human DNA
human DNA
Overview
Human DNA is the hereditary material of Homo sapiens and the molecular basis of genetic information storage, transmission, and expression. As a biological entity, it consists of deoxyribonucleic acid sequences organized into chromosomes and associated with proteins that regulate replication, repair, recombination, transcription, and chromatin structure. In biomedical research, human DNA is central to understanding disease susceptibility, tumor biology, DNA damage responses, and the molecular effects of drugs, radiation, and immune-based therapies.
In the recent studies summarized here, human DNA was investigated both as a direct molecular target and as a readout of biological state. The publications span DNA-based biosensing, DNA damage and repair in cancer, DNA binding by small molecules, and DNA-centered diagnostic strategies. Across these contexts, human DNA was linked to mechanisms such as CRISPR-mediated detection, homologous recombination deficiency, radioresistance, and topoisomerase inhibition.
Focus of Latest Publications
Recent publications have examined human DNA in several applied contexts, especially as a binding target for therapeutic compounds and as a substrate for biosensing. In cancer-related studies, a fluorescent heterobimetallic Ir(III)-Pd(II) complex was reported to interact with DNA in a sequential binding pattern while selectively accumulating in the nuclei of HeLa cells, supporting both fluorescence imaging and cytotoxicity. Similarly, new 2-substituted anthra[2,3-b]furan-5,10-diones were shown to induce tumor cell apoptosis through DNA binding and inhibition of topoisomerases, with one derivative acting as a DNA-intercalating dual topoisomerase I/II inhibitor and causing DNA damage in leukemia cells.
Other work focused on DNA-targeted drug activation and delivery. First-principles and molecular dynamics simulations suggested that magnesia (MgO) can serve as a synergistic carrier for carboplatin by promoting hydrolysis to the bioactive platinum species and enabling strong guanine N(7) binding to DNA. These findings were presented as a theoretical framework for lower-toxicity platinum nanotherapeutics. In a separate diagnostic context, a metal-organic framework coating on microneedles was developed for in situ DNA capture and release, using UiO-66 and its unsaturated Zr sites to enhance selective DNA accommodation and elution during sampling.
Several publications used DNA as the recognition element in nucleic acid detection platforms. One CRISPR/Cas13a assay employed a glycine/PVP-regulated one-pot system in which target recognition triggered cleavage of uracil-containing DNA tetrahedra, producing electrochemical, fluorescence, or lateral flow readouts for Vibrio parahaemolyticus detection. Another portable CRISPR/Cas12a biosensor used a DNA activator to initiate entropy-driven catalysis for simultaneous detection of multiple pathogenic bacteria, including Staphylococcus aureus and other antibiotic-resistant strains. A separate study on direct detection of unamplified Mycobacterium tuberculosis DNA using modified gold nanoparticles was also reported, although the abstract provided here does not include the experimental outcome details.