Naturally occurring drugs

Mehtylxanthines are naturally occurring drugs, including theophylline, theobromine and caffeine. Methylxanthines at relatively high doses inhibit phosphodiesterases, which results in an increase in intracellular cAMP... 

EXAMPLES OF NATURALLY OCCURRING DRUGS OBTAINED FROM PLANTS... 

Z0337 Yamazaki, M., and H. Shirota. Application of experimental stress ulcer test in mice for the survey of neurotropic naturally occurring drug materials. Shoyakugaku Zasshi 1981 35 96—102. 

Nomura, T. Fukai, T. Momose, Y. Takeda, R. Abstract Papers of The 3rd Symposium on the Development and Application of Naturally occurring Drug Materials-, Tokyo, 1980, pp. 13-15. 

The naturally occurring drugs atropine and scopolamine have a different sort of antagonistic effect They block the muscarinic subtype of acetylcholine receptors. As a result, they impair our ability to form new memories and produce considerable mental confusion and drowsiness. At high doses, atropine and scopolamine can be lethal. 

Another naturally occurring drug that is similar to amphetamine can be found in the cactus Lophophora williamsii. Extracts are used to prepare a drink called peyote that contains 3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl-ethylamine(the meth and phenyl point to a molecule that is quite lipid soluble). Known as mescaline, this compound is structurally similar to the catecholamines dopamine and norepinephrine but seems to act more directly upon serotonin receptors because of the presence of the meth-oxy groups on the molecule. This feature of the compound s structure would make the compound more fat-soluble and therefore better able to enter the brain quickly and may explain... 

The two naturally occurring drug and insecticide adjuvants, sesamin and sesamolin from sesame oil, were found to posses modest juvenile hormone activity and served as models for the design of the first aromatic juvenile hormone analogs (12. 13.). 

Tonnesen HH. Chemistry, Stability and Analysis of Curcumin—a Naturally Occurring Drug Molecule. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Oslo, Oslo, NO, 1986. 

Ephedrine is a naturally occurring drug useful in the treatment of asthma. Its structure is shown in Figure 1.5. 

Knowing the structure and the mechanism of action of dynemicin A, and exploiting pre-vous experience in the synthesis of compounds of this class, Nicolaou and co-workers [13] have designed a new series of compounds to mimic but improve on the naturally occurring drug, and succeeded in obtaining powerful anticancer compounds such as 2, that are of much simpler structure and easier to synthesize. 

Pharm. Bull, 20, 717-719(1997) b) Matsuda H., Li Y., Yamahara J., Matsumura T., Yoshikawa M., presented at the 11th Symposium on the Development and Application of Naturally Occurring Drug materials, Tokyo, Aug. 1997, Abstracts paper p. 103-106. 

Node, M., M. Sai, N. Ito, K. Fuji, E. Fujita, T. Shingu, S. Takeda, and N. Unemi Antitumor Active Diterpenoids from Labiatae Plant. Abstract Papers of 4 th Symposium on the Development and Application of Naturally Occurring Drug Materials (Japan), p. 37 (1982). 

Nomura, T., T. Fukai, Y. Momose, and R. Takeda Hypotensive Constituents of the Root Bark of the Mulberry Tree Moms alba l.) and the Mechanism of Their Actions, Third Symposium on the Development and Application of Naturally Occurring Drug Materials, Symposium Paper, p 13, Aug., 1980, Tokyo, Japan. 

Fukai, T., L. Zeng, J. Nishizawa, and T. Nomura Studies of Prenylated Flavonoids of Chinese Licorices. 9th Symposium on the Development and Application of Naturally Occurring Drug Material, Abstract of Papers, p. 49. Shizuoka (Japan), July 1993. 

Local anesthetics, or "painkillers," are a well-studied class of compounds. Chemists have shown their abiUty to study the essential features of a naturally occurring drug and to improve on them by substituting totally new, S)mthetic surrogates. Often such substitutes are superior in desired medical effects and have fewer unwanted side effects or hazards. 

Ishiguro K, Yamaki M, Takagi S, Ikeda Y et al. 1984 Studies on iridoid-related compounds Antimicrobial and antitumor activity. Abstr 5th Symp Develop Appl Naturally Occurring Drug Materials pp. 58-60... 

Kinoshita T, Sankawa U, Takuma T, Asahi K 1984 Induction of differentiation of cultured tumor cells by flavonoids. Abstr 5th Symp Develop Appl Naturally Occurring Drug Materials, pp. 67-69... 

Kuroyanagi M, Ebihara T, Tsukamoto K, Fukushima S et al. 1984 Screening of antibacterial constituents of crude drugs and plants. Abstr 5th Symposium On Development And Application of Naturally Occurring Drug Materials pp. 55-57... 

Okuda T, Yoshida T, Hatano T, Mori K et al. 1984 Structures and activites of tannins of crude drugs (Part 3). Abstr 5th Symp Devel Appl Naturally Occurring Drug Materials, pp. 46-48... 

Ageta, H. Chemical and Chemosystematic Studies on Fern Triterpenoids. Japan-China Symposium on Naturally Occurring Drugs Tokyo, Nov. 1986, Symposium Papers, p. 29. 

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