title: Structures and properties of naturally occurring polyether antibiotics.
abstract: Polyether ionophores represent a large group of natural, biologically active substances produced by Streptomyces spp. They are lipid soluble and able to transport metal cations across cell membranes. Several of polyether ionophores are widely used as growth promoters in veterinary. Polyether antibiotics show a broad spectrum of bioactivity ranging from antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antiviral, and tumour cell cytotoxicity. Recently, it has been shown that some of these compounds are able to selectively kill cancer stem cells and multidrug-resistant cancer cells. Thus, they are recognized as new potential anticancer drugs. The biological activity of polyether ionophores is strictly connected with their molecular structure; therefore, the purpose of this paper is to present an overview of their formula, molecular structure, and properties.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Adam Mickiewicz University, Grunwaldzka 6, 60-780 Poznań, Poland. jacekr@amu.edu.pl
authors.forename: Jacek
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rutkowski
authors.forename: Bogumil
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Brzezinski
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000145:classification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D019008:Drug Resistance, Neoplasm / Q000187:drug effects; D006801:Humans; D007476:Ionophores / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000145:classification / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015394:Molecular Structure; D014411:Neoplastic Stem Cells / Q000187:drug effects; D013302:Streptomyces / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D007476:Ionophores