Marinoterpins A-C: Rare Linear Merosesterterpenoids from Marine-Derived Actinomycete Bacteria of the Family Streptomycetaceae.

The chemical examination of two undescribed marine actinobacteria has yielded three rare merosesterterpenoids, marinoterpins A-C (1-3, respectively). These compounds were isolated from the culture broth extracts of two marine-derived actinomycetes associated with the family Streptomycetaceae, (our strains were CNQ-253 and AJS-327). The structures of the new compounds were determined by extensive interpretation of 1D and 2D NMR, MS, and combined spectroscopic data. These compounds represent new chemical motifs, combining quinoline-N-oxides with a linear sesterterpenoid side chain. Additionally, consistent in all three metabolites is the rare occurrence of two five-ring ethers, which were derived from an apparent cyclization of methyl group carbons to adjacent hydroxy-bearing methylene groups in the sesterterpenoid side chain. Genome scanning of AJS-327 allowed for the identification of the marinoterpin (mrt) biosynthetic cluster, which consists of 16 open-reading frames that code for a sesterterpene pyrophosphate synthase, prenyltransferase, type II polyketide synthase, anthranilate:CoA-ligase, and several tailoring enzymes apparently responsible for installing the N-oxide and bis-tetrahydrofuran ring motifs.

Antimicrobial and Cytotoxic Angucyclic Quinones from Actinomadura miaoliensis.

Eight new angucyclic quinones, miaosporones A to H (1-8), along with the previously described metabolites 8-hydroxy-3-methylbenz[a]anthraquinone (9), tetrangulol (10), 5,6-dihydro-1,8-dihydroxy-3-methybenz[a]anthracene-7,12-quinone (11), and SF2315A (12), were isolated from the terrestrial actinomycete Actinomadura miaoliensis TBRC 5172 obtained from sediment collected from the Huai Yang reservoir, Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, Thailand. The relative and absolute configurations of the new compounds were determined from analysis of NMR spectroscopic and X-ray crystallographic data. Miaosporone A exhibited antimalarial activity against Plasmodium falciparum K1 and antibacterial activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis with respective IC50 values of 2.5 and 2.4 µM and displayed cytotoxic activities against both cancerous (MCF-7 and NCI-H187) and nonmalignant (Vero) cells.

Functional expression of a foreign gene in Aspergillus oryzae producing new pyrone compounds.

Fungi from the genus Xylaria produce a wide range of polyketides with diverse structures, which provide important sources for pharmaceutical agents. At least seven polyketide synthase (PKS) genes, including pksmt, were found in Xylaria sp. BCC 1067. The multifunctional enzyme pksmt contains the following catalytic motifs: ß-ketosynthase (KS), acyltransferase (AT), dehydratase (DH), methyltransferase (MT), enoylreductase (ER), ketoreductase (KR), and acyl carrier region (ACP). The presence of multiple domains indicated that pksmt was an iterative type I highly-reduced-type PKS gene. To identify the gene function, pksmt was fused with a gene encoding green fluorescent protein (GFP) and introduced into a surrogate host, Aspergillus oryzae, and expressed under the control of a constitutive gpdA promoter. In the transformant, the pksmt gene was functionally expressed and translated as detected by a green fluorescence signal. This transformant produced two new 2-pyrone compounds, 4-(hydroxymethyl)-5,6-dihydro-pyran-2-one and 5-hydroxy-4-methyl-5,6-dihydro-pyran-2-one, as well as a previously identified 4-methyl-5,6-dihydro-pyran-2-one. Our results suggested that pksmt from Xylaria sp. BCC 1067 represents a family of fungal PKSs that can synthesize 2-pyrone-containing compounds.

Benzothioate Glycoside from a terrestrial Streptomyces sp. TBRC 11511 from Thailand.

A new benzothioate glycoside metabolite, phitsanoside A, together with its new and known derivatives were isolated from Streptomyces sp. TBRC 11511 collected from sediment of a dry evergreen forest located in Phitsanulok Province, Thailand. The structure elucidation of the new compound was interpreted on the basis of spectroscopic data analysis. The configuration of the sugar moiety was derived based on NOESY nuclear magnetic resonance correlations, a vicinal coupling constant analysis, and the measurement of an optical rotation from the hydrolyzed sugar unit, which was identified as ß-D-glucopyranose. Phitsanoside A did not exhibit antibacterial activity against Bacillus cereus, Mycobacterium tuberculosis or Staphylococcus aureus, but phitsanoside B showed activity against all of them with MIC values of 3.13, 25 and 12.5 µg ml-1, respectively.

Cytochalasans Act as Inhibitors of Biofilm Formation of Staphylococcus Aureus.

During the course of our ongoing work to discover new inhibitors of biofilm formation of Staphylococcus aureus from fungal sources, we observed biofilm inhibition by cytochalasans isolated from cultures of the ascomycete Hypoxylon fragiforme for the first time. Two new compounds were purified by a bioassay-guided fractionation procedure; their structures were elucidated subsequently by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and high-resolution mass spectrometry (HR-MS). This unexpected finding prompted us to test further cytochalasans from other fungi and from commercial sources for comparison. Out of 21 cytochalasans, 13 showed significant inhibition of Staphylococcus aureus biofilm formation at subtoxic levels. These findings indicate the potential of cytochalasans as biofilm inhibitors for the first time, also because the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC) are independent of the anti-biofilm activities. However, cytochalasans are known to be inhibitors of actin, making some of them very toxic for eukaryotic cells. Since the chemical structures of the tested compounds were rather diverse, the inclusion of additional derivatives, as well as the evaluation of their selectivity against mammalian cells vs. the bacterium, will be necessary as next step in order to develop structure-activity relationships and identify the optimal candidates for development of an anti-biofilm agent.

