台湾公立成功大学化学系教授吴天赏从植物中抽取生物碱合成antofine后，实验发现可有效毒杀人类癌细胞，但这项研究仅止于实验室，距离临床实验还要一段时间。
专精于中草药的吴天赏，从厚桂壳及棱果榕分离抽取合成antofine后实验发现，antofine对人类肺癌细胞、乳癌细胞、鼻咽癌细胞、多重抗药性鼻咽癌细胞的癌细胞株，具有极佳的细胞毒杀活性。
吴天赏表示，antofine对细胞生长有很强的抑制作用，对当前开发抗癌药物是一个新契机，且是新的先导抗癌药物，若是再继续研发，可能发展出抗癌新药。
吴天赏的这项研究，已在今年的爱思唯尔期刊《生物有机医药化学》杂志刊登。
推荐原始出处：
Bioorganic & Medicinal Chemistry，doi:10.1016/j.bmc.2008.04.032 ，Chung-Ren Su，Tian-Shung Wu
Total synthesis of phenanthroindolizidine alkaloids (±)-antofine, (±)-deoxypergularinine, and their dehydro congeners and evaluation of their cytotoxic activity
Chung-Ren Sua, Amooru G. Damua, Po-Cheng Chiangb, Kenneth F. Bastowb, Susan L. Morris-Natschkeb, Kuo-Hsiung Leeb and Tian-Shung Wua, ,
aDepartment of Chemistry, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan, ROC
bNatural Products Research Laboratories, School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States
Due to their limited natural abundance and significant biochemical effects, we synthesized the alkaloids (±)-antofine (1a), (±)-deoxypergularinine (1b), and their dehydro congeners (2 and 3) starting from the corresponding phenanthrene-9-carboxaldehydes. We also evaluated their in vitro cytotoxic activity. Compounds 1a and 1b showed significant potency against various human tumor cell lines, including a drug-resistant variant, with EC50 values ranging from 0.16 to 16 ng/mL. Structure–activity correlations of these alkaloids and some of their synthetic intermediates were also ascertained. The non-planar structure between the two major moieties, phenanthrene and indolizidine, plays a crucial role in the cytotoxic activity of phenanthroindolizidines. Increasing the planarity and rigidity of the indolizidine moiety significantly reduced potency. A methoxy group at the 2-position (1a) was more favorable for cytotoxic activity than a hydrogen atom
