No abstract

Recent advances in the chemistry of novel bioactive natural products are reported. This research is directed to the exploration of plants with confirmed activity in bioassays designed to detect potential cancer chemotherapeutic and chemopreventive agents. Structural work and chemical studies are reported for several cytotoxic agents from the plants Annona densicoma, Annona reticulata, Claopodium crispifolium, Polytrichum obioense, and Psorospermum febrifugum. Studies are also reported based on development of a mammalian cell culture benzo[a]pyrene metabolism assay for the detection of potential anticarcinogenic agents from natural products. In this study a number of isoflavonoids and flavonoids with antimutagenic activity have been discovered.

A new linear polyketide, Annonacin (I), has been isolated from active extracts of the stembark of Annona densicoma Mart. Annonacin (I) is highly cytotoxic and is active in an assay designed to detect antimitotic agents. The structure of (I) was determined by analysis of spectroscopic data.

An ethanol extract of Psoralea corylifolia caused strong DNA polymerase inhibition in a whole cell bioassay specific for inhibitors of DNA replication enzymes. Bioassay-directed purification of the active compounds led to the isolation of the new compound corylifolin (1) and the known compound bakuchiol (2) as DNA polymerase inhibitors. On the basis of the structures of 1 and 2, resveratrol (3) was tested and found to be active as a DNA polymerase inhibitor in this bioassay. Neobavaisoflavone (4) was isolated as a DNA polymerase inhibitor, daidzein (5) as a DNA polymerase and topoisomerase II inhibitor, and bakuchicin (6) as a topoisomerase II inhibitor.

Recent studies have examined and demonstrated the potential cancer chemopreventive activity of freeze-dried berries including strawberries and black raspberries. Although ellagic acid, an abundant component in these berries, has been shown to inhibit carcinogenesis both in vivo and in vitro, several studies have reported that other compounds in the berries may also contribute to the observed inhibitory effect. In the present study, freeze-dried strawberries (Fragara ananassa, FA) or black raspberries (Rubus ursinus, RU) were extracted, partitioned and chromatographed into several fractions (FA-F001, FA-F003, FA-F004, FA-F005, FA-DM, FA-ME from strawberries and RU-F001, RU-F003, RU-F004, RU-F005, RU-DM, RU-ME from black raspberries). These extracts, along with ellagic acid, were analyzed for anti-transformation activity in the Syrian hamster embryo (SHE) cell transformation model. None of the extracts nor ellagic acid by themselves produced an increase in morphological transformation. For assessment of chemopreventive activity, SHE cells were treated with each agent and benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) for 7 days. Ellagic acid, FA-ME and RU-ME fractions produced a dose-dependent decrease in transformation compared with B[a]P treatment only, while other fractions failed to induce a significant decrease. Ellagic acid, FA-ME and RU-ME were further examined using a 24 h co-treatment with B[a]P or a 6 day treatment following 24 h with B[a]P. Ellagic acid showed inhibitory ability in both protocols. FA-ME and RU-ME significantly reduced B[a]P-induced transformation only when co-treated with B[a]P for 24 h. These results suggest that a methanol extract from strawberries and black raspberries may display chemopreventive activity. The possible mechanism by which these methanol fractions (FA-ME, RU-ME) inhibited cell transformation appear to involve interference of uptake, activation, detoxification of B[a]P and/or intervention of DNA binding and DNA repair.