Umeå University's logo

umu.sePublications
Change search
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf
A rationally designed azobenzene photoswitch for DNA G-quadruplex regulation in live cells
Institute of Advanced Materials, Faculty of Chemistry, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Wrocław, Poland.
Departamento de Química, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Excelencia UAM-CSIC, Cantoblanco, Madrid, Spain.
Umeå University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics.ORCID iD: 0000-0002-4541-7702
Departamento de Química, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Excelencia UAM-CSIC, Cantoblanco, Madrid, Spain; Institute for Advanced Research in Chemistry (IAdChem), Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Excelencia UAM-CSIC, Cantoblanco, Madrid, Spain.
Show others and affiliations
2025 (English)In: Angewandte Chemie International Edition, ISSN 1433-7851, E-ISSN 1521-3773, Vol. 64, no 1, article id e202413000Article in journal (Refereed) Published
Abstract [en]

G-quadruplex (G4) DNA structures are increasingly acknowledged as promising targets in cancer research, and the development of G4-specific stabilizing compounds may lay a fundamental foundation in precision medicine for cancer treatment. Here, we propose a light-responsive G4-binder for precise modulation of drug activation, providing dynamic and spatiotemporal control over G4-associated biological processes contributing to cancer cell death. We developed a specialized fluorinated azobenzene (AB) switch equipped with a quinoline unit and a positively charged carboxamide side chain, Q-Azo4F-C, designed for targeted binding to G4 structures within cells. Biophysical studies, combined with molecular dynamics simulations, provide insights into the unique coordination modes of the photoswitchable ligand in its trans and cis configurations when interacting with G4s. The observed variations in complexation processes between the two isomeric states in different cancer cell lines manifest in more than 25-fold reversible cytotoxic activity. Immunostaining conducted with the structure-specific G4 antibody (BG4), establishes a direct correlation between cytotoxicity and the varying extent of G4 induction regulated by the two isoforms. Finally, we demonstrate the photo-driven reversible regulation of G4 structures in lung cancer cells by Q-Azo4F-C. Our findings highlight the potential of light-responsive G4-binders in advancing precision cancer therapy through dynamic control of G4-mediated pathways.

Place, publisher, year, edition, pages
Wiley-VCH Verlagsgesellschaft, 2025. Vol. 64, no 1, article id e202413000
Keywords [en]
Azobenzene, Cancer cells, DNA, G-quadruplex, Photochromism
National Category
Medical Biotechnology (with a focus on Cell Biology (including Stem Cell Biology), Molecular Biology, Microbiology, Biochemistry or Biopharmacy) Cancer and Oncology
Identifiers
URN: urn:nbn:se:umu:diva-234015DOI: 10.1002/anie.202413000ISI: 001357605100001PubMedID: 39268751Scopus ID: 2-s2.0-85208176352OAI: oai:DiVA.org:umu-234015DiVA, id: diva2:1927311
Funder
EU, Horizon 2020, 945339Swedish Cancer Society, 21 0302 PT 01 HSwedish Cancer Society, 22 2380 Pj 01 HSwedish Research Council, 2021-02468Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, KAW 2021.0173Available from: 2025-01-14 Created: 2025-01-14 Last updated: 2025-01-14Bibliographically approved

Open Access in DiVA

fulltext(2027 kB)67 downloads
File information
File name FULLTEXT01.pdfFile size 2027 kBChecksum SHA-512
c2caf718ad310adcc54d8154b9cb620908c367281c6b935f74506f823329d45df0f46dd0364c9d8cfd99f90b658aace88542bb7c0f235a0e950592e14129059e
Type fulltextMimetype application/pdf

Other links

Publisher's full textPubMedScopus

Authority records

Sabouri, NasimDeiana, Marco

Search in DiVA

By author/editor
Sabouri, NasimDeiana, Marco
By organisation
Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics
In the same journal
Angewandte Chemie International Edition
Medical Biotechnology (with a focus on Cell Biology (including Stem Cell Biology), Molecular Biology, Microbiology, Biochemistry or Biopharmacy)Cancer and Oncology

Search outside of DiVA

GoogleGoogle Scholar
Total: 67 downloads
The number of downloads is the sum of all downloads of full texts. It may include eg previous versions that are now no longer available

doi
pubmed
urn-nbn

Altmetric score

doi
pubmed
urn-nbn
Total: 500 hits
CiteExportLink to record
Permanent link

Direct link
Cite
Citation style
  • apa
  • ieee
  • vancouver
  • Other style
More styles
Language
  • de-DE
  • en-GB
  • en-US
  • fi-FI
  • nn-NO
  • nn-NB
  • sv-SE
  • Other locale
More languages
Output format
  • html
  • text
  • asciidoc
  • rtf