title: Pterocarpan scaffold: A natural lead molecule with diverse pharmacological properties.
abstract: Phytoalexins are substances produced by plants that act as potent inhibitors of pathogens. Pterocarpans are biologically active isoflavonoids most commonly found in the family Fabaceae that have the ability to act as phytoalexins. It is made up of a tetracyclic ring system possessing benzofuran-benzopyran. A very great number of pterocarpans have been isolated from natural sources and they are proved to have significant biological activities such as anti-microbial, anti-cancerous, anti-inflammatory and anti-malarial activities. Recently, pterocarpans gained lot of attention because of the broad range of anti-cancer activities in various cancer cell lines such as breast, leukemia, cervical, lung, colon and melanoma. Interestingly, pterocarpans exhibited inhibitory potency against many enzymes such as PTP1B, Neuraminidase, and α-glycosidase. In addition, they were shown to have anti-estrogenic and anti-diabetic activities. This review is a comprehensive inventory of the structures and sources of pterocarpans and it emphasizes on the biological evaluations of pterocarpans from various plant sources and their scope as a lead molecule.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX 77004, USA. Electronic address: chelliahs@tsu.edu.
authors.forename: Chelliah
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Selvam
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, Texas Southern University, Houston, TX 77004, USA.
authors.forename: Brian C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Jordan
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Engineering, Karpagam University, Coimbatore, India.
authors.forename: Sandhya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Prakash
authors.affiliation: Department of Science and Mathematics, Darton State College, Albany, GA 31707, USA.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mutisya
authors.affiliation: Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Engineering, Karpagam University, Coimbatore, India. Electronic address: thilagavathir@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Ramasamy
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Thilagavathi
mesh_terms: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000962:Antimalarials / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D036343:Pterocarpans / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents; D000962:Antimalarials; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D036343:Pterocarpans
keywords: Natural product chemistry; Pharmacological activity; Pterocarpan