A polycyclic aromatic dye with antineoplastic, antimicrobial and imaging activities. Acridine and its derivatives intercalate within DNA and RNA by forming hydrogen-bonds and stacking between base pairs resulting in DNA crosslinks and strand breaks. In addition, acridine and its derivatives are a potent inhibitor of topoisomerase II enzyme. This results in the inhibition of DNA and RNA synthesis, predominantly occurring during S phase of the cell cycle and ultimately leads to cell death.