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Anticancer activities of artemisinin and its bioactive derivatives

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 October 2009

Gary L. Firestone  and
Shyam N. Sundar
Gary L. Firestone*
Affiliation:
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and The Cancer Research Laboratory, The University of California at Berkeley, CA 94720-3200, USA.
Shyam N. Sundar
Affiliation:
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and The Cancer Research Laboratory, The University of California at Berkeley, CA 94720-3200, USA.
*
*Corresponding author: Gary Firestone, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and The Cancer Research Laboratory, 591, Life Sciences Addition, The University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-3200, USA. Tel: +1 510 642 8319; Fax: +1 510 643 6791; E-mail: glfire@berkeley.edu
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Abstract

Artemisinin, a sesquiterpene lactone derived from the sweet wormwood plant Artemisia annua, and its bioactive derivatives exhibit potent anticancer effects in a variety of human cancer cell model systems. The pleiotropic response in cancer cells includes growth inhibition by cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, inhibition of angiogenesis, disruption of cell migration, and modulation of nuclear receptor responsiveness. These effects of artemisinin and its derivatives result from perturbations of many cellular signalling pathways. This review provides a comprehensive discussion of these cellular responses, and considers the ramifications for the potential development of artemisinin-based compounds in anticancer therapeutic and preventative strategies.

Type
Review Article
Information
Expert Reviews in Molecular Medicine , Volume 11 , July 2009 , e32
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

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References

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Further reading, resources and contacts

Efferth, T. (2009) Artemisinin: a versatile weapon from traditional Chinese medicine. In Herbal Drugs: Ethnomedicine to Modern Medicine (Ramawat, K.G. ed.), pp. 173-194, Springer-Verlag Berlin HeidelbergGoogle Scholar
Li, Q., Milhous, W.K. and Weina, P.J. (2007) Artemisinins in Malaria Therapy, Nova Science Publishers, NY, USAGoogle Scholar