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Europium oxide (Eu2O3) was used to evaluate the affinity of this rare earth element for interacting with double-stranded (ds) DNA molecules. To perform the study, we used single molecule force spectroscopy with optical tweezers and gel electrophoresis assays. Force spectroscopy experiments show that Eu2O3 presents a strong interaction with dsDNA, and the binding is independent on the ionic strength used in the surrounding environment. Among the main characteristics of the interaction, Eu2O3 tends to bind in a cooperative way, forming bound clusters of ∼ 3 molecules, and presents a high equilibrium association binding constant on the order of 105 M-1. In addition, gel electrophoresis confirm the weak electrostatic character of the interaction and explicit show that Eu2O3 does not interfere on drug intercalation into the double-helix. Such results demonstrate the potential of europium for interacting with nucleic acids and strongly suggest that this rare earth element may be considered for the design of new metal-based anticancer drugs in the future. Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Citation

J A D Batista, L Oliveira, T A Moura, V C Dos Anjos, M J V Bell, M S Rocha. On the use of Europium (Eu) for designing new metal-based anticancer drugs. Biochemical and biophysical research communications. 2020 Oct 20;531(3):372-376

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PMID: 32800544

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