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Microtubules (intracellular organelles that are composed of αβ-tubulin heterodimers) play a pivotal role in cell division. Equilibrium of αβ-tubulin polymerization and depolymerization is required for normal cell function and division. Several chemotherapy drugs target microtubules (e.g., taxanes induce mitotic arrest by stabilizing microtubules). The epothilones are a new class of microtubule-stabilizing agents that induce apoptosis and promote cell death. They interact with microtubules differently than do taxanes, and mechanisms of cellular resistance also appear to be distinct from those that inhibit taxanes. Naturally occurring epothilones are derived from the myxobacterium Sorangium cellulosum, but semisynthetic analogues of epothilon…