Natural Peroxy Anticancer Agents

Abstract

Present review describes research on novel natural anticancer agents isolated from terrestrial and marine sources. More than 120 cytotoxic anticancer compounds have shown confirmed activity in vitro tumor cell lines bioassay and are of current interest to Natural Cancer Institute for further in vivo evaluation. Intensive searches for new classes of pharmacologically potent agents produced by terrestrial and marine organisms have resulted in the discovery of dozens of compounds possessing high cytotoxic activities. However, only a limited number of them have been tested in pre-clinical and clinical trials. One of the reasons is a limited supply of the active ingredients from the natural sources. However, the pre-clinical and clinical development of many terrestrial and/or marine-derived natural products into pharmaceuticals is often hampered by a limited supply from the natural source. Total synthesis is of vital importance in these situations, allowing for the production of useful quantities of the target compound for further biological evaluation. With computer program PASS some additional biological activities are also predicted, which point toward new possible applications of these compounds. This review emphasizes the role of terrestrial and marine peroxides as an important source of leads for drug discovery.