Marine Natural Products with High Anticancer Activities

Area of Science:

• Marine Natural Products
• Medicinal Chemistry
• Cancer Biology

Background:

• Marine organisms are a rich source of structurally diverse natural products.
• Many marine natural products exhibit significant biological activities, including anticancer properties.
• Understanding their mechanisms of action is crucial for drug development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review recent literature (2012-2019) on marine natural products and analogues with anticancer activity.
• To summarize cellular and molecular mechanisms and biological functions of these compounds.
• To highlight marine-derived drugs in clinical trials or on the market.

Main Methods:

• Literature search of scientific databases for relevant studies.
• Categorization of compounds into nine major groups based on chemical structure.
• Analysis of reported biological activities, mechanisms, and synthetic studies.

Main Results:

• Identified 170 marine natural products and semisynthetic analogues with potent anticancer activity.
• Detailed various compound classes including alkaloids, sterols, glycosides, terpenes, macrolides, polypeptides, quinones, phenols, and others.
• Included studies on biosynthetic pathways, total synthesis, and structure elucidation.

Conclusions:

• Marine natural products represent a promising resource for novel anticancer drug discovery.
• Further research into their mechanisms and synthetic modification can accelerate clinical translation.
• Several marine-derived compounds are progressing through clinical trials, demonstrating therapeutic potential.