The vinca alkaloids consist of the bis-indole derivatives, vinblastine and vincristine isolated from the periwinkle plant, Vinca rosea Linn and the monomeric indole derivative vincamine, which is the major alkaloid of Vinca minor Linn. The vinca alkaloids are used as chemotherapeutic agents to treat a variety of neoplastic diseases including Hodgkin's disease, choriocarcinoma, acute and chronic leukemias, lymphosarcomas and a variety of other cancers. Their mechanism of action involves bindin to tubulin with disruption of mitotic spindle formation eventually leading to inhibition of mitosis, metaphase arrest and cell death.
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