Actinoquinolines A and B, anti-inflammatory quinoline alkaloids from a marine-derived Streptomyces sp., strain CNP975.

Actinomycete bacteria of the common genus Streptomyces can be routinely isolated from shallow and deep ocean sediments. Although commonly considered a terrestrial genus, and most abundantly found in soil, Streptomyces strains are found that have distinct requirements for seawater and routinely do not show significant similarity, with terrestrial strains by 16S ribosomal DNA phylogenetic sequence comparisons. Our examination of the culture broth of a Streptomyces sp., strain CNP975, isolated from a local La Jolla, California sediment sample, resulted in the isolation of actinoquinolines A and B (1, 2), which show significant inhibition of the arachidonic acid pathway enzymes cyclooxygenases-1 and -2. The new compounds contain the 3-hydroxyquinaldic acid (3HQA) motif found in numerous peptide antibiotics. In the actinoquinolines, 3HQA forms an amide linkage with a linear six-carbon fragment, formally a 2, 6-diamino-1, 5-dihydroxyhexane unit, a component of likely amino acid reductive off-loading origin. Actinoquinoline A illustrated amide rotational isomerism leading to complex NMR spectral data. Actinoquinoline B was assigned as the C-13 aldehyde analog isolated as an intramolecular hemiacetal. Reduction of 2 with NaBH4 yielded actinoquinoline A thus confirming the relative configurations of all centers in the actinoquinolines.

Assessing medium constituents for optimal heterologous production of anhydromevalonolactone in recombinant Aspergillus oryzae.

Anhydromevalonolactone (AMVL) is a bioactive natural product that arises from a molecular biology technique using Aspergillus oryzae as a heterologous host. AMVL has been used as a precursor for the synthesis of insect pest control reagents and has numerous applications in the biotechnological and medical industries. In this study, the Plackett-Burman Design and the Central Composite Design, which offer efficient and feasible approaches, were complemented to screen significant parameters and identify the optimal values for maximum AMVL production. The results suggested that sucrose, NaNO3, yeast extract and K2HPO4 were the key factors affecting AMVL production in a complex medium, whereas the major components required for a defined medium were NaNO3, K2HPO4, KH2PO4 and trace elements. These factors were subsequently optimized using the response surface methodology. Under optimal conditions, a maximum AMVL production of 250 mg/L in the complex medium and 200 mg/L in the defined medium was achieved, which represents an increase of approximately 3-4-fold compared to the commonly used malt extract medium.

Saccharosporones A, B and C, cytotoxic antimalarial angucyclinones from Saccharopolyspora sp. BCC 21906.

Three new angucyclinones, saccharosporones A, B and C, together with (+)-ochromycinone, (+)-rubiginone B2, tetrangulol methyl ether and fujianmycin A, were obtained from fermentation of the terrestrial actinomycete of the genus Saccharopolyspora BCC 21906 isolated from a soil collected in Chanthaburi Province, Thailand. Structures of the new compounds and their relative configurations were assigned by NMR spectral data interpretation. Saccharosporones A and B exhibited antimalarial activity against Plasmodium falciparum K1 with IC50 values of 4.1 and 3.9 µM. Both metabolites also possessed cytotoxic activities against cancer cell lines (KB, MCF-7 and NCI-H187) and nonmalignant Vero cell, while saccharosporone C only showed cytotoxic activity against NCI-H187.

Bireticulol, a bioactive isocoumarin dimer from Streptomyces sp. BCC24731.

A new dimeric isocoumarin, bireticulol, was isolated from the terrestrial Streptomyces sp. and characterized as a 5-5' dimer of reticulol. In addition, reticulol and 8-hydroxy-6,7-dimethoxy-3-methyl isocoumarin, together with other known polyketides piericidin A, 2'-(2-hydroxyphenyl)-2,4'-bibenzoxazole-4-carboxylic acid methyl ester (UK-1) and 3-benzyl-4-hydroxy-5-methyldihydrofuran-2-one were also obtained. Bireticulol exhibited cytotoxic effects against KB (human epidermoid carcinoma, ATCC CCL-17) and NCI-H187 (human small cell lung cancer, ATCC CRL-5804) cell lines with IC(50) values of 24.4 and 8.31 µg ml(-1), respectively.

Marineosins A and B, cytotoxic spiroaminals from a marine-derived actinomycete.

Two novel spiroaminals, marineosins A and B (1, 2), containing two pyrrole functionalities, were isolated from cultures of a marine sediment-derived actinomycete related to the genus Streptomyces. The marineosins, which appear to be derived from unknown modifications of prodigiosin-like pigment pathways, showed significant inhibition of human colon carcinoma (HCT-116) in an in vitro assay (IC50 = 0.5 microM for marineosin A) and selective activities in diverse cancer cell types.

Eurysterols A and B, cytotoxic and antifungal steroidal sulfates from a marine sponge of the genus Euryspongia.

Two new steroidal sulfates, eurysterols A (1) and B (2), were isolated from an undescribed marine sponge of the genus Euryspongia collected in Palau. The structures of the new compounds were assigned by NMR spectroscopic data interpretation. Compounds 1 and 2 showed cytotoxicity against human colon carcinoma (HCT-116) cells with IC50 values of 2.9 and 14.3 microg/mL, respectively, and exhibited antifungal activity against amphotericin B-resistant and wild-type strains of Candida albicans with MIC values, in turn, of 15.6 and 62.5 microg/mL.