Metallotherapeutics: novel strategies in drug design.

A new paradigm for drug activity is presented, which includes both recognition and subsequent irreversible inactivation of therapeutic targets. Application to both RNA and protein biomolecules has been demonstrated. In contrast to RNA targets that are subject to strand scission chemistry mediated by ribose H-atom abstraction, proteins appear to be inactivated either through oxidative damage to amino acid side chains around the enzyme active site, or by backbone hydrolysis.