Pleonotoquinones, Cytotoxic Oxepinenaphthoquinones from Pleonotoma jasminifolia.

Two unusual naphthoquinones, named here as pleonotoquinones A (1) and B (2), were isolated along with two known anthraquinones (3 and 4) via chromatographic separations of an ethyl acetate extract of the roots of Pleonotoma jasminifolia. Compounds 1 and 2 are the first examples of quinones bearing a 2-methyloxepine moiety. The compounds were isolated with the aid of mass spectrometry and molecular networking, and their structures were resolved using 1D and 2D NMR and HRESIMS data. The isolated compounds were evaluated for their antiproliferative activity against human cancer cell lines, and compounds 1 and 2 displayed cytotoxicity against human colon cancer HCT116 cells (IC50 = 2.6 µM for compound 1 and IC50 = 4.3 µM for compound 2) and human liver cancer HepG2 cells (IC50 = 1.9 µM for compound 1 and IC50 = 6.4 µM for compound 2).

Antimicrobial Activity and Molecular Docking Studies of the Biotransformation of Diterpene Acanthoic Acid Using the Fungus Xylaria sp.

Biotransformations are reactions mediated by microorganisms, such as fungi. These bioreactions have high chemo- and stereoselectivity on organic substrates and can be applied in the search for new bioactive compounds. In this study, acanthoic acid (AA) was biotransformed using the fungus Xylaria sp., giving the novel compound 3ß,7ß-dihydroxyacanthoic acid (S1). Both the AA and the product S1 were tested against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. To identify and validate possible biological targets as enzymes or proteins involved in the activity observed in vitro, we used the molecular docking method. Hydroxylation at the C-3 and C-7 positions of the biotransformation product enhanced its activity against Escherichia coli as well as its binding affinity and interactions with superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1; PDB ID 4A7G). Based on our results, the SOD1 enzyme was suggested to be a possible target for the antioxidant activity of product S1.

Discovery of dual PKS involved in sclerotiorin biosynthesis in Penicillium meliponae using genome mining and gene knockout.

Fungi of the genus Penicillium section Sclerotiora have as their main characteristic the presence of orange-pigmented mycelium, which is associated with sclerotiorin, a chlorinated secondary metabolite of the azaphilone subclass of polyketides. Sclerotiorin presents anti-diabetes, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-Alzheimer, antiviral, and antimicrobial activities, which has always attracted the attention of researchers worldwide. During our ongoing search for azaphilone-producing Amazonian fungi, the strain of Penicillium MMSRG-058 was isolated as an endophyte from the roots of Duguetia stelechantha and showed great capacity for producing sclerotiorin-like metabolites. Using multilocus phylogeny, this strain was identified as Penicillium meliponae. Moreover, based on the genome mining of this strain through the reverse approach, a cluster of putative biosynthetic genes (BGC) responsible for the biosynthesis of sclerotiorin-like metabolites (scl cluster) was identified. The knockout of the sclA (highly reducing PKS) and sclI (non-reducing PKS) genes resulted in mutants with loss of mycelial pigmentation and terminated the biosynthesis of sclerotiorin-like metabolites: geumsanol B, chlorogeumsanol B, 7-deacetylisochromophilone VI, isochromophilone VI, ochrephilone, isorotiorin, and sclerotiorin. Based on these results, a biosynthetic pathway was proposed considering the homology of BGC scl genes with the azaphilone BGCs that have already been functionally characterized.

Molecular Dereplication and In Vitro and In Silico Pharmacological Evaluation of Coriandrum sativum against Neuroblastoma Cells.

The aim of this study was to investigate the cytotoxic activity of the Coriandrum sativum (C. sativum) ethanolic extract (CSEE) in neuroblastoma cells, chemically characterize the compounds present in the CSEE, and predict the molecular interactions and properties of ADME. Thus, after obtaining the CSEE and performing its chemical characterization through dereplication methods using UPLC/DAD-ESI/HRMS/MS, PM6 methods and the SwissADME drug design platform were used in order to predict molecular interactions and ADME properties. The CSEE was tested for 24 h in neuroblastoma cells to the establishment of the IC50 dose. Then, the cell death was evaluated, using annexin-PI, as well as the activity of the effector caspase 3, and the protein and mRNA levels of Bax and Bcl-2 were analyzed by ELISA and RT-PCR, respectively. By UHPLC/DAD/HRMS-MS/MS analysis, the CSEE showed a high content of isocoumarins-dihydrocoriandrin, coriandrin, and coriandrones A and B, as well as nitrogenated compounds (adenine, adenosine, and tryptophan). Flavonoids (apigenin, hyperoside, and rutin), phospholipids (PAF C-16 and LysoPC (16:0)), and acylglicerol were also identified in lower amount as important compounds with antioxidant activity. The in silico approach results showed that the compounds 1 to 6, which are found mostly in the C. sativum extract, obey the "Five Rules" of Lipinski, suggesting a good pharmacokinetic activity of these compounds when administered orally. The IC50 dose of CSEE (20 µg/mL) inhibited cell proliferation and promoted cell death by the accumulation of cleaved caspase-3 and the externalization of phosphatidylserine. Furthermore, CSEE decreased Bcl-2 and increased Bax, both protein and mRNA levels, suggesting an apoptotic mechanism. CSEE presents cytotoxic effects, promoting cell death. In addition to the promising results predicted through the in silico approach for all compounds, the compound 6 showed the best results in relation to stability due to its GAP value.

Identification of flavonoid-3-O-glycosides from leaves of Casearia arborea (Salicaceae) by UHPLC-DAD-ESI-HRMS/MS combined with molecular networking and NMR.

