Methyl 2-deoxy-D-erythro-pentopyranoside is an impurity of Decitabine (α-isomer: D226730), a DNA hypomethylating agent that is used to treat various forms of cancer, such as myelogeneous leukemia and metastatic lung cancerBy inhibiting DNA methyltransferase, Decitabine silences the tumour suppressor genes and, consequently, “normalizing” gene expression in cancerous cells.
