Polymerization reactions

Polymerization reactions refer to the biochemical processes where monomeric units are joined together to form complex macromolecules or polymers, a fundamental mechanism in cellular structure and function (Alberts et al., Molecular Biology of the Cell, 6th ed.). In medical science, this term does not describe a single therapeutic target but rather a category of reactions involving various proteins that can be pharmacologically modulated. For example, taxanes and vinca alkaloids target tubulin polymerization to arrest the cell cycle in cancer cells (Jordan & Wilson, Nature Reviews Cancer, 2004). In sickle cell disease, the polymerization of mutated hemoglobin S (HbS) under low oxygen conditions causes red blood cell sickling, which is targeted by inhibitors like voxelotor (Vichinsky et al., NEJM, 2019). Additionally, the aberrant polymerization of proteins such as tau or amyloid-beta into insoluble fibrils is central to the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's (Chiti & Dobson, Annual Review of Biochemistry, 2017). Because the term encompasses a broad class of biological events across diverse protein families rather than a specific molecular entity, it is identified as a biological process rather than a discrete therapeutic target.

Other names

PolymerizationBiomolecular assemblyMacromolecular polymerizationProtein aggregationFibrillization

Inhibition of polymer assembly (depolymerization), stabilization of existing polymers to prevent remodeling, or inhibition of pathological protein aggregation/fibrillization.