New Synthetic Route for Amanitin, a Therapeutically Interesting Mushroom Toxin
Phoenix666 writes:
The death cap mushroom is highly toxic. However, some of its toxins can also be healing: amanitins are potential components for antibody-based cancer treatments. In the journal Angewandte Chemie, German scientists have now introduced a new synthetic route for I-amanitin. Their method seems suitable for production on a larger scale, finally making enough of the toxin available for further research.
Amanitins inhibit the enzyme RNA polymerase II with high selectivity, which leads to cell death. When transported into tumor cells by antibodies, the toxin could fight tumors. Until recently, however, the only source of amanitins was the mushrooms (Amanita phalloides) themselves, which limited the possibilities for experimentation.
More information: Mary-Ann J. Siegert et al. A Convergent Total Synthesis of the Death Cap Toxin I-Amanitin, Angewandte Chemie International Edition (2019). DOI: 10.1002/anie.201914620
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