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Biodiversity and health effects of sesquiterpenes in aromatic and medicinal plants

The importance of natural products in the treatment of various health conditions, as well as in the drug discovery, is impressive, supported by the fact that over three quarters of the world's population mainly relies on the plants and herbal products for health care. According to the study provided by World Health Organization in 2002, more than 30% of plant species in the world were used for medicinal purposes. The presence of various bioactive compounds is the main reason for the widespread use of aromatic and medicinal herbs, both in folk and modern medicine. These bioactive components, showing positive health effects in various health conditions, are the focus of numerous studies. Terpenes, a group of highly bioactive plant components, play an important role in aromatic plants considering ecological chemistry of interaction with insects and pathogens. Terpenes are one of the main constituents of the plant essential oils, most commonly used in the flavor and fragrance industry. Thier presence in the plants is highly dependent on the plant species and growing conditions. Many essential oils terpenes possess a significant positive health effects and pharmaceutical importance, which encourages further research on their mode of formation, characterization and biological activity. Terpenes are classified according to their skeletal structure, with the most common being monoterpenes, diterpenes and sesquiterpenes listed as a group of 15-carbon isoprenoid compounds derived from the assembly of three isoprenoid units. In higher plants, sesquiterpenes are represented by several acyclic, mono, bi-, tri-, and tetracyclic systems, many of which possess significant biological activity such as antimicrobial, antitumor, and cytotoxic properties. Thousands of sesquiterpenes known today are formed from 300 different C15- hydrocarbon skeletons that are produced from the substrate farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) by the action of sesquiterpene synthases. This chapter highlights the biodiversity of plant sesquiterpenoids as well as their health effects, focusing mainly on the modern health problems. The appearance of different types of sesquiterpenes as well as a comparison of their structure and biological activity, with the emphasis on anticancer activity, is reviewed.

sesquiterpenes ; biodiversity ; biological activity ; cancer ; essential oil

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