Search

The anthracycline antibiotics are among the most important clinical drugs used in the treatment of human cancer. The search for new agents with improved therapeutic efficacy and reduced cardiotoxicity stimulated considerable efforts in the synthesis of new analogues. Since the biological activity of anthracyclines depends on their natural absolute configuration, various strategies for the synthesis of enantiomerically pure anthracyclinones (aglycones) have been developed. They comprise: resolution of racemic intermediate, incorporation of a chiral fragment derived from natural and non-natural chiral pools, asymmetric synthesis with the use of a chiral auxiliary or a chiral reagent, and enantioselective catalysis. Synthetic advances towards enantiopure anthracyclinones reported over the last 17 years are reviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This chapter reviews current understanding and hypotheses in social behavior from molecular mechanisms of social feeding in Caenorhabditis elegans to social cognition in humans. The influential roles of steroids and neurohormones on the neural circuitry of social behavior are emphasized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]