Narcissus and Daffodil

Alkaloids of Narcissus 197
subunit and inhibiting peptide bond formation by preventing binding of the 3′
terminal end of the donor substrate to the peptidyl transferase centre (Carrasco et al.,
1975). Narciclasine also inhibits seed germination and seedling growth of some
plants in a dose-dependent manner, interacting with hormones in some physiological
responses. In this way, indole-3yl-acetic acid cannot overcome the inhibition
of elongation of wheat coleoptile sections caused by narciclasine. Additionally,
narciclasine suppresses the gibberellin-induced α-amylase production in barley
seeds and cytokinin-induced expansion and greening of excised radish cotyledons
(Bi et al., 1998). There are also interesting studies related to the chemical synthesis
of this alkaloid (Angle and Wada, 1997; Rigby and Mateo, 1997).
The anticancer and antiviral activities exhibited by pretazettine have also stimulated
considerable interest in this compound (Furusawa and Furusawa, 1988; Furusawa
et al., 1980; Gabrielsen et al., 1992; Suzuki et al., 1974) and in its chemical synthesis
(Nishimata and Mori, 1998).
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