Abstract

Acridine derivatives are one of the oldest classes of bioactives, widely used as antibacterial and antiprotozoal agents. Some work in these areas continues, but recent research has focused mainly on their use as anticancer drugs, because of the ability of the acridine chromophore to intercalate DNA and inhibit topoisomerase enzymes.

Keywords: acridine, chemotherapeutic agents, antibacterial, anticancer drugs, charge-transfer interactions, mode of binding, kinetics, high therapeutic indices, human breast cancer cell lines, efficient mutagen