Bioactive saponins from plants

Lacaille-Dubois MA (2005) Bioactive saponins from plants recent developments. In Yaniv Z, Bachrach U (eds) Handbook of medicinal plants. Food Products Press (FPP)/The Haworth Medical Press (HMP), New York, pp 399-428, Chapter 19... 

CS021 Murakami, T., J. Nakamura, H. Mat-suda and M. Yoshikawa. Bioactive saponins and glycosides. XV. Saponin constituents with gastroprotective effect from the seeds of tea plant, Camellia sinensis L. var. assamica Pierre, cultivated in Sri Lanka structures of assamsaponins A, B, C, D and E. Chem Pharm Bull 1999 47(12) 1759-1764. 

Saponins are distributed widely in plants, including many signihcant foodstuffs and medicinal plants. In traditional Chinese herbal medicine, saponin components are of special importance many of tliem exhibit various interesting bioactivities. However, research on saponins has been limited to the isolation of these compounds and the determination of their structure. Pharmacological evaluation of saponins has been mainly retained at the folkloric level. The difficulty in isolation of saponins from... 

As expected due to chemical instability the number of acyclic peroxides is lower. Most of them occur as plant derived products, but also in soft corals hke Clavularia inflata, hydroperoxides with potent cytotoxicity exist. Interestingly the bioactivity disappeared when the hydroperoxide function was deleted. It must be noted that most of natural hydroperoxides in plants are foimd in the group of saponins from Panax ginseng or Ficus microcarpa, which are used in ethnomedicine in South East Asia. 

Yang C-R, Li X-C (1996) Bioactive Triterpenoid and Steroid Saponins from Medicinal Plants in Southwest China. Adv Exp Med Biol 404 225... 

Saponins constitute a structurally and biologically diverse class of molecule that are widely distributed in terrestrial plant and some marine organisms. The extreme difficulties associated with the purification of closely related saponins from a natural source provides synthesis with a realistic opportunity to contribute to the availability of homogeneous saponins. One of our current effort was being directed toward the total synthesis of bioactive steroid saponins from Chinese herbs. 

Parente JP, Pereira da Silva B (2008) Bioactive steroidal saponins from Brazilian medicinal plants. Curr Trends Med Chem 5 45-57... 

Lacaille-Dubois MA, Hanquet B, Cui ZH, Wagner H (1997) Structure and bioactivity of a new saponin from Silene fortunei. Annual meeting of the Society for Medicinal Plant Research, Regensburg, Germany, September, 7-11, 1997, Abstract book G 18... 

Yoshikawa M, Monkawa T, Nakamura S et til (2(X)7) Bioactive saponins and glycosides. XXV.l) Acylated oleanane-type triterpene saponins from the seeds of tea plant (Camellia sinensis). Chem Pharm Bidl 55 57-63... 

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