Novel cinnamic acid derivatives as a versatile tool for developing agrochemicals for controlling plant virus and bacterial diseases by enhancing plant defense responses

Abstract

BACKGROUND Plant pathogens have led to large yield and quality losses in crops worldwide. The discovery and study of novel agrochemical alternatives based on the chemical modification of bioactive natural products is a highly efficient approach. Here, two series of novel cinnamic acid derivatives incorporating diverse building blocks with alternative linking patterns were designed and synthesized to identify their antiviral capacity and antibacterial activity. RESULTS The bioassay results demonstrated that most cinnamic acid derivatives had excellent antiviral competence toward tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) in vivo, especially compound A5 (median effective concentration [EC50] = 287.7 μg mL−1), which had a notable protective effect against TMV when compared with the commercial virucide ribavirin (EC50 = 622.0 μg mL−1). In addition, compound A17 had a protective efficiency of 84.3% at 200 μg mL−1 against Xac in plants. Given these outstanding results, the engineered title compounds could be regarded as promising leads for controlling plant virus and bacterial diseases. Preliminary mechanistic studies suggest that compound A5 could enhance the host's defense responses by increasing the activity of defense enzymes and upregulating defense genes, thereby suppressing phytopathogen invasion. CONCLUSION This research lays a foundation for the practical application of cinnamic acid derivatives containing diverse building blocks with alternative linking patterns in pesticide exploration. © 2023 Society of Chemical Industry.

Discovery of Novel Cinnamic Acid Derivatives as Fungicide Candidates

“…1−3 Cinnamic acid and its derivatives are abundant in plants. 4,5 They are important active ingredients of cinnamon and benzoin. 5 The α,β-unsaturated double bonds in the structure of cinnamic acid derivatives may enhance the contact between molecules and target receptors, improving their biological activities.…”

“…Natural products possess diverse biological activities and novel action mechanisms owing to their unique structure, which increases the probability of being used as lead compounds to successfully discover new green pesticides. − Cinnamic acid and its derivatives are abundant in plants. , They are important active ingredients of cinnamon and benzoin . The α,β-unsaturated double bonds in the structure of cinnamic acid derivatives may enhance the contact between molecules and target receptors, improving their biological activities .…”

Identification of Novel Bisamide-Decorated Benzotriazole Derivatives as Anti-Phytopathogenic Virus Agents: Bioactivity Evaluation and Computational Simulation

“…Surging dietary demand for cereals, vegetables, and fruits has continuously prompted agricultural production to provide adequate quantities of higher-quality products. , Nonetheless, the disreputable plant viruses, known as “plant cancer”, are a subversive constraint on the development of agricultural food. According to incomplete statistics, plant viruses cause more than $1 billion in global agricultural losses annually, a trend that exacerbates the dilemma of agricultural production and exposes farmers to huge economic crises. − More seriously, environmental and climatic changes and insect activity have also exacerbated the distribution and infection of plant viruses. − At present, ningnamycin and ribavirin, as widely used commercial antiviral agents, show low to moderate control effects against plant viruses. , Hence, it is of practical importance to explore promising and novel structural virucide alternatives.…”

“…Surging dietary demand for cereals, vegetables, and fruits has continuously prompted agricultural production to provide adequate quantities of higher-quality products. 1,2 Nonetheless, the disreputable plant viruses, known as "plant cancer", are a subversive constraint on the development of agricultural food. According to incomplete statistics, plant viruses cause more than $1 billion in global agricultural losses annually, a trend that exacerbates the dilemma of agricultural production and exposes farmers to huge economic crises.…”

Design, synthesis, antibacterial evaluation of isopropylamine linked with different substituted phenol and piperazine novel derivatives

“…The cultivation and yield of rice, a staple food for many around the world, are matters of paramount global concern. 1,2 In the realm of molecular plant pathology, Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) stands out as a primary pathogen.…”