{"title":"Anticancer Drugs’ Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) Interactions","authors":"S. Alotaibi, A. Momen","doi":"10.5772/intechopen.85794","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.85794","url":null,"abstract":"The deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is the molecule of life that controls all the chemical changes that take place in cells. The interaction of drugs with DNA is among the most important aspects of biological studies in drug discovery and pharmaceutical development processes. Moreover, the knowledge of specific targets in rational design of chemotherapeutics is a fundamental factor, principally, for the design of molecules that can be used in the treatment of oncologic diseases. Observing the pre- and postsigns of drug-DNA interaction provides good evidence for the interaction mechanism to be elucidated. Also, this interaction could be used for the quantification of drugs and for the determination of new drugs targeting DNA. Approaches can provide new insight into rational drug design and would lead to further understanding of the interaction mechanism between anticancer drugs and DNA. The intention of this chapter is to provide several examples of anticancer drugs, DNA interaction, and the mechanisms of interaction in order to understand the influence of several interaction factors in the capacity and selectivity of the anticancer drugs to interact with DNA. In addition, different experimental and theoretical approaches to detect and to evaluate the anticancer drugs’ interactions with DNA were also discussed.","PeriodicalId":273044,"journal":{"name":"Biophysical Chemistry - Advance Applications","volume":"8 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-11-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"115166762","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Application of Riboflavin Photochemical Properties in Hydrogel Synthesis","authors":"G. Ioniţă, I. Matei","doi":"10.5772/intechopen.88855","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88855","url":null,"abstract":"Riboflavin, known as vitamin B2, belongs to the class of water-soluble vitamins with redox, fluorescence, and photosensitizing properties. Riboflavin contains a fragment of 7,8-dimethyl-10-(1 ′ -D-ribityl) isoalloxazine with a system of conjugated double bonds that is are responsible for its photochemical properties. In the presence of light and oxygen, riboflavin generates reactive oxygen species that can be further involved in the oxidation of biological molecules such as amino acids, proteins, nucleotides, and lipids. The chapter focuses on the photochemical application of riboflavin in (1) cross-linking of structural proteins such as collagen and (2) synthesis of hydrogels. The involvement of riboflavin in such processes has already found application in medicine, especially in the treatment of ophthalmic diseases and in tissue engineering.","PeriodicalId":273044,"journal":{"name":"Biophysical Chemistry - Advance Applications","volume":"75 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-09-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"134608688","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Study of the Influence of Humic Acid Macromolecules on the Structure of Erythrocytes of Some Animals by the Method of Absorption","authors":"N. Lavrik, Тatiana N. Ilyitcheva","doi":"10.5772/INTECHOPEN.85321","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5772/INTECHOPEN.85321","url":null,"abstract":"Erythrocyte absorption spectra were obtained from fresh chicken, goose, and guinea pig blood in solutions with humic acids, isolated from brown coal, to study interactions between erythrocytes and humic acids (HA). It has been established that the addition of HA to erythrocytes leads to the differently directed shifts of Soret band maxima in the erythrocyte absorption spectrum. Thus, for a solution [guinea pig erythrocyte (1.5 × 10 12 particle/l) + HA №1], this difference was Δλ = +3.3 nm (shortwave shift); for a solution [chicken erythrocyte (2 × 10 12 particle/l) + HA №1], Δλ = − 1.5 nm (longwave shift); and for a solution [goose erythrocyte (6 × 10 11 particle/l) + HA №1], Δλ = +4.3 nm (shortwave shift). A comparison of the absorption spectra of guinea pig oxyhemoglobin with 2 HA samples indicates that at any erythrocyte concentrations, the positions of the Soret band maxima for various HA samples differ. The data obtained testify to the individual character of the interaction between erythrocyte membranes and HA macromolecules. Two hypotheses were proposed to account for the results obtained. (1) “Structural hypothesis.” In the framework of this hypothesis, the molecules of membrane-bound oxyhemoglobin are in erythrocyte volume and can undergo noticeable, structural changes due to the deformation of erythrocyte membrane. (2) “Complexing hypothesis.” In terms of this hypothesis, the observed shifts of the position of the Soret band maxima can be explained by the possible penetration of light HA fragments through erythrocyte membrane into the inner erythrocyte region. This can cause the formation of complexes (oxyhemoglobin-HA). In this case, the complex formation can involve both the free oxyhemoglobin molecules (HbO 2 ) and the membrane-bound ones.","PeriodicalId":273044,"journal":{"name":"Biophysical Chemistry - Advance Applications","volume":"31 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124905580","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Biocatalysis and Strategies for Enzyme Improvement","authors":"Yauheniya Osbon, Manish Kumar","doi":"10.5772/INTECHOPEN.85018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5772/INTECHOPEN.85018","url":null,"abstract":"Biotransformation with the help of enzymes can greatly improve the rate and stereospecificity of reactions in organic chemistry. However, the use of organic solvents and harsh conditions in biotechnological applications often correlates with enzyme deactivation or a dramatic drop in catalytic activity. Detailed molecular understanding of the protein structure and conformational dynamics allows us to address such limitations and to finely tune catalytic activity by modifying the solvent, the support, or the active site of the enzyme. Along with physico-chemical methods of enzyme stabilization, such as additive approach, chemical modification, and immobilization of enzymes, approaches of enzyme engineering based on DNA recombination can be used to enhance the performance of biocatalysts. Since successful synthetic and industrial applications of biocatalysts require systems that are not only stable and active, but can also be reused in a continuous flow process reducing the production cost, the goal of this chapter is to introduce the reader to the vast scope of techniques available for enzyme improvement, highlighting their opportunities and limitations for the real-world technological processes.","PeriodicalId":273044,"journal":{"name":"Biophysical Chemistry - Advance Applications","volume":"179 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124481608","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Molecular Target Therapy against Neuroblastoma","authors":"H. Toyoda, Dong-qing Xu, L. Qi, M. Hirayama","doi":"10.5772/INTECHOPEN.81706","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.5772/INTECHOPEN.81706","url":null,"abstract":"Neuroblastoma, originated from neural crest cells, is the most common extracranial solid tumor in childhood. Treatment is of limited utility for high-risk neuroblastoma and prognosis is poor. The high incidence of resistance of advanced-stage neuroblastoma to conventional therapies has prompt investigators to search for novel therapeutic approaches. Activation of IGF-R/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway correlates with oncogenesis, poor prognosis, and chemotherapy resistance in neuroblastoma. Therefore, we investigated the effect of IGF-R/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling inhibitors in neuroblastoma. Significantly, IGF-R/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling inhibitors effectively inhibited cell growth and induced cell cycle arrest, autophagy, and apoptosis in neuroblastoma cells. Moreover, IGF-R/PI3K/Akt/ mTOR signaling inhibitors significantly reduced tumor growth in mice xenograft model without apparent toxicity. Therefore, these results highlight the potential of IGF-R/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway as a promising target for neuroblastoma treatment. Therefore, IGF-1R/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling inhibitors should be further investigated for treatment in clinical trials for high-risk neuroblastoma.","PeriodicalId":273044,"journal":{"name":"Biophysical Chemistry - Advance Applications","volume":"1 1","pages":"0"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-11-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"125865340","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}