Synthesis and Evaluation of Biological Activity of Podophyllotoxin and Its Analogues as Anticancer Drug Candidates
A special issue of Organics (ISSN 2673-401X).
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2025 | Viewed by 73
Special Issue Editor
Interests: synthetic organic chemistry; stereochemistry; asymmetric synthesis; chemistry of natural products
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Podophyllotoxin, an aryltetralin-type lignan isolated from species of Podophyllum, is a remarkable molecule that has been used for centuries in traditional medicine for various purposes. Currently, it serves as the foundation for developing new, highly effective derivatives that are widely used today in anticancer treatment and oncological therapy. However, podophyllotoxin and its naturally occurring congeners have low bioavailability and can also cause various adverse side effects, prompting researchers to search for derivatives and congeners with more favourable pharmacological properties. For example, Etoposide is the frontline chemotherapeutic drug used to treat various cancers due to its strong anticancer activity; recently, its potential to treat cytokine storms in COVID-19 patients has been rediscovered. Considering the fact that new podophyllotoxin derivatives still have certain drawbacks and the considerable challenges associated with synthetic procedures, continuing research in this field is important. Many prominent research groups around the world are studying the synthesis of podophyllotoxin congeners, biological activity assessments, and their mechanisms of action. Therefore, we invite researchers to contribute their knowledge, research experience, or current results to this Special Issue.
Prof. Dr. Zbigniew Czarnocki
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- podophyllotoxin
- lignans
- anticancer drugs
- synthesis
- biological activity
- cancer cell lines
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