From Valeriana officinalis to cancer therapy: the success of a bio-sourced compound

Abstract

Introduction. Over the centuries, bio-sourced compounds isolated from plants, insects and microorganisms have been a potent source of drugs for the treatment of human diseases. Literature. Bio-sourced extracts offer a wide diversity of compounds with a large number of potentially beneficial effects in humans. Serendipity has frequently played a key role in the discovery of new medicines. The canonical discovery of penicillin required both chance and a prepared mind to understand and exploit its potential for the treatment of human infections. Nowadays, most anti-cancer drugs currently in clinical use were at least partly discovered by a "fortunate happenstance". Conclusions. In this review, we recapitulate the story of one of these compounds, 2-propylpentanoic acid, derived from the Valeriana officinalis flowering plant and its path to validation as a cancer treatment.

Keywords

• Valeriana officinalis
• medicinal properties
• epilepsy
• chromatin
• gene expression
• neoplasms