Elemenes are a group of closely related natural

chemical compound A chemical compound is a chemical substance composed of many identical molecules (or molecular entities) containing atoms from more than one chemical element held together by chemical bonds. A molecule consisting of atoms of only one ele ...

s found in a variety of plants. The elemenes, which include α-, β-, γ-, and δ-elemene, are

structural isomer In chemistry, a structural isomer (or constitutional isomer in the IUPAC nomenclature) of a compound is another compound whose molecule has the same number of atoms of each element, but with logically distinct bonds between them. The term met ...

s of each other and are classified as

sesquiterpene Sesquiterpenes are a class of terpenes that consist of three isoprene units and often have the molecular formula C15H24. Like monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes may be cyclic or contain rings, including many unique combinations. Biochemical modifica ...

s. The elemenes contribute to the floral aromas of some plants, and are used as pheromones by some insects.

Applications

β-Elemene in particular has attracted scientific interest because of its prevalence in a variety of medicinal plants, such as the

Chinese medicinal herb Chinese herbology () is the theory of traditional Chinese herbal therapy, which accounts for the majority of treatments in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). A '' Nature'' editorial described TCM as "fraught with pseudoscience", and said tha ...

Yu Jin (郁金, '' Curcuma wenyujin''). Experiments performed ''

in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning in glass, or ''in the glass'') studies are performed with microorganisms, cells, or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called "test-tube experiments", these studies in biology and ...

'' show that β-elemene acts as a

Rho kinase Rho-associated protein kinase (ROCK) is a kinase belonging to the AGC (PKA/ PKG/PKC) family of serine-threonine specific protein kinases. It is involved mainly in regulating the shape and movement of cells by acting on the cytoskeleton. ROCKs ( ...

inhibitor, and has

anti-proliferative Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs ( chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemoth ...

effects toward some

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal bl ...

cell types, indicating the possibility of its use in

chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemothe ...

Clinical trial Clinical trials are prospective biomedical or behavioral research studies on human subject research, human participants designed to answer specific questions about biomedical or behavioral interventions, including new treatments (such as novel v ...

s in China have been conducted in which benefits for cancer treatment have been reported, and both

liposome A liposome is a small artificial vesicle, spherical in shape, having at least one lipid bilayer. Due to their hydrophobicity and/or hydrophilicity, biocompatibility, particle size and many other properties, liposomes can be used as drug delive ...

injection and oral

emulsion An emulsion is a mixture of two or more liquids that are normally immiscible (unmixable or unblendable) owing to liquid-liquid phase separation. Emulsions are part of a more general class of two-phase systems of matter called colloids. Althou ...

forms of β-elemene have been approved by the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) as an

adjuvant therapy Adjuvant therapy, also known as adjunct therapy, adjuvant care, or augmentation therapy, is a therapy that is given in addition to the primary or initial therapy to maximize its effectiveness. The surgeries and complex treatment regimens used i ...

for use in the treatment of various cancers. However, Western experts have been skeptical of claims for the safety and efficacy of β-elemene, with the trials being relatively small scale, and the

Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK or MSKCC) is a cancer treatment and research institution in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, founded in 1884 as the New York Cancer Hospital. MSKCC is one of 52 National Cancer Institute� ...

stating that "human trials conducted so far are of poor quality". A ''

Cochrane Review Cochrane (previously known as the Cochrane Collaboration) is a British international charitable organisation formed to organise medical research findings to facilitate evidence-based choices about health interventions involving health profes ...

'' of the available literature concluded that "there is no evidence from randomised controlled trials to confirm or refute the effectiveness of elemene as a treatment for lung cancer". A general review on beta elemene.Adio, A. M. (2009), (-)-trans-B-Elemene and related compounds: occurrence, synthesis, and anticancer activity,Tetrahedron, volume 65, issue 27, 5145-5159 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tet.2009.04.062

References

{{reflist Sesquiterpenes Vinyl compounds Cyclohexenes