Mechanisms of Nucleic Acid Oxidation

随着这一奖项的更新，有机和大分子化学项目继续支持犹他大学化学系Cynthia J. Burrows博士的工作。该研究将早期关于镍配合物介导的过硫酸氧化DNA的研究扩展到通过各种氧化剂和过渡金属配合物氧化DNA和RNA结构中的核碱基。特别令人感兴趣的是鸟嘌呤的氧化及其常见氧化产物7,8-二氢-8-氧鸟嘌呤的进一步反应。这些研究结果将在毒理学、多核酸结构和核酸-蛋白相互作用等领域得到应用。DNA的氧化和随后的降解与衰老过程和许多药物的作用有关，例如用于治疗癌症的药物。通过本项目的培训，学生将获得在生物有机化学和生物无机化学方面的宝贵经验，这些经验在许多生物技术领域都很有用。

With this renewal award the Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry Program continues its support for the work of Dr. Cynthia J. Burrows in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Utah. The research extends earlier studies on nickel complex mediated oxidation of DNA by persulfuric acid, to the oxidation of nucleobases in DNA and RNA structures by a variety of oxidizing agents and transition metal complexes. Of particular interest is the oxidation of guanine and further reactions of its common oxidation product, 7,8-dihydro-8-oxoguanine. Results of these studies will have applications in toxicology, polynucleic acid structure, and nucleic acid-protein interactions. The oxidation and subsequent degradation of DNA is implicated in the aging process and in the operation of a number of drugs, for example those used in the treatment of cancer. Students trained on this project will gain valuable experience in bioorganic and bioinorganic chemistry useful in a number of biotechnology fields.