Therapeutic potential of gambogic acid, a caged xanthone, to target cancer

Natural compounds have enormous biological and clinical activity against dreadful diseases such as cancer, as well as cardiovascular and neurodegenerative disorders. In spite of the widespread research carried out in the field of cancer therapeutics, cancer is one of the most prevalent diseases with no perfect treatment till date. Adverse side effects and the development of chemoresistance are the imperative limiting factors associated with conventional chemotherapeutics. For this reason, there is an urgent need to find compounds that are highly safe and efficacious for the prevention and treatment of cancer. Gambogic acid (GA) is a xanthone structure extracted from the dry, brownish gamboge resin secreted from the Garcinia hanburyi tree in Southeast Asia and has inherent anti-cancer properties. In this review, the molecular mechanisms underlying the targets of GA that are liable for its effective anti-cancer activity are discussed that reveal the potential of GA as a pertinent candidate that can be appropriately developed and designed into a capable anti-cancer drug.