Discovery and characterisation of a broderol-like illudin, omphaderol in the mycelial extracts of Omphalotus mexicanus (Omphalotaceae) using UPLC-QTOF-MS and NMR spectroscopy.

INTRODUCTION: The genus Omphalotus, in particular the "Jack-O'Lantern mushrooms" Omphalotus illudens and Omphalotus olearius, are famous for the production of the DNA-alkylating illudins. A lesser-known species, Omphalotus mexicanus, native to Central America, also produces cytotoxic illudins S and M, but its minor secondary metabolites are yet to be investigated. OBJECTIVE: To identify, isolate, and elucidate the structure of novel secondary metabolites of the illudin family in mycelial extracts of O. mexicanus from submerse cultivation. METHODOLOGY: A fermentation of the fungus in 15 L stirred tank bioreactors is described. Mycelial extracts were separated using a combination of flash chromatography with preparative RP-C18 high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Analysis of metabolites was done using an ultrahigh-performance liquid chromatography ultraviolet diode array detector (UPLC-UV-DAD) system coupled to an electrospray ionisation quadrupole time-of-flight (ESI-QTOF) mass spectrometer. Structures were elucidated using one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) techniques followed by comparison of experimental and simulated electronic circular dichroism (ECD) spectra to determine absolute configurations. RESULTS: Two novel illudin derivatives, for which we propose the names omphaderol (1) and illudaneol B (2), as well as illudaneol (3) and the unusual cyclobutylcyclopentane illudosin (4), were isolated from the mycelia and characterised. CONCLUSION: Particularly the illudaneol derivatives with their high titers may be potential building blocks for an alternative semisynthetic route to new illudin derivatives with improved medical properties. Additionally, the findings improve the knowledge of minor illudin compounds in the mycelial extract of this fungus and may be of significance for future biosynthetic studies of the illudins.

Biosynthesis of oxygenated brasilane terpene glycosides involves a promiscuous N-acetylglucosamine transferase.

Investigation of the metabolome of the ascomycete Annulohypoxylon truncatum led to the identification of novel oxygenated brasilane glycosides and the revision of the stereochemistry of the brasilane A octahydro-1H-indene core scaffold to trans. The bra biosynthetic gene cluster containing five genes (braA-braE) was identified and verified by heterologous expression experiments in Aspergillus oryzae demonstrating that BraC is a multifunctional P450 monooxygenase. In vitro studies of BraB revealed it to be a very rare fungal UDP-GlcNAc dependent N-acetylglucosamine transferase. UDP-glucose is also accepted as a donor, and a broad acceptor substrate tolerance for various primary and secondary alcohols was observed.

Chilenopeptins A and B, Peptaibols from the Chilean Sepedonium aff. chalcipori KSH 883.

The Chilean Sepedonium aff. chalcipori strain KSH 883, isolated from the endemic Boletus loyo Philippi, was studied in a polythetic approach based on chemical, molecular, and biological data. A taxonomic study of the strain using molecular data of the ITS, EF1-α, and RPB2 barcoding genes confirmed the position of the isolated strain within the S. chalcipori clade, but also suggested the separation of this clade into three different species. Two new linear 15-residue peptaibols, named chilenopeptins A (1) and B (2), together with the known peptaibols tylopeptins A (3) and B (4) were isolated from the semisolid culture of strain KSH 883. The structures of 1 and 2 were elucidated on the basis of HRESIMS(n) experiments in conjunction with comprehensive 1D and 2D NMR analysis. Thus, the sequence of chilenopeptin A (1) was identified as Ac-Aib(1)-Ser(2)-Trp(3)-Aib(4)-Pro(5)-Leu(6)-Aib(7)-Aib(8)-Gln(9)-Aib(10)-Aib(11)-Gln(12)-Aib(13)-Leu(14)-Pheol(15), while chilenopeptin B (2) differs from 1 by the replacement of Trp(3) by Phe(3). Additionally, the total synthesis of 1 and 2 was accomplished by a solid-phase approach, confirming the absolute configuration of all chiral amino acids as l. Both the chilenopeptins (1 and 2) and tylopeptins (3 and 4) were evaluated for their potential to inhibit the growth of phytopathogenic organisms.

Botryane, noreudesmane and abietane terpenoids from the ascomycete Hypoxylon rickii.

In the course of our screening for new bioactive natural products, a culture of Hypoxylon rickii, a xylariaceous ascomycete collected from the Caribbean island Martinique, was identified as extraordinary prolific producer of secondary metabolites. Ten metabolites of terpenoid origin were isolated from submerged cultures of this species by preparative HPLC. Their structures were elucidated using spectral techniques including 2D NMR and HRESIMS. Three of the compounds were elucidated as new botryanes (1-3) along with three known ones, i.e. (3aS)-3a,5,5,8-tetramethyl-3,3a,4,5-tetrahydro-1H-cyclopenta[de]isochromen-1-one (4), (3aS,8R)-3a,5,5,8-tetramethyl-3,3a,4,5,7,8-hexahydro-1H-cyclopenta[de]isochromen-1-one (5) and botryenanol (6). Further three new sesquiterpenoids featured a 14-noreudesmane-type skeleton and were named hypoxylan A-C (7-9); the diterpenoid rickitin A (10) contains an abietane-type backbone. Compounds 1, 2, 3, 7, and 10 showed cytotoxic effects against murine cells.

Hypoxyvermelhotins A-C, new pigments from Hypoxylon lechatii sp. nov.

A new species of Hypoxylon was discovered, based on material collected in French Guiana and recognised on the basis of new combination of morpholological characters in comparison with type and authentic material of macroscopically similar taxa. These findings were corroborated by the rather isolated positions of its ITS-nrDNA and beta-tubulin DNA sequences in molecular phylogenies. However, the most salient feature of this fungus only became evident by a comparison of its stromatal HPLC profile, revealing several secondary metabolites that were hitherto not observed in stromata of any other member of the Xylariaceae. Part of the stromata were subsequently extracted to isolate these apparently specific components, using preparative chromatography. Five metabolites were obtained in pure state, and their chemical structures were elucidated by means of high resolution mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. They turned out to be tetramic acid derivatives of the so-called vermelhotin type. Aside from vermelhotin, previously isolated from cultures of endophytic fungi, we identified three novel congeners, for which the trivial names hypoxyvermelhotins A-C were proposed. Like vermelhotin, they constitute orange-red pigments and a preliminary biological characterisation revealed them to have rather strong cytotoxic and moderate to weak antimicrobial effects. These results further illustrate the high diversity of unique secondary metabolites in stromata of the hypoxyloid Xylariaceae, a family in which biological diversity seems to parallel the chemical diversity of their bioactive principles to a great extent.