Abstract
The review places podophyllotoxin, a powerful anti-cancer material used in clinical treatment of small cell cancers, in focus. The economical synthesis of podophyllotoxin is not feasible and demand for this material outstrips supply. At present, Podophyllum hexandrum (Indian May apple) is the commercial source but it grows in an inhospitable region (the Himalayas) where it is collected from wild stands. Furthermore, the plant is now an endangered species. Alternative sources of podophyllotoxin are considered, e.g., the supply of podophyllotoxin and related lignans by establishing plant cell cultures that can be grown in fermentation vessels. Increase of product yields, by variation of medium and culture conditions or by varying the channelling of precursors into side-branches of the biosynthetic pathway by molecular approaches, are discussed.
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