Laboratório de Patologia de Moléstias Infecciosas, Departamento de Patologia, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo, Avenue Dr. Arnaldo 455, 06780-210 Cerqueira César, SP, Brazil ; Instituto de Ciências Ambientais, Químicas e Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Rua Professor Artur Riedel 275, 09972-270 Diadema, SP, Brazil.
Instituto de Ciências Ambientais, Químicas e Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Rua Professor Artur Riedel 275, 09972-270 Diadema, SP, Brazil.
Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2015;2015:620472. doi: 10.1155/2015/620472. Epub 2015 Feb 22.
Triterpenoids are the most representative group of phytochemicals, as they comprise more than 20,000 recognized molecules. These compounds are biosynthesized in plants via squalene cyclization, a C30 hydrocarbon that is considered to be the precursor of all steroids. Due to their low hydrophilicity, triterpenes were considered to be inactive for a long period of time; however, evidence regarding their wide range of pharmacological activities is emerging, and elegant studies have highlighted these activities. Several triterpenic skeletons have been described, including some that have presented with pentacyclic features, such as oleanolic and ursolic acids. These compounds have displayed incontestable biological activity, such as antibacterial, antiviral, and antiprotozoal effects, which were not included in a single review until now. Thus, the present review investigates the potential use of these triterpenes against human pathogens, including their mechanisms of action, via in vivo studies, and the future perspectives about the use of compounds for human or even animal health are also discussed.
三萜类化合物是最具代表性的植物化学物质群体，因为它们包含超过 20,000 种已被识别的分子。这些化合物是通过角鲨烯环化在植物中生物合成的，角鲨烯是一种被认为是所有类固醇的前体的 C30 碳氢化合物。由于其低亲水性，三萜类化合物在很长一段时间内被认为是无活性的；然而，关于它们广泛的药理活性的证据正在出现，并且精心设计的研究已经强调了这些活性。已经描述了几种三萜类骨架，包括一些具有五环特征的骨架，如齐墩果酸和熊果酸。这些化合物表现出无可争议的生物活性，如抗菌、抗病毒和抗原生动物作用，直到现在才在单一综述中包含这些作用。因此，本综述通过体内研究调查了这些三萜类化合物对人类病原体的潜在用途，以及它们的作用机制，还讨论了关于将化合物用于人类甚至动物健康的未来展望。
