Graviola (Annona muricata) contains compounds with cytotoxic effects against tumor cell lines, including colon cancer cells in which it was 10,000 times the potency of adriamycin. - GreenMedInfo Summary
Five novel mono-tetrahydrofuran ring acetogenins from the seeds of Annona muricata.
J Nat Prod.1996 Feb;59(2):100-8. PMID: 8991944
Bioactivity-directed fractionation of the seeds of Annona muricata L. (Annonaceae) resulted in the isolation of five new compounds: cis-annonacin (1), cis-annonacin-10-one (2), cis-goniothalamicin (3), arianacin (4), and javoricin (5). Three of these (1-3) are among the first cis mono-tetrahydrofuran ring acetogenins to be reported. NMR analyses of published model synthetic compounds, prepared cyclized formal acetals, and prepared Mosher ester derivatives permitted the determinations of absolute stereochemistries. Bioassays of the pure compounds, in the brine shrimp test, for the inhibition of crown gall tumors, and in a panel of human solid tumor cell lines for cytotoxicity, evaluated relative potencies. Compound 1 was selectively cytotoxic to colon adenocarcinoma cells (HT-29) in which it was 10,000 times the potency of adriamycin.