Greenberg Marc M
Department of Chemistry, Johns Hopkins University, 3400 N. Charles St., Baltimore, MD 21218, USA.
Org Biomol Chem. 2007 Jan 7;5(1):18-30. doi: 10.1039/b612729k. Epub 2006 Nov 14.
DNA damage is a double-edged sword. The modifications produced in the biopolymer are associated with aging, and give rise to a variety of diseases, including cancer. DNA is also the target of anti-tumor agents and the most generally used nonsurgical treatment of cancer, ionizing radiation. Agents that damage DNA produce a variety of radicals. Elucidating the chemistry of individual DNA radicals is challenging due to the availability of multiple reactive pathways and complexities inherent with carrying out mechanistic studies on a heterogeneous polymer. The ability to independently generate radicals and their metastable products at defined sites in DNA has greatly facilitated understanding this biologically important chemistry.
DNA损伤是一把双刃剑。生物聚合物中产生的修饰与衰老相关，并引发包括癌症在内的多种疾病。DNA也是抗肿瘤药物和最常用的非手术癌症治疗方法——电离辐射的靶点。损伤DNA的试剂会产生多种自由基。由于存在多种反应途径以及对异质聚合物进行机理研究固有的复杂性，阐明单个DNA自由基的化学性质具有挑战性。在DNA的特定位点独立产生自由基及其亚稳产物的能力极大地促进了对这种具有生物学重要性的化学性质的理解。
