Natural compound Alternol as a novel therapeutic for prostate cancer treatment.

Alternol is a monomeric compound purified from the fermentation of a microbial strain obtained from the bark of the yew tree. Recent studies have confirmed that it has specific anti-prostate cancer efficacy in vitro and in vivo. In in vitro cell culture experiments Alternol inhibits prostate cancer cell proliferation by causing cell cycle arrest, reduces the expression of Bcl-2 and other pro-survival proteins, increases the level of radical oxygen species by activating xanthine dehydrogenase, blunts mitochondrial aerobic respiration and ATP production, and triggers autophagy flux. However, there is no significant adverse effect on benign prostatic cells. Animal experiments demonstrated that Alternol significantly inhibits the growth of prostate cancer xenografts without obvious adverse effect on normal tissues and organs. Therefore, Alternol is expected to be developed as a new anti-prostate cancer therapy.