Topoisomerase II constitutes a family of nuclear enzymes essential to all living cells. These enzymes are capable of transferring one DNA double helix through a transient break in another DNA double helix. Type II topoisomerases play important roles in DNA metabolic processes, in which they are involved in DNA replication, transcription, chromosome condensation and de-condensation. Topoisomeras...

A human Burkitt lymphoma cell line, Raji-HN2, made 10-fold more resistant to nitrogen mustard (HN2) than the parental Raji cell line, exhibited the following characteristics when compared to the parental Raji cells: (i) decreased HN2-induced DNA interstrand crosslinking; (ii) increased (3-fold) DNA topoisomerase II [DNA topoisomerase (ATP-hydrolyzing), EC 5.99.1.3] activity; (iii) increased (4-...

BACKGROUND Topoisomerase II is critical for DNA replication, transcription and chromosome segregation and is a well validated target of anti-neoplastic drugs including the anthracyclines and epipodophyllotoxins. However, these drugs are limited by common tumor resistance mechanisms and side-effect profiles. Novel topoisomerase II-targeting agents may benefit patients who prove resistant to curr...

Tumor-promoting phorbol esters such as phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) induce the monocytoid differentiation of HL-60 human leukemia cells. The cellular receptor for PMA is protein kinase C. However, cellular events distal to protein kinase C phosphorylation are also critical steps toward differentiation. These events may include specific programs of oncogene transcription that have been ...

UNLABELLED This work was undertaken to compare cytotoxicity, DNA damaging properties and effect on DNA cleavage by topoisomerase II of the anthracycline drug doxorubicin (DOX) and its two derivatives with a formamidino group containing a cyclic amine moiety such as morpholine (DOXM) or hexamethyleneimine (DOXH). The tetrazolium dye colorimetric assay was used to determine the cytotoxic activity...

Abnormal expression of the nuclear-associated enzyme DNA topoisomerase II (topoisomerase II) has been implicated in the in vitro phenotype of radiation hypersensitive ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) cells and in modifying sensitivity of eukaryotic cells to topoisomerase II-inhibitor drugs [e.g., the DNA intercalator amsacrine (mAMSA)]. To study such relationships, various SV40- and Epstein-Barr Vir...

The human DNA replication origin, located in the lamin B2 gene, interacts with the DNA topoisomerases I and II in a cell cycle-modulated manner. The topoisomerases interact in vivo and in vitro with precise bonds ahead of the start sites of bidirectional replication, within the pre-replicative complex region; topoisomerase I is bound in M, early G1 and G1/S border and topoisomerase II in M and ...

Eukaryotic topoisomerases I and II efficiently remove helical tension in naked DNA molecules. However, this activity has not been examined in nucleosomal DNA, their natural substrate. Here, we obtained yeast minichromosomes holding DNA under (+) helical tension, and incubated them with topoisomerases. We show that DNA supercoiling density can rise above +0.04 without displacement of the histone...

K6-1 and 50B-3 cell lines, resistant to VP-16, a DNA topoisomerase II inhibitor, were established from two different types of cells respectively: human T-cell derived acute lymphoblastic leukemia cell line RPMI8402 and mouse mammary tumor cell line FM3A. IC50 values of K6-1 and 50B-3 cells to VP-16, evaluated by the colony forming ability on methyl cellulose medium, were 11- and 84-fold higher ...

The pendant E-ring moiety of the podophyllotoxin aza-analogue 1 that is a potent inhibitor of microtubule assembly was modified in order to acquire inhibitory activity of DNA topoisomerase II. The monophenolic analogue 2 did not exhibit human topoisomerase II inhibition, while the ortho-quinone 3 that was obtained by oxidation of 2 inhibited its catalytic activity (decatenation) in a dose-depen...