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Updated: May 23, 2026

Genome-wide Mapping of Drug-DNA Interactions in Cells with COSMIC (Crosslinking of Small Molecules to Isolate Chromatin)
10:05

Genome-wide Mapping of Drug-DNA Interactions in Cells with COSMIC (Crosslinking of Small Molecules to Isolate Chromatin)

Published on: January 20, 2016

Small molecule drugs - optimizing DNA damaging agent-based therapeutics

John A Hartley1, Daniel Hochhauser

  • 1Cancer Research UK Drug-DNA Interactions Research Group, UCL Cancer Institute, London WC1E 6BT, UK. john.hartley@ucl.ac.uk

Current Opinion in Pharmacology
|April 17, 2012
PubMed

Insights

Novel DNA-targeted chemotherapy combinations show promise against resistant tumors. Understanding drug interactions is key to developing effective cancer treatments with fewer side effects.

Area of Science:

  • Oncology
  • Pharmacology
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • DNA-targeted chemotherapies are crucial for treating solid tumors and hematologic malignancies.
  • Conventional chemotherapy faces resistance, driving the need for novel agents and combinations.
  • Developing selective DNA-damaging drugs with reduced side effects is an ongoing challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review current DNA-targeted agents and their combinations in clinical evaluation.
  • To explore the mechanistic basis of interactions between novel targeted agents and DNA-interactive drugs.
  • To inform the design of optimal combination therapies for improved clinical outcomes.

Main Methods:

  • Review of recent studies on novel DNA-targeted agents and combination therapies.
  • Analysis of clinical evaluations of agents like trabectedin, bendamustine, and SG2000.
  • Examination of interactions between DNA damaging drugs and novel agents (e.g., kinase inhibitors, antibodies).

Main Results:

  • Novel combinations of cytotoxic chemotherapy demonstrate activity in drug-resistant tumors.
  • Trabectedin, bendamustine, and SG2000 represent diverse classes of DNA-targeted agents in clinical trials.
  • Combination of DNA damaging drugs with novel targeted agents is an emerging strategy.

Conclusions:

  • Understanding drug interactions is critical for optimizing combination chemotherapy.
  • Novel targeted agents combined with DNA-damaging drugs hold potential for enhanced cancer treatment.
  • Further research into these combinations will maximize clinical benefit and patient outcomes.

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