Five new polyphenolic derivatives with antimicrobial activities from the root barks of Periploca sepium.

Five new polyphenolic derivatives, sepiumols A-E (1-5), were isolated from the root barks of Periploca sepium. Their structures were elucidated by interpretation of NMR spectroscopic and mass spectrometric data. Compounds 1, 3 and 5 were found to exhibit significant antifungal activity, particularly for 3 with the remarkable activity against Gibberella saubinetii and Alternaria longipes with MIC values of 1.56 and 3.13 µg/mL (ketoconazole: 0.78 µg/mL), respectively. In addition, compounds 1, 3 and 5 also displayed significant antibacterial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureu with MIC values of 12.50-25 µg/mL (ciprofloxacin: 0.78 µg/mL).

Design, synthesis and fungicidal activity evaluation of novel pyrimidinamine derivatives containing phenyl-thiazole/oxazole moiety.

Diflumetorim is a member of pyrimidinamine fungicides that possess excellent antifungal activities. Nevertheless, as reported that the activity of diflumetorim to corn rust (Puccinia sorghi) was not ideal (EC50 = 53.26 mg/L). Herein, a series of novel pyrimidinamine derivatives containing phenyl-thiazole/oxazole moiety were designed based on our previous study and the structural characteristics of diflumetorim, synthesized and bioassayed to discover novel fungicides with excellent antifungal activities. Among these compounds, T18 gave the optimal fungicidal activity, which respectively offers control effects with EC50 values of 0.93 mg/L against P. sorghi and 1.24 mg/L against E. graminis, significantly superior to commercial fungicides diflumetorim, tebuconazole, and flusilazole. Cell cytotoxicity results suggested that compound T18 has lower toxicities than diflumetorim. Furthermore, DFT calculation indicated that the phenyl-thiazole/oxazole moiety plays an unarguable role in the improvement of activity, which will contribute to designing and developing more potent compounds in the future.

Design, synthesis and biological evaluation of novel flavone Mannich base derivatives as potential antibacterial agents.

A series of novel Mannich base derivatives of flavone containing benzylamine moiety was synthesized using the Mannich reaction. The results of antifungal activity are not ideal, but its antifungal effect has a certain increase compared to flavonoids. After that, four bacteria were used to test antibacterial experiments of these compounds; compound 5g (MIC = 0.5, 0.125 mg/L) showed significant inhibitory activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Salmonella gallinarum compared with novobiocin (MIC = 2, 0.25 mg/L). Compound 5s exhibited broad spectrum antibacterial activity (MIC = 1, 0.5, 2, 0.05 mg/L) against four bacteria. The selected compounds 5g and 5s exhibit potent inhibition against Topo II and Topo IV with IC50 values (0.25-16 mg/L). Molecular docking model showed that the compounds 5g and 5s can bind well to the target by interacting with amino acid residues. It will provide some valuable information for the commercial antibacterial agents.

Enhanced antioxidant and antifungal activity of chitosan derivatives bearing 6-O-imidazole-based quaternary ammonium salts.

In this paper, a series of 6-O-imidazole-based quaternary ammonium chitosan derivatives via 6-O-chloroacetyl chitosan (CAClC) were successfully designed and synthesized. Detailed structural characterization was carried out by means of FT-IR and 1H NMR spectroscopy, and elemental analysis. Furthermore, the antioxidant property against hydroxyl radicals, superoxide radicals, and DPPH radicals was evaluated in vitro. 2-(N,N,N-trimethyl)-6-O-(2-aminobenzimidazole)acetyl chitosan chloride (2NPhMC) and 2-(N,N,N-trimethyl)-6-O-(1-butylimidazole)acetyl chitosan chloride (NBMC) showed more than 90% scavenging indices at 1.6 mg/mL. Besides, the antifungal activity against Botrytis cinerea and Gibberella zeae was estimated using in vitro MIC and hypha measurements. Most of the quaternized chitosan derivatives especially with the long length alkyl chain and primary amino group showed an inhibitory index of > 85% at 1.0 mg/mL against Botrytis cinerea. Besides, the cytotoxicity of chitosan and all the quaternized chitosan derivatives was evaluated in vitro on HaCaT cells and all the quaternized chitosan derivatives bearing 6-O-imidazole exhibited low cytotoxicity. These results suggested that chitosan derivatives bearing 6-O-imidazole-based quaternary ammonium salts may be used as good biomaterials.

Antibacterial and antifungal activities of different polar extracts from Anoectochilus roxburghii.

