PLANT PHENOLIC-COMPOUNDS AS CYTOTOXIC ANTITUMOR AGENTS

The cytotoxic antitumor plant phenolics and their analogs are reviewed with emphasis on those discovered from the author's laboratory. The active compounds include, in addition to those which are in clinical use or trials as anticancer drugs, alkaloids, anthraquinones, coumarins, flavonoids, lignans, macrolides, naphtho-quinones, and polyphenols. The compounds are discussed briefly with respect to their in vitro cytotoxicity and in vivo antitumor activity as well as their structure-activity relationships and mechanism of action, when sufficient data are available.