Derivatives of 9,10-anthraquinone include many important drugs including the anthracenediones and the anthracycline family of chemotherapy drugs. The latter drugs are derived from the bacterium Streptomyces peucetius, discovered in Italy a soil sample near the Adriatic sea. Drugs in the anthraquinone family include the prototypical daunorubicin, doxorubicin, mitoxantrone, losoxantrone, and pixantrone. Most of these drugs, with the notable exception of pixantrone, are extremely cardiotoxic, causing irreversible cardiomyopathy, which can limit their practical usefulness in cancer treatment.
