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nocodazole

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Also known as (5-(2-thienylcarbonyl)-1H-benzimidazol-2-yl)-carbamic acid methyl ester, N-(5-(2-thenoyl)-2-benzimidazolyl)carbamic acid methyl ester, methyl (5-(2-thienylcarbonyl))-1H-benzimidazole-2-ylcarbamate, R17,934, R-17934, R 17934, methyl N-(5-thenoyl-2-benzimidazolyl)carbamate, N-(5-(2-thienoyl)-2-benzimidazolyl)carbamic acid methyl ester

Nocodazole is an antineoplastic agent which exerts its effect in cells by interfering with the polymerization of microtubules. Microtubules are one type of fibre which constitutes the cytoskeleton, and the dynamic microtubule network has several important roles in the cell, including vesicular transport, forming the mitotic spindle and in cytokinesis. Several drugs including vincristine and colcemid are similar to nocodazole in that they interfere with microtubule polymerization.

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Encyclopedic overview

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  • Use in cell biology research
  • See also
  • References

Nocodazole is an antineoplastic agent which exerts its effect in cells by interfering with the polymerization of microtubules. Microtubules are one type of fibre which constitutes the cytoskeleton, and the dynamic microtubule network has several important roles in the cell, including vesicular transport, forming the mitotic spindle and in cytokinesis. Several drugs including vincristine and colcemid are similar to nocodazole in that they interfere with microtubule polymerization.

Nocodazole has been shown to decrease the oncogenic potential of cancer cells via another microtubules-independent mechanisms. Nocodazole stimulates the expression of LATS2 which potently inhibits the Wnt signaling pathway by abrogating the interaction between the Wnt-dependent transcriptional co-factors beta-catenin and BCL9.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “nocodazole” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.