This study evaluates the antibacterial and antifungal activities of petroleum ether, acetic ether, n-butanol and aqueous extracts from Anoectochilus roxburghii. The in vitro antibacterial and antifungal effects against three bacterial strains (Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Bacillus thuringiensis) and three fungal species (Exserohilum turcicum (Pass.) Leonard et Suggs, Botrytis cinerea Pers., Fusahum graminearum Sehw.) were assayed by the dilution and disc-diffusion methods. All of the polar extracts expressed dose-dependent antimicrobial activity against all tested microorganisms. The most active extract was aqueous extract, with a minimum inhibitory concentration below 0.625mg/ml in both bacteria and fungi. The results suggest that new chemical classes of natural antimicrobial substances (such as A. roxiburghii extracts) can be selectively exploited for the chemotherapy and control of infectious diseases.

Characterization and mechanism of copper biosorption by a highly copper-resistant fungal strain isolated from copper-polluted acidic orchard soil.

In this paper, a highly copper-resistant fungal strain NT-1 was characterized by morphological, physiological, biochemical, and molecular biological techniques. Physiological response to Cu(II) stress, effects of environmental factors on Cu(II) biosorption, as well as mechanisms of Cu(II) biosorption by strain NT-1 were also investigated in this study. The results showed that NT-1 belonged to the genus Gibberella, which exhibited high tolerance to both acidic conditions and Cu(II) contamination in the environment. High concentrations of copper stress inhibited the growth of NT-1 to various degrees, leading to the decreases in mycelial biomass and colony diameter, as well as changes in morphology. Under optimal conditions (initial copper concentration: 200 mg L-1, temperature 28 °C, pH 5.0, and inoculum dose 10%), the maximum copper removal percentage from solution through culture of strain NT-1 within 5 days reached up to 45.5%. The biosorption of Cu(II) by NT-1 conformed to quasi-second-order kinetics and Langmuir isothermal adsorption model and was confirmed to be a monolayer adsorption process dominated by surface adsorption. The binding of NT-1 to Cu(II) was mainly achieved by forming polydentate complexes with carboxylate and amide group through covalent interactions and forming Cu-nitrogen-containing heterocyclic complexes via Cu(II)-π interaction. The results of this study provide a new fungal resource and key parameters influencing growth and copper removal capacity of the strain for developing an effective bioremediation strategy for copper-contaminated acidic orchard soils.

C-coordinated O-carboxymethyl chitosan metal complexes: Synthesis, characterization and antifungal efficacy.

A novel type of O-carboxymethyl chitosan Schiff bases (O-CSPX) was synthesized via a condensation reaction. After the coordination reaction of cupric ions, zinc ions and nickel ions, metal complexes (O-CSPX-M) were achieved. The theoretical structure of O-CSPX-M calculated by Gaussian 09 reveals that the copper ions and nickel ions underwent dsp2 hybridization, the zinc ions underwent sp3 hybridization, and they all coordinated by the carbon atom in the p-π conjugate group. Then, the structures were confirmed by FT-IR, 1H NMR, CP-MAS 13C NMR, elemental analysis, DSC and XRD. The antifungal properties of O-CSPX-M against Phytophthora capsici (P. capsici), Gibberella zeae (G. zeae), Fusarium oxysporum (F. oxysporum) and Botrytis cinerea (B. cinerea) were evaluated at concentrations ranging from 0.05mg/mL to 0.40mg/mL. The experiments indicated that the derivatives have significantly enhanced antifungal activity after metal ions complexation compared with the original chitosan. Moreover, it was shown that 0.20mg/mL of O-CSPX-Cu can 100% inhibit the growth of P. capsici and 0.20mg/mL of O-CSPX-Ni can 87.5% inhibit the growth of B. cinerea. In addition, the phytotoxicity assay and cell viability assay were also evaluated. The experimental results may provide a novel direction for the development of metal fungicides.

Synthesis, characterization and antifungal efficacy of C-coordinated O-carboxymethyl chitosan Cu(II) complexes.

A novel type of O-carboxymethyl chitosan Schiff bases (O-CSPX) was synthesized via a condensation reaction. After the coordination reaction of cupric ions, Cu(II) complexes (O-CSPX-Cu) were achieved. The theoretical structure of O-CSPX-Cu calculated by Gaussian 09 reveals that the copper ions underwent dsp2 hybridization, coordinated by the carbon atom in the p-π conjugate group and the oxygen atoms in the acetate ion. Then, the structures were confirmed by FT-IR, 1H NMR, CP-MAS 13C NMR, elemental analysis, DSC and XRD. The antifungal properties of O-CSPX-Cu against Phytophthora capsici (P. capsici), Gibberella zeae (G. zeae) and Glomerella cingulata (G. cingulata) were evaluated at concentrations ranging from 0.05mg/mL to 0.20mg/mL. The experiments indicated that the derivatives have significantly enhanced antifungal activity after copper ion complexation compared with the original chitosan. Moreover, it was shown that 0.20mg/mL of O-CSP3-Cu and O-CSP4-Cu can 100% inhibit the growth of P. capsici. The experimental results reveal that the antifungal efficiency is related to the space steric hindrance on the benzene ring, which may provide a novel direction for the development of copper fungicides.

