Maytenus buchananii

Oxazinomycin (l)5 is a 1,3-oxazine antibiotic. There are five other antileukemic antibiotic macrolides of known tetrahydro-l,3-oxazine-2-one structures. Maytansine, Maytanprine, and Maytanbutine were found by Kupchan et a/.278,278 in Maytenus ovatus and Maytenus buchananii, and in Maytenus serrata by Meyers et al.,277 and Calubrinol... 

Larson GM, Schaneberg BT, Sneden AT (1999) Two New Maytansinoids from Maytenus buchananii. J Nat Prod 62 361... 

Maytansines Maytenus serrata i Maytenus buchananii > (Celastraceae) Putterlickia verrucosa Colubrina texensis (Rhamnaceae) Antimitotic, antileukaemic, antitumour... 

Kupchan, S.M., Komoda, Y., Thomas, G.J., Hintz, H.PJ. Maytanprine and maytanbutine, new antileukaemic ansa macrolides from Maytenus buchananii. J. Chem. Soc. Chem. Comm. 1972, 1065... 

Although Aikman s book appears current even today, it can be said that no dramatic breakthroughs have since occurred with regard to cancer therapies. At the time, there was a great deal of interest in the African shrub Maytenus buchananii for cancer treatment. Thus, the alkaloids present in the genus Maytenus, notably maytensine, have been found to have an anticancer action, particularly against leukemias (Hoffman, 1999, p. 146). However, this has not yet been translated into a successful, commercial mode of treatment. But this has been the case for most plant-derived medicinal prospects. 

In the same year Kupchan et al. [259] described two new and potent antileukemic ansa macrolides isolated from the alcoholic extract of stems of Maytenus buchananii. Thus, maytanprine (222) and maytanbutine (223) were the new principles which showed lymphocytic leukemia over a 50-100-fold dosage range at the pg/kg level. Fig. (56). 

Kutney JP, Beale MH, Salisbury PJ, Stuart KL et al. 1981 Isolation and characterization of natural products from plant tissue cultures of Maytenus buchananii. Phytochemistry 20 653-657... 

Sneden AT, Beemsterboer GL 1980 Normaytansine, a new antileukemic ansa macrolide from Maytenus buchananii. J Nat Prod 43 637-640... 

Kupchan, S. M., Y. Komoda, G. J. Thomas, and H. P. J. Hintz Maytanprine and Maytanbutine, New Antileukemic Ansa Macrolides from Maytenus buchananii. Chem. Commun. 1065 (1972). 

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