A new compound, (6R,7S,2E,4E)-6,7-dihydroxy-4,6-dimethylocta-2,4-dienoic acid (1), together with eight known compounds were isolated from the co-culture of Saccharicola sp. and Botryosphaeria parva, an endophytic fungi associated with Eugenia jambolana Lam. (Myrtaceae) plant species. The structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analysis of the one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry (MS) data as well as by comparison with literature data. The bioactivity (antioxidant and antifungal) of the crude EtOAc was evaluated. All crude extracts presented antioxidant activity and only the crude extract from the co-culture was active on the fungus Cladosporium sphaerospermum. This investigation contributed to the knowledge about the metabolic production of two endophytic fungi Saccharicola sp. and Botryosphaeria parva in co-culture, once, until the present date, there are no studies in the literature that report the understanding of the chemical interaction of both grown in the same environment.

Platonia insignis fruit, popularly known as bacuri, is traditionally used in folk medicine for its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Therefore, this study determined the chemical composition and biological activities of the bacuri’s shell and seeds extracts, considered residues from its consumption and industrial uses. Four biflavonoids (GB-2a, GB-1a, morelloflavone, and volkensiflavone) were identified in the extracts by high-performance liquid chromatography-diode array detection (HPLC-DAD), liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), and liquid chromatography-solid phase extraction-nuclear magnetic resonance (LC-SPE-NMR) techniques. Morelloflavone was identified as the main compound in the shell ethyl acetate extract, being responsible for the high in vitro antioxidant (50% effective concentration (EC50) ranging from 8.0-10.5 µg mL−1 in different protocols), anti-glycant (80%), and moderate inhibition of nitric oxide (1.56 µg mL−1 for > 90% cell viability) activities. This extract showed promising in vivo anti-inflammatory activity evaluated through the paw edema protocol after its incorporation into a liquid-crystalline drug carrier system, reducing the edema by up to 31%. The results demonstrated the potential of the fruit for the development of drugs of natural origin and corroborated to add economic value to these discarded residues.

Metabolomics has played a central role in various areas of plant sciences, offering new perspectives for the advancement of agriculture, drug discovery, chemical ecology and taxonomy. Plant metabolomics (identification and quantification) aims to understand the relationship between biological systems and genetic, pathological and or environmental stimuli in terms of differential expression of the metabolism. Owing to the unique challenges, such studies require multidisciplinary skills involving biology, chemistry, statistics, and computer science for the extraction and complete understanding of information. In this sense, this review summarizes the main procedures that involve the steps of plant metabolomic study (design of experiments, sample preparation, analytical methods and data analysis), providing a comprehensive overview, showing the main challenges and limitations and possible solutions for the different approaches used.

Orbitides are a class of small naturally occurring cyclic peptides with structural and functional diversities. Their chemical properties make this class feasible to be obtained by solid phase peptide synthesis (SPPS). Therefore, this synthetic accessibility enables useful application and facilitates the identification of analogues, bioactivity studies, and thus, enables them to be applied to obtain peptide libraries. The aim of this work was to investigate the effects of orbitides and their linear synthetic analogues on the migration of neonatal human foreskin fibroblasts. The screening of linear peptide analogues, originally designed from natural orbitides isolated from Jatropha species, demonstrated that some molecules (linear pohlianin B and linear ribifolin) have the potential to induce fibroblast migration and collagen deposition and may thus contribute to accelerating the processes of wound healing and tissue repair. These results also demonstrate the significance of using peptides as an important tool for the discovery of simple and novel drug scaffolds.

