maytansinoid
maytansinoid
Any member of the group of 19-membered lactams that is maytansine or structurally related to it. Maytansinoids have been isolated from members of the higher plant families <em>Celastraceae</em>, <em>Rhamnaceae</em>, and <em>Euphorbiaceae</em>, as well as some mosses and certain Actinomycetes, but the term is used to cover both naturally occurring compounds and their semisynthetic derivatives.