Emerging roles of i-motif in gene expression and disease treatment

Frontiers in Pharmacology

Pharmacology

Yue Gao¹  Xiaoqing Luo¹  Yayuan Yang¹  Xu Li¹  Lingfei Chen¹  Jianye Zhang¹  Weifei Pan¹  Yuqing Wang²  Chang Wang³ 

[1] Guangzhou Municipal and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Molecular Target and Clinical Pharmacology, The NMPA and State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences and the Fifth Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China;null;[e-mail];

关键词: i-motif;    biological activities;    molecular mechanism;    ligand compounds;    oncogene;    telomere;    gene-targeted therapy;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fphar.2023.1136251

 received in 2023-01-02, accepted in 2023-02-27,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

As non-canonical nucleic acid secondary structures consisting of cytosine-rich nucleic acids, i-motifs can form under certain conditions. Several i-motif sequences have been identified in the human genome and play important roles in biological regulatory functions. Due to their physicochemical properties, these i-motif structures have attracted attention and are new targets for drug development. Herein, we reviewed the characteristics and mechanisms of i-motifs located in gene promoters (including c-myc, Bcl-2, VEGF, and telomeres), summarized various small molecule ligands that interact with them, and the possible binding modes between ligands and i-motifs, and described their effects on gene expression. Furthermore, we discussed diseases closely associated with i-motifs. Among these, cancer is closely associated with i-motifs since i-motifs can form in some regions of most oncogenes. Finally, we introduced recent advances in the applications of i-motifs in multiple areas.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 Luo, Zhang, Gao, Pan, Yang, Li, Chen, Wang and Wang.