ABSTRACT Natural products have been the most valuable source of chemical compounds in the discovery of novel medicines. Secondary metabolites from terrestrial and marine organisms have found considerable use in the treatment of numerous diseases and have been considered lead molecules both in their natural form and as templates for medicinal chemistry. Brazil has an exceptionally rich biodiversity, and a valuable source of secondary metabolites that can be useful for the development of bioproducts. Ipomoea species, Convolvulaceae, are mostly found in tropical and sub-tropical regions, including South America and many are used for nutritional and medicinal purposes. Ipomoea procumbens Mart. & Choisy is endemic from South America, and this is the first study reported on the chemical composition and biological activities of this species. The present work reports the tentatively identification of natural products present in the extracts using a high performance liquid chromatography–high resolution mass spectrometry method. Additionally, the antioxidant and antifungal biological activities of the leaves, roots and steams extracts and fractions of this species were evaluated. While for the antioxidant activity the hydromethanol fractions (leaves, stem and roots) were more active, the methanol fractions of leaves and stem provided better results for the antifungal assay.

A new compound named methyl (6S,7S,2E,4E)-6,7-dihydroxy-4,6-dimethyl octanoate was isolated from Saccharicola sp. using high performance liquid chromatography-solid phase extraction-transfer tube (HPLC-SPE-TT), together with four known compounds, fusaric acid, trans-4-hydroxymellein, thymidine and adenosine. Saccharicola sp. was isolated from the stems of Eugenia jambolana Lam. (Myrtaceae) as endophytic fungus. The structure of this novel substance was established based on its spectroscopic data, including 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), 2D NMR techniques and high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HR-ESI-MS). This paper deals with the first report of its kind on this compound in Saccharicola sp.

Abstract: The development of our society has been based on the use of biodiversity, especially for nutrition, medicines and beauty. Brazil is the nation with the largest biodiversity in the world, with a rich chemical diversity, which is a potential source for bioeconomy. Considering the chemical and biological diversity of the Brazilian territory, we would like to highlight the value of secondary metabolites from Brazilian biodiversity with potential application for new products and technologies and the importance of scientific programs to support the sustainable use of biodiversity.

One new natural product, 1-phenylethyl-O-a-L-rhamnopyranoside, together with eight known diketopiperazines and two benzene derivatives were isolated from the endophytic fungus Colletotrichum crassipes, whereas six known compounds including two griseofulvins, three cytochalasins and one dihydroisocoumarin were produced from the endophyte Xylaria sp., both endophytic fungi are associated with leaves of Casearia sylvestris. Cyclo(D)-Pro-(D)-Phe, N-(2-phenylethyl)acetamide and 5-carboxy-6-hydroxy-3-methyl-3,4-dihydroisocoumarin exhibited potent antifungal activity against Cladosporium cladosporioides and C. sphaerospermum. The compounds cyclo(D)-Pro-(D)-Phe, griseofulvin, cytochalasin B and cytochalasin D exhibited antioxidant activity, and the compounds cyclo(D)-Pro-(D)-Phe, cytochalasin B and cytochalasin C showed potent acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibition. In addition, this is the first report on the isolation of secondary metabolites from two endophytic fungal strains, associated with Casearia sylvestris.

ABSTRACT The development of our society has been based on the use of biodiversity, especially for medicines and nutrition. Brazil is the nation with the largest biodiversity in the world accounting for more than 15% of all living species. The devastation of biodiversity in Brazil is critical and may not only cause the loss of species and genes that encode enzymes involved in the complex metabolism of organisms, but also the loss of a rich chemical diversity, which is a potential source for bioeconomy based on natural products and new synthetic derivatives. Bioeconomy focus on the use of bio-based products, instead of fossil-based ones and could address some of the important challenges faced by society. Considering the chemical and biological diversity of Brazil, this review highlights the Brazilian natural products that were successfully used to develop new products and the value of secondary metabolites from Brazilian biodiversity with potential application for new products and technologies. Additionally, we would like to address the importance of new technologies and scientific programs to support preservation policies, bioeconomy and strategies for the sustainable use of biodiversity.

