الفهرس 
IntroductionOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Plants belonging to the class gymnospermae are expected to produce secondary metabolites of chemical complexity and biological activity different from those produced by the higher members of the angiosperm. Some members of the gymnosperms are considered as good sources of many important drugs such as taxol, the anticancer toxin produced by the yew tree (Taxus baccata), ephedrine, the phenylalkylamine produced from several species of Ephedra and used in treatment of bronchial asthma, as well as to relief nasal congestion and Ginkgo, the concentrated extract of the leaves of Ginkgo biloba is used in treatment of cerebral circulatory disturbances. Genus Taxodium comprises only three species; T. distichum, T. ascendens and T. mucronatum (=mexicanum). ?The bald cypress? T. distichum grow in swampy regions and along riverbanks. It is native to eastern Asia, Tasmania and North America north of Mexico. The plant is cultivated for its commercial value as a source of wood that is resistant to wood rotting fungi, in addition to its value as an ornamental plant. Taxodium distichum (L.) Rich., the plant of this study, have been already reported for its tumor inhibitory activity in term of its content of , diterpenoid quinone methides; taxodione and taxodone which have been isolated from the seeds of the plant.