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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Genome-wide Mapping of Drug-DNA Interactions in Cells with COSMIC (Crosslinking of Small Molecules to Isolate Chromatin)
Published on: January 20, 2016
Cytosine methylation enhances mitomycin C cross-linking
1Department of Chemistry, Colby College, Waterville, Maine 04901.
Abstract:
Mitomycin C (MC) is a powerful antitumor agent that targets the DNA sequence CpG. Because it is likely that this dinucleotide will contain 5-methylcytosine in vivo, we have compared the cross-linking efficiency of MC for DNA containing either 5-methylcytosine or normal cytosine embedded in random-sequence DNA oligomers. We have found that mitomycin C displays a small but significant preference for methylated DNA. Recognition of an abnormal methylation pattern in the DNA of transformed cells may therefore be one mechanism by which MC exerts its chemotherapeutic effects.
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