Chemotherapy drugs like vincristine and colchicines disrupt mitosis by targeting microtubules, preventing spindle fiber formation, and halting cell division.
Chemotherapy drugs such as vincristine and colchicines target microtubules during cell division. These drugs bind to tubulin, which is a subunit of microtubules, and interfere with their assembly and disassembly. As a result, the formation of spindle fibers, which are crucial for separating chromosomes during mitosis, is disrupted. This action results in the inhibition of spindle function and subsequently halts cell division, which is critical when attempting to prevent the growth of cancerous cells.