Binding mechanism of anti-cancer chemotherapeutic drug mitoxantrone to DNA characterized by magnetic tweezers

Chemotherapeutic agents (anti-cancer drugs) are small cytostatic or cytotoxic molecules that often bind to double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) resulting in modifications of their structural and nanomechanical properties and thus interfering with the cell proliferation process. We investigated the anthraquinone compound mitoxantrone that is used for treating certain cancer types like leukemia and lymphoma with magnetic tweezers as a single molecule...