Selected Monocyclic Monoterpenes and Their Derivatives as Effective Anticancer Therapeutic Agents

Abstract

Terpenes—a diverse group of secondary metabolites—constitute the largest class of natural products abundant in almost every plant species. The properties of concrete terpenes and essential oils have been intensively studied due to their widespread use in the pharmaceutical, food and cosmetics industries. Despite the popularity of these aromatic compounds, their derivatives, terpenoids, are still not comprehensively characterized despite exhibiting potent bioactive properties. This review aims to assess the anticancer properties of selected monoterpenes including carvone, carvacrol, perillyl alcohol, perillaldehyde, limonene, menthol and their derivatives while also evaluating potential applications as novel anticancer treatments. Special attention is paid to functional groups that improve the bioactivity of monoterpene molecules. This review also covers the therapeutic potential of deep eutectic solvents that contain monoterpene substances. Taken together, the literature supports the use of monoterpene derivatives in the development of new alternatives for disease treatment and prevention.

Bioscreening and pre-clinical evaluation of the impact of bioactive molecules from Ptychotis verticillata on the multilineage potential of mesenchymal stromal cells towards immune- and inflammation-mediated diseases

“…Carvacrol, chemically known as 2-methyl-5-(1methylethyl)-phenol, is a phenolic monoterpenoid and isomer with thymol. Carvacrol exhibits broad-spectrum bioactivity that may be useful in pharmacology, as an antimicrobial, antioxidant and anticancer agent [43]. Carvacrol has been shown to promote the angiogenesis and endothelial differentiation of MSCs which may participate in tissue regeneration [44].…”

Bioactive properties of the aromatic molecules of spearmint (Mentha spicataL.) essential oil: a review

“…Natural products having stronger antitumor properties with fewer side effects have attracted much attention recently. 87 Carvone has been shown to be cytotoxic in some tumor cell lines. For example, carvone was cytotoxic to the HeLa (cervical cancer) tumor cell line (CC 50 = 74.5 µg mL −1 ) and had little effect on the non-tumor cell line (CC 50 > 200 µg mL −1 ).…”

“…Natural products having stronger antitumor properties with fewer side effects have attracted much attention recently. 87…”

The Monoterpenoid Perillyl Alcohol: Anticancer Agent and Medium to Overcome Biological Barriers

“…POH was also complexed with β-cyclodextrin, which resulted in improved anticancer potency in vitro and in a sarcoma S180-induced mouse model in vivo [158]. Beyond these selected examples, several more reports on modified POH (or perillic acid) molecules exist, and the interested reader is referred to excellent recent reviews [159,160] for additional information and detailed references. Some hybrid drugs are generated as multifunctional compounds, where two or more molecules with already well-characterized pharmacologic activity are conjugated through a stable or metabolizable linker.…”