Title:Anti-cancer and Anti-angiogenic Properties of Various Natural Pentacyclic Tri-terpenoids and Some of their Chemical Derivatives
Volume: 19
Issue: 10
Author(s): Eva E. Rufino-Palomares, Amalia Perez-Jimenez, Fernando J. Reyes-Zurita, Leticia Garcia- Salguero, Khalida Mokhtari, Antonio Herrera-Merchan, Pedro P. Medina, Juan Peragon and Jose A. Lupianez
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Anti-cancer activity, apoptosis pathways, angiogenesis, cancer cell lines, cell growth, DNA and membrane damage, RNA and
cell death, pentacyclic triterpenes.
Abstract: Pentacyclic triterpenes are natural substances, synthesized and present in variable amounts in a large
number of terrestrial and aquatic plants, which act not only as antioxidants and antimicrobials but also as poisons,
antibiotics, protease inhibitors, and so on. From the organic chemistry point of view, they are compounds derived
from isoprene. These compounds consist of 30 carbons with different substituents, which facilitate their chemical identification and confer
different physico-chemical and molecular properties. During the last ten years, most of them have been reported to have a variety of
interesting and significant biological properties, such as analgesic, anti-allodynic, anti-diabetic, anti-oxidant, anti-parasitic, antimicrobial,
anti-viral, anti-atherogenic, anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, anti-tumour, growth-stimulating activities as well as cardioand
neuro-protective activity. However, special attention has been focused on the study of their anti-tumour capacity, fundamentally, on
the various molecular mechanisms involved in the induction of programmed cell death and the inhibition of metastatic activity, in different
types of cancers. Researchers have also focused on the role that different RNA molecules play in the anti-tumour activity of the major
triterpenes studied.
In this review, we look at the recent advances reported on the anti-tumorigenic roles of the main representatives of this group of compounds,
such as betulinic (BA), ursolic (UA), oleanolic (OA) and maslinic (MA) acids and some of their derivatives, with a special emphasis
on cell apoptosis and angiogenesis.
