A. Douglas Kinghorn

Heinz Falk

Simon Gibbons

Yoshinori Asakawa

Ji-Kai Liu

Verena M. Dirsch

This book describes current understandings and recent progress into a varied group of natural products. In the first chapter the role that total synthesis may play in revising the structures proposed for decanolides, which are ten-membered lactones found primarily in fungi, frogs, and termites is presented. The following chapter presents the development of the intriguing plant-derived sesquiterpene lactone, thapsigargin, a potent inhibitor of the enzyme, SERCA (sarco-endoplasmic Ca2+ ATPase), which has potential as a lead compound to treat cancer. The third chapter covers the potential of various plant phenolic compounds for treating the tropical and sub-tropical infectious disease, leishmaniasis. In addition the volume presents recent advances related to the plant alkaloid, cryptolepine, which is of particular interest as a lead for the treatment of malaria, trypanosomiasis, and cancer.

Progress in the Chemistry of Organic Natural Products 115

Jun'ichi Kobayashi

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

Satyajit D. Sarker

Jianbo Xiao

This book summarizes recent advances in the chemistry, bioactivity, nutrition, and functional aspects of dietary phytochemicals, as well as the health and functional aspects of foods rich in phytochemicals. Consisting of forty-four chapters, it discusses the different chemical types of phytochemicals in our diets and food and presents data collected from animal or human experiments that are directly related to human health. Each chapter covers the chemistry, epidemiological study, bioavailability, bioactivity (animal experiments) function in humans and safety, as well as products on the market. Moreover, the more than 200 figures make it easy to grasp the main findings in each area.

Handbook of Dietary Phytochemicals

Agnieszka Ludwiczuk

Fumihiro Nagashima

For some 50 years, Professor Asakawa and his group have focused their research on the chemical constituents of bryophytes and have found that these plants contain large numbers of secondary metabolites, such as terpenoids, acetogenins, and aromatic compounds representative of many new skeletons, which exhibit interesting biological activities. Individual terpenoids, when found as constituents of both a bryophyte and a higher plant, tend to occur in different enantiomeric forms. Professor Asakawa has covered the literature on bryophytes in two earlier volumes of Progress in the Chemistry of Organic Natural Products, namely, Volumes 42 (1982) and 65 (1995). Since the publication of the latter volume, a great deal of new information has appeared on bryophytes. One example is that known sex pheromones of algae have been discovered in two liverworts, indicating that some members of the latter taxonomic group might originate from brown algae. From information provided in this volume, it is suggested that two orders of the Marchantiophyta should be combined.

Bio- and Chemical Diversity, Biological Activity, and Chemosystematics

Chemical Constituents of Bryophytes

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.

Yoshinori Asakawa

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