Biomedical Potentials of Crown Ethers: Prospective Antitumor Agents

Abstract

Crown ethers are of enormous interest and importance in chemistry, biochemistry, materials science, catalysis, separation, transport and encapsulated processes, as well as in the design and synthesis of various synthetic systems with specific properties, diverse capabilities, and programmable functions. Classical crown ethers are macrocyclic polyethers that contain 3-20 oxygen atoms separated from each other by two or more carbon atoms. They are exceptionally versatile in selectively binding a range of metal ions and a variety of organic neutral and ionic species. Crown ethers are currently being studied and used in a variety of applications beyond their traditional place in chemistry. This review presents additional applications and the ever-increasing biomedical potentials of these intriguing compounds, with particular emphasis on the prospects of their relevance as anticancer agents. We believe that further research in this direction should be encouraged, as crown compounds could either induce toxicities that are different from those of conventional antitumor drugs, or complement drugs in current use, thereby providing a valuable adjunct to therapy.

The miRNA as human cell gene activity regulator after ionizing radiation

“…We obtained the same results for the cell viability indicator: about 15% in Down syndrome and more than 60% in cells of healthy donors. Similar results were obtained when using a synthetic product, RUSSIAN [56], whose antimutagenic and anticarcinogenic activity were described in [57]. Consequently, we found that protection of cells in the adaptive response and exposure to antimutagens (retinol, garlic extract, and crown compound) is implemented in different ways, which seems essential to understand the mechanisms of cell protection from damaging impacts.…”

Multifunctional membranes based on photosensitive crown-ether derivatives with advanced properties

“…Moreover, the numerous works concerning self-assembled monolayers of macrocyclic complexes with inorganic and organic molecules and ions have been published recently by various research groups worldwide [38][39][40][41]. The numerous crown-containing compounds with various substituents are promissing for application in molecular devices [42], chromatography [43], catalysis [44,45], biomedical fields [46,47], photovoltaics [48,49], hybrids [50,51] and special [52][53][54] materials. …”

Synthesis of New Aza‐ and Thia‐Crown Ether Based Amino Acids

“…Interestingly, crown ethers have also been shown to have applications in a biological or medicinal context. For example, certain crown ether compounds show high antimicrobial activity . Additionally, crown ethers show potential as anticancer agents and for other biomedical applications .…”

“…For example, certain crown ether compounds show high antimicrobial activity . Additionally, crown ethers show potential as anticancer agents and for other biomedical applications . Furthermore, aromatic amino acids bearing crown ether moieties have been synthesized and were successfully used to create artificial ion channels .…”

“…[5,6] Additionally, crown ethers show potential as anticancer agents and for other biomedical applications. [5,7] Furthermore, aromatic amino acids bearing crown ether moieties have been synthesized and were successfully used to create artificial ion channels. [8,9] The channels are formed by overlap of several crown ether moieties, which are held in place by connection to a α-helical peptide backbone.…”