Synthesis of Novel Pyrimethanil Grafted Chitosan Derivatives with Enhanced Antifungal Activity.

In this study, three pyrimethanil grafted chitosan (PML-g-CS) derivatives were obtained. The structures of the conjugates were confirmed by FT-IR, (1)H NMR, and EA. The grafting ratios were measured by HPLC. Antifungal properties of pyrimethanil grafted chitosan (PML-g-CS) derivatives against the plant pathogenic fungi Rhizoctonia solani and Gibberella zeae were investigated at concentrations of 100, 200, and 400 mg/L. The PML-g-CS derivatives showed enhanced antifungal activity in comparison with chitosan. The PML-g-CS-1 showed the best antifungal activity against R. solani, whose antifungal index was 58.32%. The PML-g-CS-2 showed the best antifungal activity against G. zeae, whose antifungal index was 53.48%. The conjugation of chitosan and pyrimethanil showed synergistic effect. The PML-g-CS derivatives we developed showed potential for further study and application in crop protection.

Synthesis and antifungal activity of chalcone derivatives.

In the present study, using chalcone as a lead compound, a series of its derivatives (compounds 1-30) were designed and synthesised. Their activity of anti-pathogenic fungi of plants has been evaluated. It is found that these compounds have good antifungal activity against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Helminthosprium maydis, Botrytis cinerea, Rhizoctonia solani and Gibberella zeae. Among them, the inhibition of growth for compound 30 against S. sclerotiorum showed 89.9%, with the median effective concentrations (EC50) of 15.4 µg mL(-1). The inhibition of growth for compounds 28, 29 and 30 at a concentration of 100 µg mL(-1) against H. maydis is 90.3%, 90.7% and 91.1%, with EC50 of 15.1, 18.3 and 18.1µg mL(-1), respectively.

Antifungal, phytotoxic and toxic metabolites produced by Penicillium purpurogenum.

Nine known metabolites, 6,8,1'-tri-O-methyl averantin (1), 6,8-di-O-methyl averufnin (2), 6,8-di-O-methyl averufanin (3), aversin (4), 1,3-dihydroxy-6,8-dimethoxy-9,10-anthraquinone (5), 6,8-di-O-methylnidurufin (6), 6,8-di-O-methyl versiconol (7), 5-methyoxysterigmatocystin (8) and (S)-ornidazole (9), were isolated from the extracts of Penicillium purpurogenum, and their structures were elucidated by using spectroscopic methods. The brine shrimp toxicity, anti-phytopathogenic and phytotoxic effects of these compounds were evaluated. Among them, compounds 1 and 8 exhibited the strongest toxicity against brine shrimp (Artemia salina), with lethality rates of 100% at a low concentration of 10 µM, comparable to the positive control toosendanin. Compounds 1, 4 and 7 moderately inhibited the growth of Botrytis cinerea. Moreover, 4 displayed moderate antifungal effects on Gibberella saubinettii. In addition, compounds 6, 7 and 9 produced the phytotoxic effects on radish seedlings at 100 µM. This is the first report on the isolation of these metabolites from this organism.

Antifungal and antibacterial metabolites from an endophytic Aspergillus sp. associated with Melia azedarach.

Seven known metabolites, dianhydro-aurasperone C (1), isoaurasperone A (2), fonsecinone A (3), asperpyrone A (4), asperazine (5), rubrofusarin B (6) and (R)-3-hydroxybutanonitrile (7), were isolated from the culture of Aspergillus sp. KJ-9, a fungal endophyte isolated from Melia azedarach and identified by spectroscopic methods. All isolates were evaluated in vitro against several phytopathogenic fungi (Gibberella saubinetti, Magnaporthe grisea, Botrytis cinerea, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and Alternaria solani) and pathogenic bacteria (Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Staphyloccocus aureus and Bacillus cereus). Compounds 3 and 7 were active against almost all phytopathogenic fungi tested with minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) range of 6.25-50 µM. Moreover, compound 3 was active against all pathogenic bacteria with MIC in the range of 25-100 µM. Compound 7 is a rare new natural product isolated from a natural source for the first time, and the detailed NMR data of 1 were first assigned.

