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Perspectives

Paclitaxel: new uses for an old drug

, , &
Pages 279-284 | Published online: 20 Feb 2014
 

Abstract

Paclitaxel (Taxol), one of the most important anticancer drugs, has been used for therapy of different types of cancers. Mechanistically, paclitaxel arrests cell cycle and induces cell death by stabilizing microtubules and interfering with microtubule disassembly in cell division. Recently, it has been found that low-dose paclitaxel seems promising in treating non-cancer diseases, such as skin disorders, renal and hepatic fibrosis, inflammation, axon regeneration, limb salvage, and coronary artery restenosis. Future studies need to understand the mechanisms underlying these effects in order to design therapies with specificity.

Acknowledgments

The study was supported in part by grants from National Natural Science Foundation of China [81370791; 81100507] and the National Institutes of Health and Department of Veterans Administration of USA.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.