Flavopiridol is a flavone synthesized from the natural product rohitukine, which is derived from an Indian medicinal plant, namely Dysoxylum binectariferum Hiern. A deeper understanding of the biological mechanisms by which such molecules act may allow scientists to develop effective therapeutic strategies against a variety of life-threatening diseases, such as cancer, viruses, fungal infections, parasites, and neurodegenerative diseases. Mechanistic insight of flavopiridol reveals its potential for kinase inhibitory activity of CDKs (cyclin-dependent kinases) and other kinases, leading to the inhibition of various processes, including cell cycle progression, apoptosis, tumor proliferation, angiogenesis, tumor metastasis, and the inflammation process. The synthetic derivatives of flavopiridol have overcome a few demerits of its parent compound. Moreover, these derivatives have much improved CDK-inhibitory activity and therapeutic abilities for treating severe human diseases. It appears that flavopiridol has potential as a candidate for the formulation of an integrated strategy to combat and alleviate human diseases. This review article aims to unravel the potential therapeutic effectiveness of flavopiridol and its possible mechanism of action.
Keywords: anti-inflammatory; anti-metastasis; anti-viral; apoptosis; cell cycle arrest; flavones; flavopiridol.