Mintaimycins, a Group of Novel Peptide Metabolites from Micromonospora sp. C-3509.

A group of peptide metabolites (1-4), designated as mintaimycins, were isolated from Micromonospora sp. C-3509. The planar structures of mintaimycins were determined by combination of mass spectrometry, 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopy, and the stereochemistry of mintaimycins were partially resolved by Marfey's or Mosher's method. Mintaimycins featured a central ß-methylphenylalanine or phenylalanine linked at its amino group with 5-methyl-2-hexenoic acid, and at its carboxyl group with 5-hydroxy-norleucine or leucine that combined a derivative of hexanoic acid or 4-methylpentanoic acid. Mintaimycin A1 (1), the principal component, was found to exhibit the biological activity of inducing pre-adipocyte differentiation of 3T3-L1 fibroblast cells at 10.0 µmol/L.