lignans and HIV-Infections

Lignan compounds have a variety of pharmacological activities. The mechanism of anti-HIV lignans is through affecting a particular aspect of HIV replication cycle, thus inhibiting viral replication and infection. Lignan is divided into four categories based on different anti-HIV detection methods. In this paper, we summarize the advance in the study on anti-HIV lignan compounds in last two decades.

Topics: Animals; Anti-HIV Agents; HIV; HIV Infections; Humans; Lignans; Structure-Activity Relationship

The high number of citations of the previous review on anti-HIV compounds from plants published in 1998 in Planta Medica indicates the importance of natural products research in the battle against HIV. Therefore, we have decided to write an update of our previous review paper, this time covering the time span 1998 - 2007. The following antiviral chemical classes are discussed in detail: alkaloids, carbohydrates, coumarins, flavonoids, lignans, phenolics, proteins, quinones/xanthones, tannins and terpenes. If available, chemical structures, antiviral activity and selectivity, mechanism of action, and structure-activity relationship are presented.

Topics: Alkaloids; Anti-HIV Agents; Carbohydrates; Flavonoids; HIV Infections; Humans; Lignans; Phenols; Phytotherapy; Plant Proteins; Plants; Tannins; Terpenes

Many compounds of plant origin have been identified that inhibit different stages in the replication cycle of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV): 1) virus adsorption: chromone alkaloids (schumannificine), isoquinoline alkaloids (michellamines), sulphated polysaccharides and polyphenolics, flavonoids, coumarins (glycocoumarin, licopyranocoumarin) phenolics (caffeic acid derivatives, galloyl acid derivatives, catechinic acid derivatives), tannins and triterpenes (glycyrrhizin and analogues, soyasaponin and analogues); 2) virus-cell fusion: lectins (mannose- and N-acetylglucosamine-specific) and triterpenes (betulinic acid and analogues); 3) reverse transcription; alkaloids (benzophenanthridines, protoberberines, isoquinolines, quinolines), coumarins (calanolides and analogues), flavonoids, phloroglucinols, lactones (protolichesterinic acid), tannins, iridoids (fulvoplumierin) and triterpenes; 4) integration: coumarins (3-substituted-4-hydroxycoumarins), depsidones, O-caffeoyl derivatives, lignans (arctigenin and analogues) and phenolics (curcumin); 5) translation: single chain ribosome inactivating proteins (SCRIP's); 6) proteolytic cleavage (protease inhibition): saponins (ursolic and maslinic acids), xanthones (mangostin and analogues) and coumarins; 7) glycosylation: alkaloids including indolizidines (castanospermine and analogues), piperidines (1-deoxynojirimicin and analogues) and pyrrolizidines (australine and analogues); 8) assembly/release: naphthodianthrones (hypericin and pseudohypericin), photosensitisers (terthiophenes and furoisocoumarins) and phospholipids. The target of action of several anti-HIV substances including alkaloids (O-demethyl-buchenavianine, papaverine), polysaccharides (acemannan), lignans (intheriotherins, schisantherin), phenolics (gossypol, lignins, catechol dimers such as peltatols, naphthoquinones such as conocurvone) and saponins (celasdin B, Gleditsia and Gymnocladus saponins), has not been elucidated or does not fit in the proposed scheme. Only a very few of these plant-derived anti-HIV products have been used in a limited number of patients suffering from AIDS viz. glycyrrhizin, papaverine, trichosanthin, castanospermine, N-butyl-1-deoxynojirimicin and acemannan.

Topics: Alkaloids; Anti-HIV Agents; Coumarins; Flavonoids; HIV; HIV Infections; Humans; Lignans; Plants, Medicinal

Aster flaccidus bge has been used as traditional medicine in northwestern China. Two new phenylpropanoids (1-2) including one lignan: (7'R, 8S)-9'-lariciresinol-(alpha-methyl)-butanoate (1), 5,9-dimethoxyl-7-(alpha-methyl)-butanoxyl-phenyl-2E-propenol-(alpha-methyl)-butanoate (2) isolated from the chloroform extract of the root of Aster flaccidus bge were identified by means of extensive spectroscopic studies: 1D and 2D NMR spectra as well as HRMS analysis. They have not obvious anti-HIV-1 therapeutic activity (TI=1.0-1.1) compared with AZT (TI=55,556) as the result of the determination of their in vitro anti-HIV-1 activity while compound 2 displays strong antitumor activity against BEL 7402 (human liver carcinoma) with cisplatin as a positive control and the effect increases with the measuring-time going on (24 h, IC(50): 106.67+/-8.47 microM - 72 h, IC(50): 50.51+/-6.11 microM).

Topics: Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic; Aster Plant; Cell Line, Tumor; Cisplatin; HIV Infections; HIV-1; Humans; Lignans; Liver Neoplasms; Phenylpropionates; Phytotherapy; Plant Extracts