Efficacy of Selected Natural Products as Therapeutic Agents against Cancer

• Published in: Journal of natural products (Washington, D.C.) Vol. 71; no. 3; pp. 492 - 496
• Main Authors: Banerjee, Sanjeev, Wang, Zhiwei, Mohammad, Mussop, Sarkar, Fazlul H, Mohammad, Ramzi M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Chemical Society and American Society of Pharmacognosy 01.03.2008; Glendale, AZ American Chemical Society and AmericanSociety of Pharmacognosy; American Society of Pharmacognosy; American Chemical Society
• Subjects: Animals; antineoplastic agents; Antineoplastic Agents - pharmacology; Antineoplastic Agents - therapeutic use; Biological and medical sciences; Biological Products; Biological Products - pharmacology; Biological Products - therapeutic use; Bryostatins; Bryostatins - pharmacology; Bryostatins - therapeutic use; Combretum caffrum; Depsipeptides; Depsipeptides - pharmacology; Depsipeptides - therapeutic use; General pharmacology; Humans; lactones; Medical sciences; Models, Biological; Molecular Structure; Oligopeptides; Oligopeptides - pharmacology; Oligopeptides - therapeutic use; Pharmacognosy. Homeopathy. Health food; pharmacology; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Stilbenes; Stilbenes - pharmacology; Stilbenes - therapeutic use; therapeutic use; Thiazoles; Thiazoles - pharmacology; Thiazoles - therapeutic use; Antineoplastic agent; Terrestrial environment; Peptides; Pharmacognosy; Antitubulin; Animal origin; Lactone; Natural compound; Biological activity; Stilbene derivatives; Macrocycle; Medicinal plant; Marine environment; Plant origin; Antimitotic
• ISSN: 0163-3864; 1520-6025
• DOI: 10.1021/np0705716

With emerging sophistication in the exploration of ocean environment, a number of marine bioactive products have been identified with promising anticancer activity. Many of these are in active phase I or phase II clinical trials or have been terminated because of adverse side effects, mainly hematological in nature. Nonetheless, the information derived has aided enormously in providing leads for laboratory synthesis with modifications in the parent structure affecting compound solubility, absorption, and toxicity, resulting in less severe toxicity while achieving maximum efficacy in smaller doses. We describe herein, a few of the compounds obtained from marine and terrestrial sources [bryostatin 1 (1), dolastatin 10 (2), auristatin PE (3), and combretastatin A4 (4)] that have been extensively investigated in our laboratory and continue to be investigated for their sensitization effects with other cytotoxic agents in several different site-specific tumors employing murine models or human subjects.