Senna spectabilis (syn Cassia spectabilis) is one of the most important species within the Fabaceae family, natively found in Central and South America, as well as parts of Asia and Africa. Due to the extensive geographical distribution, this fast-growing tree produces a wide variety of bioactive secondary metabolites, being of special interest for chemical and pharmacological studies. Phytochemical investigations have shown that S. spectabilis produces over 40 constituents from different biosynthetic pathways, including piperidine alkaloids, pentacyclic terpenoids and anthraquinones, displaying antiproliferative, antitumoral and antifungal activities. Moreover, studies have also been conducted to identify endophytic and rizhospheric microorganisms associated to S. spectabilis and their chemical composition, enabling further elucidation of cadinane sesquiterpenoids, cytochalasins, depsipeptides and dibenzopirones. This review aims to provide an updated summary of the main features of S. spectabilis, compiling all currently available information on the chemical and pharmacological composition of its parts and its associated microorganisms.

Piperlongumine is a natural amide alkaloid isolated from several species of Piper and is described in the literature as selectively cytotoxic to several cancer cell lines. Inhibiting cell migration has gained considerable interest as an approach for discovering antimetastatic agents because this process is fundamental to metastasis. Piperlongumine, selected from cell-based assay screening of NuBBE Database, inhibited the migration of MDA-MB-231 breast cancer cells with an EC50 of 3.0 ± 1.0 µM by the Boyden chamber assay. A series of five analogous compounds based on the structure of piperlongumine were designed, synthesized and evaluated in cell migration and cytotoxicity assays. The analogue designed by molecular simplification ((E)-N-acryloyl-3-(3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl)acrylamide) was the most active of the series, with an EC50 of 1.5 ± 1 µM. Additionally, this compound was selectively cytotoxic, with a selectivity index (SI) of 4.4.

Six known compounds, three peptide derivatives: cyclo-(tryptophyl-phenylalanyl) (2), diketopiperazine dimer WIN 64821 (3) and 3-hydroxy-15H-tryptophenaline (4), one adenine derivative: 2-hydroxy-6-N-isopentenyl-adenine (5), one phtalide derivative: 4-methoxyphtalide (1) and one benzoic acid derivative: 3-hydroxy-4-(1-hydroxy-1,5-dimethyl-hexyl) benzoic acid (6), were isolated from the ethyl acetate extract of the endophytic fungus Aspergillus versicolor associated with the Piper aduncum plant. Their structures were determined on the basis of detailed interpretation of 1 D and 2D NMR spectra and in comparison with works reported in the literature. This paper, in effect, deals with the first report of these compounds in A. versicolor.

Seven phenolic derivatives including p-hydroxyphenyllactic acid (1), p-hydroxybenzoic acid (2), p-hydroxybenzaldehyde (3), phenyllactic acid (4), n-butyl-3,4-dihydroxybenzoate (5), n-hexyl-3,4-dihydroxybenzoate (6) and n-octyl-3,4-dihydroxybenzoate (7) were produced using Camarops sp. via the one strain-many compounds (OSMAC) approach. Their structures were determined using 2D NMR and ESI-MS spectra and were compared with works reported in the literature. This paper deals with the first report of these compounds in Camarops sp.

Psychotria genus (Rubiaceae) is featured into the angiosperm, being the most speciose genus comprising approximately 1600 species. The available references demonstrate that Psychotria has several uses on traditional medicine including spiritual and cultural purposes, and presents great potential on pharmacological properties, especially the one related to neurodegenerative diseases. Despite its wide biological properties, this genus has shown complex phylogenetic analysis due to lack of chemotaxonomic information. In recent years, the interest in these plants has increased considerably and many active compounds have been isolated. Phytochemical investigations described in the literature confirmed the indole alkaloids as the major compounds and besides that, another particular chemical constituent are cyclic peptides, known as cyclotides. This present review will cover the relevant literature from 1962 until 2015, and outlines the current data on taxonomy, chemotaxonomy, traditional uses, pharmacological properties, chemical composition and ecological approach from Psychotria genus.