Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer worldwide, and the second most common cause of cancer-related death. In 2020, the estimated number of deaths due to CRC was approximately 930000 Show more
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer worldwide, and the second most common cause of cancer-related death. In 2020, the estimated number of deaths due to CRC was approximately 930000, accounting for 10% of all cancer deaths worldwide. Accordingly, there is a vast amount of ongoing research aiming to find new and improved treatment modalities for CRC that can potentially increase survival and decrease overall morbidity and mortality. Current management strategies for CRC include surgical procedures for resectable cases, and radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy, in addition to their combination, for non-resectable tumors. Despite these options, CRC remains incurable in 50% of cases. Nonetheless, significant improvements in research techniques have allowed for treatment approaches for CRC to be frequently updated, leading to the availability of new drugs and therapeutic strategies. This review summarizes the most recent therapeutic approaches for CRC, with special emphasis on new strategies that are currently being studied and have great potential to improve the prognosis and lifespan of patients with CRC. Show less
Theoretical bioinorganic and biomimetic chemistry involves the careful description of the electronic structure: for example, 'valence bond reading' of broken-symmetry density functional theory computa Show more
Theoretical bioinorganic and biomimetic chemistry involves the careful description of the electronic structure: for example, 'valence bond reading' of broken-symmetry density functional theory computations gives insight into the structure and bonding of metal-radical systems with complex electronic structures. Exploring the reactivities of such systems leads to the design of novel compounds with better reactivities. Combined quantum-mechanics/molecular-mechanics (QM/MM), where the QM part is a sophisticated ab initio method, aids in understanding nature's most complicated reaction mechanisms in atomic detail. First principles molecular dynamics simulations (Car-Parrinello simulations) open up exciting new avenues for studying transition metal centers and enable several questions to be addressed that cannot be resolved with either standard quantum chemical or traditional force-field methods. Show less