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Updated: Jun 15, 2026

A Flow Cytometry-Based Cell Surface Protein Binding Assay for Assessing Selectivity and Specificity of an Anticancer Aptamer
Published on: September 13, 2022
Natural products in structure-assisted design of molecular cancer therapeutics
P H Pfisterer1, G Wolber, T Efferth
1Institute of Pharmacy/Pharmacognosy, University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
Abstract:
Since the late 1990's, novel insights into molecular biology and carcinogenesis enabled the rational design of mechanism-based anticancer therapeutics. The large number of natural product (NP)-derived drugs currently under clinical evaluation and the recent approval of temsirolimus (Torisel) as a first mTOR protein kinase inhibitor indicate that NPs have to be considered not only as a seminal source of cytotoxic, but also as a source of molecularly targeted agents. Whereas molecular modeling is well established as an important and successful method to discover and rationalize bioactivities in medicinal chemistry research, its application has also proven to be also a powerful tool in the field of NPs. This review highlights the impact of computer-assisted approaches on NPs as molecularly targeted anticancer drugs. Examples of applications are provided focusing on innovative targets such as protein kinases, tumour vasculature, epigenetic modulators, heat shock protein (Hsp) 90, and direct apoptosis enhancers.
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