3. Chemical and biological aspects of Amaryllidaceae alkaloids

BASTIDA, JAUME; BERKOV, STRAHIL; TORRAS, LAURA; PIGNI, NATALIA BELÉN; DE ANDRADE, JEAN PAULO; MARTÍNEZ, VANESSA; CODINA, CARLES; VILADOMAT, FRANCESC; DIEGO MUÑOZ-TORRERO

Recent Advances in Pharmaceutical Sciences

Transworld Research Network

Lugar: Kerala; Año: 2011; p. 65 - 100

The Amaryllidaceae alkaloids represent a large (over 300 alkaloids have been isolated) and still expanding group of biogenetically related isoquinoline alkaloids that are found exclusively in plants belonging to this family. In spite of their great variety of pharmacological and/or biological properties, only galanthamine is used therapeutically. First isolated from Galanthus species, this alkaloid is a long-acting, selective, reversible and competitive inhibitor of acetylcholinesterase, and is used for the treatment of Alzheimer´s disease. Other Amaryllidaceae alkaloids of pharmacological interest will also be described in this chapter.