Drugs development, transcription

Nuclear factor kappa B (NF-kB) serves as a central regulator of the human immune and inflammatory response, and is a family of inducible transcription factors found virtually ubiquitously in all cells and functions in a variety of human diseases including those related to inflammation, cancer, asthma, atherosclerosis, AIDS, septic shock, and arthritis. Due to its role in a wide variety of diseases, NF-kB has become one of the major targets for drug development. Inhibition of NF-kB activity potentially contributes to cancer chemoprevention [27,28]. 

The highly effective antimalarial agent chloroquine—a drug developed from quinine—can attack the malarial parasite by blocking DNA transcription as part of its action. Once again a flat heteroaromatic structure is present which can intercalate DNA (Fig. 6.8). 

Cagnon, L., and Rossi, J. J. (2000). Downregulation of the CCRS beta-chemokine receptor and inhibition of HIV-1 infection by stable VAl-ribozyme chimeric transcripts. Antisense Nucleic Acid Drug Development 10 251-261. 

Garg A, Aggarwal B B (2002). Nuclear transcription factor-kappaB as a target for cancer drug development. Leukemia. 16 1053-1068. 

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