Natural Bioactive Sterol 5α,8α-endoperoxides as Drug Lead Compounds

The structures and properties of sterol 5α,8α-endoperoxides Ergosterol 5α,8α-endoperoxide (EP, 1) is the best-known representative of the group of sterol 5α,8α-endoperoxides.The ubiquitous ergosterol peroxide continues to be isolated from a number of natural sources.The newly identified natural sources for the compound are summarized in Table 1.The proof of the structure of the compound caused no difficulties since it proved to be identical with a specimen obtained in the photooxidation of ergosterol in the presence of the sensitizer (Figure 1).