MOSCOW (RIA Novosti) — Maxim Zhidkov, a member of the team and senior lecturer in the organic chemistry department, said the team has synthesized alkaloid fascaplysin, which he described as a majority achievement.
"This red pigment was first produced from sponge Fascaplysinopsis sp. (family Thorectidae) in the Pacific and Indian Oceans back in 1988," he said.
"We are currently modifying the fascaplysin structure to improve its therapeutic index, which is a key indicator — the ratio of a drug's lethal dose to its effective dose that identifies the scope of its safe use. This is a very promising line in developing a new generation of anticancer drugs," he said.
At present, the in vitro study of natural compounds that have potential for becoming anticancer drugs is almost complete and FEFU researchers will soon begin in vivo studies.
