Credits: Giulia Palermo
(December 21, 2015) A
new study improves our understanding of chemotherapy
agents
What is the mechanism of action of metal-based chemotherapy
drugs (the most widely used for treating common cancers like testicular or
ovarian cancer)? How can we improve their effect and reduce their toxicity? A
new study combining experiments and theory has broadened our knowledge of the
molecular mechanisms of these active drugs to help experimentalists devising
increasingly effective drugs with fewer side effects. The study, just published
in the journal ChemMedChem, was conducted with the participation of International
School for Advanced Studies (SISSA) of Trieste.
Pharmaceutical research can be difficult and frustrating. Often, one happens to synthesize a molecule
without knowing exactly what kind of therapeutic effect it will have (if it ever will have any). “It is rare for someone to
develop a new active drug already knowing what mechanism it will trigger in the
body”, explains Alessandra Magistrato, CNR-IOM/SISSA research scientist.