Epothilone D (synthetic)

Applications Epothilones are polyketide natural products that inhibit cancer cells by a mechanism similar to paclitaxel, and also are effective against paclitaxel-resistant tumours. Epothilone D is in phase I clinical testing of in patients with advanced solid tumours. Epothilone D is a cytotoxic macrolide that stabilises malignant cells' microtubules and arrests mitosis, a characteristic it shares with other epothilones. They bind to the same hepatic sites as does paclitaxel (Taxol) in a 1:1 stoichiometric ratio of a, b-tubulin heterodimers. References Bollag, D.M., et al.: Cancer. Res., 55, 2325 (1995), Hardt, I.H., et al.: J. Nat. Prod., 64, 847 (2001), Gerth, K., et al.: J. Antibiot., 55, 41, 45 (2002)