Title:Cinnamaldehyde Analogues as Potential Therapeutic Agents
Volume: 17
Issue: 1
Author(s): Bang-Jiao Chen, Chun-Sheng Fu, Guo-Hui Li, Xiao-Ning Wang, Hong-Xiang Lou, Dong-Mei Ren and Tao Shen
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Cinnamaldehyde, cinnamaldehyde analogue, cinnamoyl, pharmacology, phytochemisty, synthesis.
Abstract: Cinnamaldehyde analogues are a class of chemical substances originated from derivatization
of cinnamaldehyde, and are structurally characterized by the presence of cinnamoyl moiety. Due to the
presence of highly reactive α,α-unsaturated carbonyl pharmacophore (Michael acceptor) in their
structures, these molecules are apt to react with some enzymes and/or receptors as electrophiles, and
consequently produce diverse therapeutically relevant pharmacological functions. Naturally occurring
molecules, trans-cinnamaldehyde (CA), 2-benzoyloxycinnam-aldehyde (2-BCA), and 2-
hydroxycinnamaldehyde (2-HCA) are representatives of this group, and have attracted lots of interest
for their bioactivities, especially the anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties. Owing to the
potential of CA, 2-BCA, and 2-HCA as therapeutic agents, researches on chemical syntheses and
modifications have been carried out to gain chemical entities with potent bioactivity and favorable
druggability. This review summarizes the progress on phytochemical and pharmacological aspects of
natural cinnamaldehyde analogues, illustrate the representative of synthetic molecules with potent
bioactivity, and discuss their potential as therapeutic agents.
