[Advances in studies on antitumor activities of compounds in Salvia miltiorrhiza].

Salvia miltiorrhiza contains a variety of anti-tumor active ingredient, such as the water-soluble components (salvianolic acid A, salvianolic acid B, salvinal) and liposoluble constituents (tanshinone I, tanshinone IIA, dihydrotanshinone I, miltirone, cryptotanshinone, ailantholide, neo-tanshinlactone, and nitrogen-containing compounds). These anti-tumor active components play important roles in the different stages of tumor evolution, progression and metastasis. The discovery of new anti-tumor active ingredients must benefits the application of Salvia miltiorrhiza for clinical tumor treatment.