An Update on Pentacyclic Triterpenoids Ursolic and Oleanolic Acids and Related Derivatives as Anticancer Candidates
Diana Similie,
Daliana Minda,
Larisa Bora,
Vladislavs Kroškins,
Jevgeņija Lugiņina,
Māris Turks,
Cristina Adriana Dehelean,
Corina Danciu
Affiliations
Diana Similie
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Eftimie Murgu Square, No. 2, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
Daliana Minda
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Eftimie Murgu Square, No. 2, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
Larisa Bora
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Eftimie Murgu Square, No. 2, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
Vladislavs Kroškins
Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology, Riga Technical University, Paula Valdena Str. 3, LV-1048 Riga, Latvia
Jevgeņija Lugiņina
Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology, Riga Technical University, Paula Valdena Str. 3, LV-1048 Riga, Latvia
Māris Turks
Institute of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology, Riga Technical University, Paula Valdena Str. 3, LV-1048 Riga, Latvia
Cristina Adriana Dehelean
Research and Processing Center of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Eftimie Murgu Square, No. 2, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
Corina Danciu
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, “Victor Babeș” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Eftimie Murgu Square, No. 2, 300041 Timisoara, Romania
Cancer is a global health problem, with the incidence rate estimated to reach 40% of the population by 2030. Although there are currently several therapeutic methods, none of them guarantee complete healing. Plant-derived natural products show high therapeutic potential in the management of various types of cancer, with some of them already being used in current practice. Among different classes of phytocompounds, pentacyclic triterpenoids have been in the spotlight of research on this topic. Ursolic acid (UA) and its structural isomer, oleanolic acid (OA), represent compounds intensively studied and tested in vitro and in vivo for their anticancer and chemopreventive properties. Since natural compounds can rarely be used in practice as such due to their characteristic physico-chemical properties, to tackle this problem, their derivatization has been attempted, obtaining compounds with improved solubility, absorption, stability, effectiveness, and reduced toxicity. This review presents various UA and OA derivatives that have been synthesized and evaluated in recent studies for their anticancer potential. It can be observed that the most frequent structural transformations were carried out at the C-3, C-28, or both positions simultaneously. It has been demonstrated that conjugation with heterocycles or cinnamic acid, derivatization as hydrazide, or transforming OH groups into esters or amides increases anticancer efficacy.
