Compuestos citotóxicos de origen vegetal y su relación con proteínas inhibidoras de apoptosis (IAP)

Natural products have been the most representative source of small molecules for cancer therapy, and have made enormous contributions to the discovery of new drugs with varied mechanisms of action. Most of these drugs are highly toxic and show low specificity to cancer cells, considerably affecting the survival prognosis in patients with this disease. The purpose of the current article is to discuss the mechanism of action of bioactive phytochemicals against cancer. The most promising therapeutic targets are presented such as the inhibitor of apoptosis proteins (IAP), as well as some bioactive small molecules of pharmacological interest and high specificity against cancer cells.