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The Structure‐Based Design of Mdm2/Mdmx–p53 Inhibitors Gets Serious
Author(s) -
Popowicz Grzegorz M.,
Dömling Alexander,
Holak Tad A.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
angewandte chemie international edition
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.831
H-Index - 550
eISSN - 1521-3773
pISSN - 1433-7851
DOI - 10.1002/anie.201003863
Subject(s) - mdmx , mdm2 , computational biology , cancer research , genome , gene , small molecule , dna , cancer cell , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , chemistry , cancer , genetics
The p53 protein is the cell’s principal bastion of defense against tumor‐associated DNA damage. Commonly referred as a “guardian of the genome”, p53 is responsible for determining the fate of the cell when the integrity of its genome is damaged. The development of tumors requires breaching this defense line. All known tumor cells either mutate the p53 gene, or in a similar number of cases, use internal cell p53 modulators, Mdm2 and Mdmx proteins, to disable its function. The release of functional p53 from the inhibition by Mdm2 and Mdmx should in principle provide an efficient, nongenotoxic means of cancer therapy. In recent years substantial progress has been made in developing novel p53‐activating molecules thanks to several reported crystal structures of Mdm2/x in complex with p53‐mimicking peptides and nonpeptidic drug candidates. Understanding the structural attributes of ligand binding holds the key to developing novel, highly effective, and selective drug candidates. Two low‐molecular‐weight compounds have just recently progressed into early clinical studies.