Five new farnesyl-α-nitropyrroles, nitropyrrolins A-E (1-5), were isolated from the saline culture of the marine actinomycete strain CNQ-509. This strain belongs to the "MAR4" group of marine actinomycetes, which have been demonstrated to be a rich source of hybrid isoprenoid secondary metabolites. The structures of the nitropyrrolins are composed of α-nitropyrroles with functionalized farnesyl groups at the C-4 position. These compounds are the first examples of naturally-occurring terpenyl-α-nitropyrroles. Chemical modifications, including one-step acetonide formation from an epoxide, and application of the modified Mosher method, provided the full stereostructures and absolute configurations of these compounds. Several of the nitropyrrolins, nitropyrrolin D in particular, are cytotoxic toward HCT-116 human colon carcinoma cells, but show weak to little antibacterial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).As part as our continuing interest in the chemistry and biomedical potential of sedimentderived marine actinomycetes, we have isolated a variety of new actinomycete taxa, which show the capacity to produce unique secondary metabolites.1 These taxa include the chemically prolific genera Salinispora2 and "Marinispora",3 members of which produce new structural classes of secondary metabolites including salinosporamide A,4 a potent proteasome inhibitor that recently completed phase I clinical trial for the treatment of cancer.5 Another group of marine-derived actinomycetes, designated as MAR 4, is proving to be of significant chemical interest.1 To date, at least 15 strains belonging to this group have been isolated from diverse marine sediments. Previous chemical studies of cultured MAR4 strains led to the discovery of a broad range of polyketide-terpenoid secondary metabolites including marinone,6 compounds in the napyradiomycin series7 and azamerone. 8 Further chemical analysis of the cultured MAR4 strain CNQ-509, isolated from a marine sediment sample collected off La Jolla, CA, has led to the discovery of a new set of hybrid * To whom Correspondence should be addressed. Tel: + 1 858 534 2133. Fax: +1 858 558 3702. wfenical@ucsd.edu. ‡ Scripps Institution of Oceanography. † Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Gangneung, Korea § Contributed equally to this work.Supporting Information Available: Spectroscopic data sets (1D and 2D NMR, ESI MS, UV/VIS, HRMS, etc) for 1-5, 1 H NMR spectra for 6 and (S)-Mosher ester of 11, 1 H NMR and 1 H-1 H COSY spectra for 9a, 9b, 12a, 12b, 13a, 13b, 14a and 14b, 1 H NMR and 2D NOESY spectra for 10 and 11, and 1 H and 13 C NMR spectra for 7 and 8. This material is available free of charge via the Internet at http://pubs.acs.org polyketide-terpenoid metabolites composed of sesquiterpenoid and α-nitropyrrole components. These compounds, nitropyrrolins A-E (1-5), are unusual examples illustrating rare pyrrole nitration in the α position with linear sesquiterpenoid substitution. The structures of these new compounds, including their absolu...

Fosfomycin is a wide-spectrum phosphonate antibiotic that is used clinically to treat cystitis, tympanitis, etc. Its biosynthesis starts with the formation of a carbon-phosphorus bond catalyzed by the phosphoenolpyruvate phosphomutase Fom1. We identified an additional cytidylyltransferase (CyTase) domain at the Fom1 N-terminus in addition to the phosphoenolpyruvate phosphomutase domain at the Fom1 C-terminus. Here, we demonstrate that Fom1 is bifunctional and that the Fom1 CyTase domain catalyzes the cytidylylation of the 2-hydroxyethylphosphonate (HEP) intermediate to produce cytidylyl-HEP. On the basis of this new function of Fom1, we propose a revised fosfomycin biosynthetic pathway that involves the transient CMP-conjugated intermediate. The identification of a biosynthetic mechanism via such transient cytidylylation of a biosynthetic intermediate fundamentally advances the understanding of phosphonate biosynthesis in nature. The crystal structure of the cytidylyl-HEP-bound CyTase domain provides a basis for the substrate specificity and reveals unique catalytic elements not found in other members of the CyTase family.

No abstract

This article reports multiple metabolic pathways of amino acid production via phenol and naphthalene use by Corynebacterium glutamicum. Biodegradation of phenol and naphthalene by C. glutamicum occurred in a mineral salt medium containing 1% yeast extract without any additional carbon sources. Among the amino acids synthesized via the TCA-cycle, glutamate synthesis increased in C. glutamicum supplemented with 8.5 mM phenol or with 4.2 mM naphthalene. Aspartate synthesis significantly increased when cultured with 4.2 mM naphthalene, and increased synthesis of threonine and histidine was observed only with the addition of phenol. In addition, synthesis of valine and leucine decreased considerably under both conditions. Moreover, the bioconversion of glutamate from phenol and naphthalene is regulated by a transcriptional regulator, FarR, at the transcription level of the gltBD and gdh genes. In this study, we found that the utilization of phenol and naphthalene enhances biosynthesis of several amino acids and that this mechanism is controlled by a transcriptional regulator.

Despite numerous efforts to discover novel bioactive products from microorganisms, previously reported compounds are repetitively reisolated. A new polyketide glycoside, gordonic acid (1), isolated from the mixed culture of two Gram-positive bacteria, Gordonia sp. KMC005 and Streptomyces tendae KMC006, is reported. The structure of 1 was characterized as an acyclic polyene polyketide substituted with a β-d-digitoxopyranose through NMR, HR-ESI-QTOF-MS, IR, and UV spectral data. The stereochemistry for 1 was determined by Mosher's method followed by 2D NOESY analysis and by NMR chemical shift calculations supported by DP4 analysis. Gordonic acid (1) showed weak activity against Micrococcus luteus and Enterococcus hirae.

The proper administration of melatonin has well been documented to induce testicular regression in seasonal breeding animals. The subcutaneous injections of melatonin in the afternoon, not in the morning, consistently occurred testicular involution in the male Syrian (golden) hamsters whose reproductive activity is regulated by the photoperiod. But the effects of daily melatonin via gavage have not been estimated. Golden hamsters housed in long photoperiod (LP) were divided into 5 groups: the control animals housed in LP or in short photoperiod (SP) and animals treated daily with low (15 μg), middle (150 μg), and high dosages (1,500 μg) of pure melatonin by using gavage in the evening for 8 weeks. As results, LP control animals had large testes and SP controls displayed small and entirely regressed testes. The animals treated with various dosages of melatonin showed collectively degenerating effects on the weights of testes, epididymides, and seminal vesicles in the middle and high dosage groups, with the individual differences as well. The high dosages induced testicular regression in more proportion than the middle dosages did. The low dosage had large testes like the LP control animals. The small and inactive testes shown in some animals of both middle and high groups presented the complete regression as those of the animals maintained in SP. These results strongly suggest that the administrations of melatonin lead to testicular involution in the male golden hamsters when it is administered through gavage.

No abstract

No abstract