peplomycin

Definition / meaning of peplomycin

A semisynthetic analog of Bleomycin, a mixture of several basic glycopeptide antineoplastic antibiotics isolated from the fungus Streptomyces verticillus. Peplomycin forms complexes with iron that reduce molecular oxygen to superoxide and hydroxyl radicals that cause single- and double-stranded breaks in DNA. This agent appears to show greater antitumor activity than bleomycin; its use is limited due to pulmonary toxicity.

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Source(s):

The Web site of the National Cancer Institute (http://www.cancer.gov/)

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