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Etoposide


Mechanism of action:

Etoposide is a topoisomerase II inhibitor. Under normal conditions, topoisomerase II temporarily creates double-strand breaks in DNA and then rapidly religates them to relieve DNA supercoiling. Etoposide stabilizes the state in which DNA has been cleaved but not yet religated, preventing DNA rejoining. This leads to accumulation of DNA double-strand breaks, increased cellular repair stress, cell cycle arrest, and apoptosis.

Reference(s):

1. Zhou Z et al. (2001). Enhanced etoposide sensitivity following adenovirus-mediated human topoisomerase IIalpha gene transfer is independent of topoisomerase IIbeta. Br J Cancer. 


2. Azarova AM et al. (2007). Roles of DNA topoisomerase II isozymes in chemotherapy and secondary malignancies. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA.

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