The compound (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) is the major catechin found in green tea [Camellia sinensis L. Ktze. (Theaceae)]. This polyphenolic compound and several related catechins are believed to be responsible for the health benefits associated with the consumption of green tea. The potential health benefits ascribed to green tea and EGCG include antioxidant effects, cancer chemoprevention, improving cardiovascular health, enhancing weight loss, protecting the skin from the damage caused by ionizing radiation, and others. The compound EGCG has been shown to regulate dozens of disease-specific molecular targets. Many of these molecular targets are only affected by concentrations of EGCG that are far above the levels achieved by either drinking green tea or consuming moderate doses of green tea extract-based dietary supplements. In spite of this, well-designed double-blinded controlled clinical studies have recently demonstrated the efficacy of green tea extracts and purified EGCG products in patients. Therefore, this review highlights results from what the authors believe to be some of the most clinically significant recent studies and describes current developments in the stereoselective total synthesis of EGCG.

Originally purified as a major lipid component of a strain of the cyanobacterium Lyngbya majuscula isolated in Curaçao, curacin A is a potent inhibitor of cell growth and mitosis, binding rapidly and tightly at the colchicine site of tubulin. Because its molecular structure differs so greatly from that of colchicine and other colchicine site inhibitors, we prepared a series of curacin A analogs to determine the important structural features of the molecule. These modifications include reduction and E-to-Z transitions of the olefinic bonds in the 14-carbon side chain of the molecule; disruption of and configurational changes in the cyclopropyl moiety; disruption, oxidation, and configurational reversal in the thiazoline moiety; configurational reversal and substituent modifications at C13; and demethylation at C10. Inhibitory effects on tubulin assembly, the binding of colchicine to tubulin, and the growth of MCF-7 human breast carcinoma cells were examined. The most important portions of curacin A required for its interaction with tubulin seem to be the thiazoline ring and the side chain at least through C4, the portion of the side chain including the C9-C10 olefinic bond, and the C10 methyl group. Only two modifications totally eliminated the tubulin-drug interaction. The inactive compounds were a segment containing most of the side chain, including its two substituents, and analogs in which the methyl group at the C13 oxygen atom was replaced by a benzoate residue. Antiproliferative activity comparable with that observed with curacin A was only reproduced in compounds that were potent inhibitors of the binding of colchicine to tubulin. Molecular modeling and quantitative structure-activity relationship studies demonstrated that most active analogs overlapped extensively with curacin A but failed to provide an explanation for the apparent structural analogy between curacin A and colchicine.

Antifungal compounds exert their activity through a variety of mechanisms, some of which are poorly understood. Novel approaches to characterize the mechanism of action of antifungal agents will be of great use in the antifungal drug development process. The aim of the present study was to investigate the changes in the gene expression profile of Saccharomyces cerevisiae following exposure to representatives of the four currently available classes of antifungal agents used in the management of systemic fungal infections. Microarray analysis indicated differential expression of 0.8, 4.1, 3.0, and 2.6% of the genes represented on the Affymetrix S98 yeast gene array in response to ketoconazole, amphotericin B, caspofungin, and 5-fluorocytosine (5-FC), respectively. Quantitative real time reverse transcriptase-PCR was used to confirm the microarray analyses. Genes responsive to ketoconazole, caspofungin, and 5-FC were indicative of the drug-specific effects. Ketoconazole exposure primarily affected genes involved in ergosterol biosynthesis and sterol uptake; caspofungin exposure affected genes involved in cell wall integrity; and 5-FC affected genes involved in DNA and protein synthesis, DNA damage repair, and cell cycle control. In contrast, amphotericin B elicited changes in gene expression reflecting cell stress, membrane reconstruction, transport, phosphate uptake, and cell wall integrity. Genes with the greatest specificity for a particular drug were grouped together as drug-specific genes, whereas genes with a lack of drug specificity were also identified. Taken together, these data shed new light on the mechanisms of action of these classes of antifungal agents and demonstrate the potential utility of gene expression profiling in antifungal drug development.

The transcription factor hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) is a key regulator of tumor cell adaptation and survival under hypoxic conditions. Selective HIF-1 inhibitors represent an important new class of potential molecular-targeted antitumor therapeutic agents. Extracts of plants and marine organisms were evaluated using a T47D human breast tumor cell-based reporter assay for HIF-1 inhibitors. Bioassay-guided fractionation of the lipid extract of Saururus cernuus resulted in the isolation of manassantin B (1) and a new compound, 4-O-demethylmanassantin B (2). The structure of 2 was determined spectroscopically. The absolute configurations of manassantin-type dineolignans have not been previously reported. Therefore, the absolute configurations of the chiral centers in each side chain were deduced from spectroscopic analysis of the Mosher MTPA ester derivatives of 1. Both 1 and 2 are among the most potent small molecule HIF-1 inhibitors discovered, to date, with IC(50) values of 3 and 30 nM, respectively. Compounds 1 and 2 selectively inhibited hypoxia-activated HIF-1 in contrast to iron chelator-activated HIF-1. Compounds 1 and 2 also inhibited hypoxic induction of the angiogenic factor VEGF. Further study revealed that 1 selectively blocked the induction of HIF-1alpha protein, the oxygen regulated HIF-1 subunit that determines HIF-1 activity.

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