Cancer is considered as the main challenge of human communities, and it annually imposes a significant economic burden on society. Natural products have been used for treatment of many diseases including inflammation, infections, neurological disorders, atherosclerosis, asthma and cancer for many years. Sesquiterpene lactones (STLs) refers to a group of natural products with different biological activities. A type of STL that has recently attracted much attention is Alantolactone (ALT). In recent years, many studies have investigated the molecular mechanism of this compound affecting cancer cells and results suggest that this compound exerts its anticancer effects by providing free radicals and inhibiting some of the signaling pathways that are effective in progression of cancer cells. The present study is aimed to introduce the latest molecular mechanisms of ALT proposed by researchers in recent years.

癌症被认为是人类社区的主要挑战，每年都会给社会带来巨大的经济负担。多年来，天然产品已用于治疗多种疾病，包括炎症，感染，神经系统疾病，动脉粥样硬化，哮喘和癌症。倍半萜烯内酯（STL）是指一组具有不同生物活性的天然产物。最近引起广泛关注的一种STL是Alactolactone（ALT）。近年来，许多研究已经研究了该化合物影响癌细胞的分子机制，结果表明该化合物通过提供自由基和抑制某些在癌细胞进程中有效的信号传导途径来发挥其抗癌作用。