Non-Intercalative Triterpenoid Inhibitors of Topoisomerase II: A Molecular Docking Study

Theoretical flexible docking studies were carried out on a number of triterpenoids previously shown to be inhibitors of topoisomerase II in order to assess the nature of binding of these non-intercalative inhibitors to the enzyme. The molecular docking results suggest that most of the triterpenoids preferentially bind to the DNA binding site of topoisomerase II, while a few also bind to the ATP binding site. These results provide some insight into the mode of activity of these cytotoxic natural products.