A. Douglas Kinghorn

Heinz Falk

Simon Gibbons

Jun'ichi Kobayashi

The first contribution presents coumarins, the largest group of 1-benzopyran derivatives found in plants. Coumarin chemistry remains one of the major interest areas of phytochemists, especially because of their structural diversity and medicinal properties, along with the wide-ranging bioactivities of these compounds, inclusive of analgesic, anticoagulant anti-HIV, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antineoplastic, antioxidant, and immunomodulatory effects. The second contribution presents a comprehensive survey of the many aspects of PAD biochemistry and physiology. The third contribution gives a comprehensive overview of secondary metabolites from higher fungi, with more than 700 references highlighting the isolation, structure elucidation, biological activities, chemical synthesis, and biosynthesis of pigments, nitrogen-containing compounds, and terpenoids from mushrooms.

Progress in the Chemistry of Organic Natural Products 106

Yoshinori Asakawa

Ji-Kai Liu

The first review describes examples of very promising compounds discovered from plants acquired from Africa, Southeast Asia, the Americas, and the Caribbean region with potential anticancer activity. These include plant secondary metabolites of the diphyllin lignan, penta[b]benzofuran, triterpenoid, and tropane alkaloid types. The second review presents 40 more erythrinan alkaloids, which were either new or were missed out in the last major reviews, bringing to a total of 154 known erythrinan alkaloids known to date. The reported pharmacological activities of the new and known alkaloids showed a greater bias towards central nervous system and related activities. Other prominent activities reported were antifeedant or insecticidal, cytotoxicity/antitumor/anticancer/estrogenic, antiprotozoal, antiinflammatory, antioxidant, antifungal and antiviral activities.

Progress in the Chemistry of Organic Natural Products 107

A. D. Kinghorn

The volumes of this classic series, now referred to simply as "Zechmeister" after its founder, Laszlo Zechmeister, have appeared under the Springer Imprint ever since the series' inauguration in 1938. The series has featured contributions by seven Nobel laureates: D.H.R. Barton, D. Crowfoot Hodgkin, L. Pauling, K. Alder, O. Diels, P. Karrer, and H. von Euler-Chelpin. The volumes contain contributions on various topics related to the origin, distribution, chemistry, synthesis, biochemistry, function or use of various classes of naturally occurring substances ranging from small molecules to biopolymers. Each contribution is written by a recognized authority in the field and provides a comprehensive and up-to-date review of the topic in question. Addressed to biologists, technologists, and chemists alike, the series can be used by the expert as a source of information and literature citations and by the non-expert as a means of orientation in a rapidly developing discipline.

Progress in the Chemistry of Organic Natural Products 101

The book presents the current state of the art on phytocannnabinoid chemistry and pharmacology and will be of much use to those wishing to understand the current landscape of the exciting and intriguing phytocannabinoid science. The focus is on natural product cannabinoids which have been demonstrated to act at specific receptor targets in the CNS.

Unraveling the Complex Chemistry and Pharmacology of Cannabis sativa

Phytocannabinoids

The first contribution summarizes current trends in research on medicinal plants in Mexico with emphasis on work carried out at the authors' laboratories. The most relevant phytochemical and pharmacological profiles of a selected group of plants used widely for treating major national health problems are described. The second contribution provides a detailed survey of the so far reported literature data on the capacities of selected oxyprenylated phenylpropanoids and polyketides to trigger receptors, enzymes, and other types of cellular factors for which they exhibit a high degree of affinity and therefore evoke specifice responses. And the third contribution discusses aspects of endophytic actinobacterial biology and chemistry, including biosynthesis and total synthesis of secondary metabolites produced in culture. It also presents perspectives fo the future of microbial biodiscovery, with emphasis on the seondary metabolism of endophytic actinobacteria.

Jun'ichi Kobayashi

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