Question

Why is the microtubule-binding drug taxol given as a chemotherapeutic drug? How does it work?

Answer 1

The main reason is that taxol stabilise polymerised microtubules taxol as an antimitotic agent blocks cancer cell growth by stopping cell division, resulting in cell death. An NCI-funded clinical trial found that 30 percent of patients with advanced ovarian cancer responded positively to Taxol treatment.

Paclitaxel is a drug which is used as chemotherapeutic drug most often used in breast, lung, and ovarian cancer, and AIDS-related sarcomas. As a microtubule inhibitor, paclitaxel acts to stabilize polymerized microtubules during mitosis, thus leading to cell cycle arrest in the G2 and M phases.The main point is that Unlike other tubulin-targeting drugs, such as colchicine, that inhibit microtubule assembly, paclitaxel stabilizes the microtubule polymer and protects it from disassembly.

This is how taxol works as chemotherapeutic drug.