Detection and dynamics of different carbendazim-resistance conferring ß-tubulin variants of Gibberella zeae collected from infected wheat heads and rice stubble in China.

BACKGROUND: Carbendazim has been used in the control of Fusarium head blight (FHB) for more than 30 years in China. Thus, carbendazim-resistant (Car(R) ) populations of Gibberella zeae have developed in some areas. In this study, 9341 G. zeae isolates were collected from the ten main wheat-producing regions of China in the period from 2008 to 2012, and sensitivity to carbendazim was detected. RESULTS: A high frequency of Car(R) isolates was observed in Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces. Car(R) isolates were recovered from Anhui and Henan provinces in 2009 and 2012, respectively, but were not detected in the other six regions. Available (F167Y, E198Q and F200Y) and newly developed (E198L and E198K) allele-specific PCR assays were used to genotype field Car(R) isolates. The ß-tubulin variants harbouring point mutation F167Y or E198Q accounted for >95% in Car(R) populations. Quantitative allele-specific real-time PCR assays were developed to determine the frequencies of five different ß-tubulin variants present in populations of perithecia sampled from rice stubble. CONCLUSION: Car(R) populations of G. zeae develop rapidly under the selection pressure of carbendazim. Real-time PCR assays detecting the resistance frequencies in populations of perithecia would provide useful information for FHB control and management of resistance.

2H-pyran-2-one and 2H-furan-2-one derivatives from the plant endophytic fungus Pestalotiopsis fici.

Two new α-pyrones (=2H-pyran-2-ones), ficipyrones A and B (1 and 2, resp.), and two new α-furanones (=2H-furan-2-ones), ficifuranones A and B (3 and 4, resp.), together with three known metabolites, antibiotic F 0368 (5), hydroxyseiridin (6), and hydroxyisoseiridin (7), were isolated from solid cultures of the plant endophytic fungus Pestalotiopsis fici. Their structures were elucidated primarily by NMR spectroscopy, and the absolute configuration of 1 was deduced from the circular-dichroism (CD) data. Compound 1 showed antifungal activity against the plant pathogen Gibberella zeae (CGMCC 3.2873) with an IC50 value of 15.9 µM.

Synthesis and bioactivity evaluation of novel arylimines containing a 3-aminoethyl-2-[(p-trifluoromethoxy)anilino]-4(3H)-quinazolinone moiety.

Twenty-seven novel (E)-3-[2-arylideneaminoethyl]-2-[4-(trifluoromethoxy)anilino]-4(3H)-quinazolinone derivatives were synthesized by reacting various aromatic aldehydes with intermediate 6. The target compounds were characterized by (1)H NMR, (3)C NMR, IR, and elemental analysis. Bioassay results revealed that some of the compounds have strong antifungal activities against six fungi ( Gibberella zeae , Fusarium oxysporum , Clematis mandshurica , Paralepetopsis sasakii , Phytophthora infestans , and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum ) and three bacteria ( Xanthomonas oryzae , tomato bacterial wilt, and tobacco bacterial wilt). Notably, these compounds exhibited the highest activity against tomato bacterial wilt and X. oryzae, with 50% effective concentration (EC50) values ranging from 45.96 to 93.31 µg/mL and from 20.09 to 21.33 µg/mL, respectively, which are superior to those of the commercial antibacterial agents thiodiazole-copper (99.80 µg/mL) and bismerthiazol (92.61 µg/mL). These results indicate that novel arylimine derivatives containing the 4(3H)-quinazolinone moiety can effectively control tobacco bacterial wilt, tomato bacterial wilt, and X. oryzae. Evaluation of their bactericidal properties in field studies as well as the mechanisms underlying their enhanced antibacterial activity should be interesting topics for future investigations.

Synthesis and bioactivity of pyrazole acyl thiourea derivatives.

Sixteen novel pyrazole acyl thiourea derivatives 6 were synthesized from monomethylhydrazine (phenylhydrazine) and ethyl acetoacetate. The key 5-chloro-3-methyl-1-substituted-1H-pyrazole-4-carbonyl chloride intermediates 4 were first generated in four steps through cyclization, formylation, oxidation and acylation. Thess were then reacted with ammonium thiocyanate in the presence of PEG-400 to afford 5-chloro-3-methyl-1-substituted-1H-pyrazole-4-carbonyl isothiocyanates 5. Subsequent reaction with fluorinated aromatic amines resulted in the formation of the title compounds. The synthesized compound were unequivocally characterized by IR, ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR and elemental analysis and some of the synthesized compounds displayed good antifungal activities against Gibberella zeae, Fusarium oxysporum, Cytospora mandshurica and anti-TMV activity in preliminary antifungal activity tests.

