title: Betulinic acid: a natural product with anticancer activity.
abstract: Betulinic acid (BA) is a naturally occurring pentacyclic triterpene that exhibits a variety of biological activities including potent antitumor properties. This anticancer activity has been linked to its ability to directly trigger mitochondrial membrane permeabilization, a central event in the apoptotic process that seals the cell's fate. In contrast to the potent cytotoxicity of BA against a variety of cancer types, nonmalignant cells and normal tissue remained relatively resistant to BA, indicating a therapeutic window. Since agents that exert a direct action on mitochondria may trigger cell death under circumstances in which standard chemotherapeutics fail, there is increasing interest to develop such compounds as experimental cancer therapeutics. Thus, mitochondrion-targeted agents such as BA hold great promise as a novel approach to bypass certain forms of drug resistance in human cancers.
authors.affiliation: University Children's Hospital, Ulm, Germany. simone.fulda@uniklinik-ulm.de
authors.forename: Simone
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fulda
mesh_terms: D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D001343:Autophagy / Q000187:drug effects; D001688:Biological Products / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016923:Cell Death / Q000187:drug effects*; D019008:Drug Resistance, Neoplasm / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D051336:Mitochondrial Membranes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D053978:Pentacyclic Triterpenes; D010539:Permeability; D014315:Triterpenes / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000094062:Betulinic Acid
chemical_list: D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic; D001688:Biological Products; D016328:NF-kappa B; D053978:Pentacyclic Triterpenes; D014315:Triterpenes; D000094062:Betulinic Acid