The Response Surface Optimization of Supercritical CO2 Modified with Ethanol Extraction of p-Anisic Acid from Acacia mearnsii Flowers and Mathematical Modeling of the Mass Transfer.

A widely disseminated native species from Australia, Acacia mearnsii, which is mainly cultivated in Brazil and South Africa, represents a rich source of natural tannins used in the tanning process. Many flowers of the Acacia species are used as sources of compounds of interest for the cosmetic industry, such as phenolic compounds. In this study, supercritical fluid extraction was used to obtain non-volatile compounds from A. mearnsii flowers for the first time. The extract showed antimicrobial activity and the presence of p-anisic acid, a substance with industrial and pharmaceutical applications. The fractionation of the extract was performed using a chromatographic column and the fraction containing p-anisic acid presented better minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) results than the crude extract. Thus, the extraction process was optimized to maximize the p-anisic acid extraction. The response surface methodology and the Box-Behnken design was used to evaluate the pressure, temperature, the cosolvent, and the influence of the particle size on the extraction process. After the optimization process, the p-anisic acid yield was 2.51% w/w and the extraction curve was plotted as a function of time. The simulation of the extraction process was performed using the three models available in the literature.

Two New Anisic Acid Derivatives from Endophytic Fungus Rhizopycnis vagum Nitaf22 and Their Antibacterial Activity.

Rhizopycnis acids A (1) and B (2), two new anisic acid derivatives, were obtained from the ethyl acetate extract of the fermentation cultures of Rhizopycnis vagum, an endophytic fungus isolated from the healthy tissues of Nicotiana tabacum. The structures of the two compounds were determined through a series of 1D and 2D NMR and HRMS spectral analyses. Both compounds were the first anisic acid derivatives containing methylbutanoic/methylbutenoic acid group found in fungi. 1 and 2 displayed antibacterial activity against six tested bacteria with IC50 values in the range 16.1~81.3 µg/mL.

Antifungal and Cytotoxic ß-Resorcylic Acid Lactones from a Paecilomyces Species.

Eight new ß-resorcylic acid lactones (RALs), including the hypothemycin-type compounds paecilomycins N-P (1-3) and the radicicol-type metabolites dechloropochonin I (4), monocillins VI (5) and VII (6), 4'-hydroxymonocillin IV (7), and 4'-methoxymonocillin IV (8), along with nine known RALs (9-17), were isolated from the cultures of Paecilomyces sp. SC0924. Compounds 1 and 2 feature a novel 6/11/5 ring system, and 3 is the first 5'-keto RAL. The structures of 1-8 were elucidated on the basis of extensive spectroscopic analysis, X-ray diffraction analysis, and theoretical calculations of ECD spectra. Compounds 3, 5, and 6 exhibit cytotoxicity against MCF-7, A549, and HeLa cells, and compounds 5 and 7 display antifungal activity against Peronophythora litchii.

[Study on phenolic constituents of Amomum villosum].

OBJECTIVE: To study the chemical constituents of Amomum villosum. METHODS: Compounds were isolated from the alcoholic extract using polyamide, silica gel, Sephadex LH-20, ODS open column chromatography and other means. Their structures were elucidated according to spectral data and physiochemical properties. RESULTS: Five compounds were isolated from Amomum villosum. They were identified as: 3-ethoxy-hydroxy benzoic acid (1), vanillic acid-1-beta-D-glucopyranosyl ester (2), isorhamnetin-3-beta-D-glucoside (3), flavanocoumarin (4), isoflavanocoumarin (5). CONCLUSION: Compounds 1-5 are isolated from this plant for the first time.