Steroids at the beginning of the 21st century

Abstract

The review is based on a short lecture, presented to post-graduate students of chemistry. Emphasis was laid on trends of steroid chemistry at the turn of the century. the steroid nomenclature is briefly reviewed with respect to the names frequently used in literature, in which mainly medical authors prefer historical names. Several types of new natural steroids are given. Biological activity of isolatedsteroi ds or their synthesisedanal ogues is the majorimpetus in modern steroid chemistry. The future prospect of steroidchem istry is bright considering the fact that unnatural enantiomers usually have a different activity from that of their natural counterparts. This suggests a repetition of the whole steroidche mistry behind Aliceís looking glass.