ANTI-PROLIFERATIVE ACTIVITY OF INDOLES AND RELATED COMPOUNDS: A REVIEW

Indoles, imidazole, indazole and carbazole are one of the most important biologically active natural compounds in living system which are even can be synthesized in laboratory. They are known to play functional role in cellular metabolism, cell division, cell growth as well as cellular signaling. The aim of this review is to amalgamate various information already available in the area of study of bio-activity of indole derivatives, including their ability to antagonize uncontrolled cellular proliferation in cancerous growth. An array of such compounds having central indole moiety and variation in their side chains have been synthesized and their bio-activities have been studied by various authors. Most of them show anti-cancer and anti-proliferative activities and functions through caspases 3/7/9, procaspase-3, cytochrome c, intracellular and extracellular apoptosis pathways and modulation of transcription pathways. These compounds are reportedly capable of neutralizing flagellar movements in sperms as well as of leishmanial protists. Reports show such compounds having anti-flagellated activities also seem to have anti-proliferative and anti-cancer properties.