ABSTRACT Solanaceae is an important family of plants where many species of this family are source for food, industrial products, ornamental and medicinal uses. Within the family of Solanaceae, the genus Datura is one of the most interesting, in principle for its known medicinal and psychotropic uses against different pathologies. Multiple biological activities of Datura species have been documented. The species of the genus are attributed with insecticide, fungicide, antioxidant, antimicrobial, hypoglycemic, and immune response enhancing activity against cancer cells. These activities are related to the presence of different secondary metabolites such us: terpenoids, flavonoids, withanolides, tannins, phenolic compounds and tropane alkaloids, the main secondary metabolite of the genus Datura , being the most abundant atropine and scopolamine. The propose of this review is to identify the main phytochemical compounds isolated from the genus Datura and describe their biological activities associated to different secondary metabolites.

Abstract Galanthamine is an Amaryllidaceae-derived acetylcholinesterase inhibitor used to treat memory impairment in Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. There is evidence that galanthamine, in addition to its effects on acetylcholinesterase, may enhance or inhibit brain nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, which could increase or decrease the therapeutic efficacy of galanthamine, respectively. Here, we evaluated the effects of galanthamine and two others Amaryllidaceae acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (haemanthamine and tazettine) analyzed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry and identified by comparing their mass fragmentation patterns with literature and database NIST vs.2.0 on the agonist responses of brain nicotinic acetylcholine receptors α7, α3β4, (α4)2(β2)3 and (α4)3(β2)2. Using nicotinic acetylcholine receptors expressed heterologously in Xenopus oocytes, in conjunction with two-electrode voltage clamping, we found that galanthamine inhibits the function of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors assayed through a mix competitive and non-competitevely. Nicotinic acetylcholine receptor α7 were significantly more sensitive to inhibition (17 ± 0.6 µM) than the heteromeric receptor, α3β4 (90 ± 3.4 µM). Neither haemanthamine nor tazettine were more potent than galanthamine.

ABSTRACT Acetylcholinesterase is an important target for control of neurodegenerative diseases causing cholinergic signaling deficit. Traditionally, galanthamine has been used as an Amaryllidaceae-derived acetylcholinesterase inhibitor, although new Amaryllidaceae plants could serve as source for better acetylcholinesterase inhibitors. Therefore, the objective of this study was to characterize the alkaloid composition from bulbs of Rhodolirium andicola (Poepp.) Traub, a native Chilean Amaryllidaceae specie, and assess their inhibitory activity on acetylcholinesterase by in vitro and in silico methodologies. Alkaloidal extracts from R. andicola exhibited an inhibitory activity with IC50 values between 11.25 ± 0.04 and 57.78 ± 1.92 µg/ml that included isolated alkaloid, galanthamine (2.3 ± 0.18 µg/ml), Additionally, 12 alkaloids were detected using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry and identified by comparing their mass fragmentation patterns with literature and database NIST vs.2.0. To better understand the bioactivity of isolated compounds and alkaloidal extracts against acetylcholinesterase, a molecular docking approach was performed. Results suggested that alkaloids such as lycoramine, norpluvine diacetate and 6α-deoxy-tazettine expand the list of potential acetylcholinesterase inhibitors to not only galanthamine. The role of R. andicola as a source for acetylcholinesterase inhibitors is further discussed in this study.

The diene Erythrina alkaloids erysotrine (1), erysodine (2), erythraline (3), erytharbine (4), and erysotrine N-oxide (5), plus the hydroxylated dihydro derivative of 1, epierythratidine (6) were isolated from seeds of Erythrina fusca Lour., and their ¹H and 13C NMR spectra were completely assigned using 2D experiments (H-H COSY, HMQC, HMBC and H-H NOESY). Our assignments for 1-5 agree well with the literature, but the present work shows that the published interpretation of the spectra of 6 must be revised. A combined study based on NMR data and quantum-mechanical calculations using DFT/GIAO indicate that 6 is the correct structure of epierythratidine.

Benzyltetrahydroisoquinoline (BTHIQ) molecules are able to adopt widely differing conformations that depend on the presence or absence of N-substituents. To assess the possible role of BTHIQ conformation on the affinity of these compounds for a 1-adrenergic receptors, of interest for the management of hypertension, the racemic N-unsubstituted BTHIQ norlaudanosine and a series of N-alkylated derivatives were assessed for binding to rat brain cortical sites labelled with the radioligand [³H]prazosin. The a 1-adrenergic affinity in this series increased with the bulk of the substituent on the nitrogen atom, from the N-ethyl to the N-propyl analogue. Comparison of these results with published data for related BTHIQs and for the rigid mimics of the fully extended and semi-folded conformations of laudanosine, tetrahydropalmatine and glaucine, suggested that the a 1-adrenergic receptor binding site is able to accommodate either conformation. The presence of a bulky substituent on the nitrogen atom seems to favor receptor binding independently of the favored conformation, and that the orientation in which BTHIQs are bound probably differs depending on the presence or absence of a hydroxyl group at a key position

A simple synthetic route for the preparation of 2-phenyl-1,3-propanediamines, based on a Knoevenagel-Michael double condensation followed by reduction, was developed using nitromethane as reagent and solvent, and sodium bicarbonate as base in the first step, followed by catalytic hydrogenation over Adams catalyst

Condensation of 4-methylthiobenzaldehyde with 1-nitropropane unexpectedly afforded separable amounts of both (E)- and (Z)-1-(4-methylthiophenyl)-2-nitrobutene. The ¹H and 13C NMR spectra allowed the unequivocal assignment of all signals and their correlation with the preferred conformations adopted by these compounds as determined by NOESY experiments. Hartree Fock theory optimizations at the 6-311G(d,p) level were carried out for the stereoisomeric 4-methylthionitroethene, -nitropropene, and -nitrobutene pairs, and the relative energy differences between isomers were calculated in order to estimate approximate E/Z equilibrium constants. These energy differences decrease with the increasing number of side chain carbon atoms, explaining the possibility of separating (E)- and (Z)-nitrobutenes and the failure to isolate the (Z) isomers of the lower homologues under the usual thermodynamically controlled reaction conditions

The conformational preferences of a series of 1-benzyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinolines (norlaudanosine and coclaurine analogues) were investigated with the aid of their 1H NMR spectra and NOESY experiments, coupled with ab initio theoretical studies to estimate energy barriers among the various stable conformers of these systems. The secondary amines prefer an extended conformation, while the N-alkylated derivatives prefer a semi-folded one, with considerable freedom to exchange between both forms. A third, folded conformation, although not much higher in energy, is relatively inaccessible