ß-Tubulins in Gibberella zeae: their characterization and contribution to carbendazim resistance.

BACKGROUND: Fusarium head blight caused by Gibberella zeae is an important disease of wheat and barley because it reduces grain yield and quality and results in the contamination of grain with mycotoxins. Recent studies have shown that carbendazim resistance in field strains of G. zeae is not caused by mutation of the ß-tubulin gene (ß1 tub), which is the case with other filamentous fungi, but that fungicide resistance is greatly increased by deletion of ß1 tub. The aim of the present study was to clarify the function of ß1 tub and its role in carbendazim resistance in G. zeae by artificial gene operation. RESULTS: Deletion of ß1 tub reduced vegetative growth and pathogenicity but increased asexual reproduction in G. zeae. All the mutants were more resistant to carbendazim than parent strains. A three-dimensional model of ß1 tub was constructed, and the possible carbendazim binding site was analysed. CONCLUSION: ß1 tub is not an essential gene in G. zeae, but it affects the sensitivity of the fungus to carbendazim.

Synthesis and antifungal activity of novel sclerotiorin analogues.

Sclerotiorin 1, first isolated from Penicillium sclerotiorum, has weak antifungal activity and belongs to the azaphilone-type family of natural products. Several series of sclerotiorin analogues were designed and synthesized with the aim of discovering novel fungicides with improved activity. The syntheses involved two key steps, cycloisomerization and then oxidation, and used a simple and efficient Sonogashira cross-coupling reaction to construct the required functionalized precursor. With sclerotiorin as a control, the activities of the newly synthesized analogues were evaluated against seven fungal pathogens, and several promising candidates (compounds 3a1, 3d2, 3e2, 3f2 and 3k2) with greater activity and simpler structures than sclerotiorin were discovered. In addition, preliminary structure-activity relationships were studied, which revealed that not only the chlorine or bromine substituent at the 5-position of the nucleus but also the phenyl group at the 3-position and the substituent pattern on it contributed crucially to the observed antifungal activity. Analogues with a methyl substituent at the 1-position have reduced levels of activity, while those with a free hydroxyl group in place of acetoxy at the quaternary center of the bicyclic ring system retain activity.

Cyclic lipopeptide profile of three Bacillus subtilis strains; antagonists of Fusarium head blight.

The objective of the study was to identify the lipopetides associated with three Bacillus subtilis strains. The strains are antagonists of Gibberella zeae, and have been shown to be effective in reducing Fusarium head blight in wheat. The lipopeptide profile of three B. subtilis strains (AS43.3, AS43.4, and OH131.1) was determined using mass spectroscopy. Strains AS43.3 and AS43.4 produced the anti-fungal lipopeptides from the iturin and fengycin family during the stationary growth phase. All three strains produced the lipopeptide surfactin at different growth times. Strain OH131.1 only produced surfactin under these conditions. The antifungal activity of the culture supernatant and individual lipopeptides was determined by the inhibition of G. zeae. Cell-free supernatant from strains AS43.3 and AS43.4 demonstrated strong antibiosis of G. zeae, while strain OH131.1 had no antibiosis activity. These results suggest a different mechanism of antagonism for strain OH131.1, relative to AS43.3 and AS43.4.

Localisation of the benzimidazole fungicide binding site of Gibberella zeae ß2-tubulin studied by site-directed mutagenesis.

BACKGROUND: The efficacy of benzimidazole fungicides is often limited by resistance, and this is the case with the use of carbendazim for controlling Fusarium head blight caused by Gibberella zeae (Schwein.) Petch (anamorph Fusarium graminearum). Recent studies have shown that carbendazim resistance in field strains of G. zeae is associated with mutations in the ß(2)-tubulin gene. The aims of the present study were to validate this mechanism and research the binding sites of carbendazim on ß(2)-tubulin. RESULTS: This work used site-directed mutagenesis followed by gene replacement to change the ß(2)-tubulin gene of a carbendazim-sensitive field strain of G. zeae at residues 50, 167, 198 or 200. The transformants were confirmed and tested for their sensitivity to carbendazim. All the mutants were resistant to carbendazim, but the level of resistance differed depending on the mutation. Biological characteristics did not differ between the field strain and the site-directed mutants. A three-dimensional model of ß(2)-tubulin was constructed, and the possible carbendazim binding site was analysed. CONCLUSION: Mutations at codons 50, 167, 198 and 200 of G. zeae ß(2)tub could cause resistance to carbendazim, and these codons may form a binding pocket.