INTRODUCTION: Casearia is an essential source of cytotoxic highly oxidised clerodane diterpenes, in addition to phenolics, flavonoids, and glycoside derivatives. Here we identify flavonoid-3-O-glycoside derivatives in the ethyl acetate (EtOAc) fraction of the methanolic extract from leaves C. arborea leaves. OBJECTIVE: To characterise the EtOAc phase from the methanolic extract of C. arborea leaves using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography diode array detector high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-DAD-HRMS/MS) and molecular networking-based dereplication. Methodology We identified compounds not annotated in the GNPS platform by co-injection of standards in HPLC-DAD or by isolation and characterisation of the metabolites using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. A workflow on the GNPS platform aided the organisation of spectral data and dereplication by annotations. We subjected the EtOAc phase to HPLC-DAD analysis using standard compound co-injection to corroborate the GNPS annotations. We isolated unidentified compounds with semi-preparative HPLC-DAD for structural identification using NMR. RESULTS: We annotated a molecular family of flavonoid-3-O-glycosides in the molecular networking created using the GNPS platform. These included avicularin, cacticin, isoquercitrin, quercitrin, rutin, and a quercetin-3-O-pentoside cluster. We confirmed the annotations with standard compounds using HPLC-DAD co-injection analysis, besides identifying quercetin-3-O-robinobioside and kaempferol. We isolated three flavonoid-3-O-pentosides and characterised them using one- and two-dimensional NMR; we identified them as reynoutrin, guaijaverin, and avicularin. CONCLUSION: This work describes the isolation of kaempferol and nine known flavonoid-3-O-glycosides from the polar fraction of the methanolic extract (EtOAc) from C. arborea leaves using molecular networking to guide the chromatographic procedures. We identified eight compounds for the first time in Casearia that amplify and reinforce the genus' chemotaxonomy with the presence of glycosylated flavonoids.

Understanding the cytotoxic effects of new isovanillin derivatives through phospholipid Langmuir monolayers.

Twenty-one isovanillin derivatives were prepared in order to evaluate their cytotoxic properties against the cancer cell lines B16F10-Nex2, HL-60, MCF-7, A2058 and HeLa. Among them, seven derivatives exhibited cytotoxic activity. We observed that for obtaining smaller IC50 values and for increasing the index of selectivity, two structural features are very important when compared with isovanillin (1); a hydroxymethyl group at C-1 and the replacement of the hydroxyl group at C-3 by different alkyl groups. As the lipophilicity of the compounds was changed, we decided to investigate the interaction of the cytotoxic isovallinin derivatives on cell membrane models through Langmuir monolayers by employing the lipids DPPC (1,2-diplamitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocoline) and DPPS (1,2-diplamitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoserine). The structural changes on the scaffold of the compounds modulated the interaction with the phospholipids at the air-water interface. These results were very important to understand the biophysical aspects related to the interaction of the cytotoxic compounds with the cancer cell membranes.

Cyclopiamines C and D: Epoxide Spiroindolinone Alkaloids from Penicillium sp. CML 3020.

Cyclopiamines C (1) and D (2) were isolated from the extract of Penicillium sp. CML 3020, a fungus sourced from an Atlantic Forest soil sample. Their structures and relative configuration were determined by 1D and 2D NMR, HRMS, and UV/vis data analysis. Cyclopiamines C and D belong to a small subset of rare spiroindolinone compounds containing an alkyl nitro group and a 4,5-dihydro-1 H-pyrrolo[3,2,1- ij]quinoline-2,6-dione ring system. NMR and MS/HRMS data confirmed the presence of an epoxide unit (C-17-O-C-18) and a hydroxy group at C-5, not observed for their known congeners. Cytotoxic and antimicrobial activities were evaluated.

Dereplication-guided isolation of depsides thielavins S-T and lecanorins D-F from the endophytic fungus Setophoma sp.

Dereplication methodology using UHPLC-DAD-QTOFMS was applied during the metabolic profiling investigation of the endophyte Setophoma sp., a fungus isolated from symptomless guava fruits. The approach performed allowed a fast analysis of the microbial secondary metabolites. From this fungus, seven highly C-alkylated depsides were isolated and identified as polyketides thielavins S, T, U and V and lecanorins D, E and F. Their structures were elucidated through spectroscopic methods including NMR, HRMS and especially with assistance of HRMS/MS experiments. The compounds were tested for quorum sensing regulation activity in the virulence gene expression of Staphylococcus aureus, but no inhibitory effect was detected. Nevertheless, moderate antibacterial activity was encountered in three of tested depsides, particularly with thielavin T, whose MIC was 6.25 µg/mL against S. aureus.

Mauritic acid: a new dammarane triterpene from the roots of Mauritia flexuosa L.f. (Arecaceae).

A new dammarane triterpene named mauritic acid (1) was isolated from the roots of Mauritia flexuosa L.f. The complete structural assignment of this new compound was elucidated from spectroscopic methods. Moreover, this compound was evaluated for its cytotoxicity against human cancer cell lines (OVCAR-8, PCM3, NCIH358M and different leukaemia cell strains). The mauritic acid presented significant cytotoxicity against OVCAR-8, PCM3 and NCIH358M cell lines with IC50 3.02, 2.39 and 6.19 µM, respectively. The triterpenes 1 and 2 were also tested for their antimicrobial activity against 15 strains of microorganisms, including fungi and bacteria, with the best minimal inhibitory concentration values ranging from 50.8 to 203.5 µM.