Daunomycin. J. Phys. Chem. Lett., 2 (2011), 3021-3026. 

The structures and dynamics of water molecules in the DNA grooves play an important role in the biological function of DNA. As discussed later, the intercalation of the anti-cancer drug daunomycin into DNA is indeed facilitated by water molecules in the grooves. While the role of water molecules in stabilizing a DNA duplex is well known (water molecules screen the electrostatic repulsion between the negatively charged phosphate ions, form HBs with the polar atoms of the nucleic... 

Direct reactions with DNA serve as the molecular basis for the action of several anti-tumor drugs. Cancer is primarily a disease of uncontrolled cell growth, and cell growth depends on DNA synthesis. Cancer cells are often more sensitive than normal cells to compounds that damage DNA. For example, the anti-tumor drug cisplatin reacts with guanine bases in DNA and the daunomycin antibiotics act by inserting into the DNA chain between base pairs. In either case, these biochemical events can lead to the death of a tumor cell. 

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