Year: 2017
Type: article
Abstract: Sesquiterpene lactones (SQLs) are an important group of bioactive compounds that are usually found in the Asteraceae family, where they seem to be some of the most important constituents for defense against microorganisms. These secondary metabolites have a skeleton of 15 carbon atoms and are derived from farnesyl diphosphate. It is generally believed that they might present certain biological actions in humans. Some of these actions are worth extended research: anti-inflammatory, antitumor, antibacterial, antifungal, antinociceptive, antiulcer and hepatoprotective. It seems that the presence of the α-methylene-γ-lactone group is correlated with the existence of many pharmacological actions. Due to promising results on human cancer cell lines, the research was expanded to clinical trials investigating the antitumor potential. Sesquiterpene lactones inhibit the expression of the nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells, which could explain the anti-inflammatory effect. They also have good activity against Gram positive bacteria. As a result, some of these compounds show promise for practical use in the treatment of cancer, different inflammatory diseases and even as antibacterial or antifungal agents, while some have already been introduced in therapy as antimalarial agents (artemisinin and its semisynthetic derivatives). However, more studies regarding their biological activities and toxicity mechanisms are still to be done.
Source: The Medical-Surgical Journal
Institution: Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy
Language: English
Subfield: Organic Chemistry
Field: Chemistry
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W2911489865