Recent advances in the synthesis of natural products containing the phloroglucinol motif

Structure Revision of Formyl Phloroglucinol Meroterpenoids: A Unified Approach Using NMR Fingerprinting and DFT NMR and ECD Analyses

NMR fingerprints are valuable tools for analyzing complex natural product mixtures and identifying incorrectly assigned structures in the literature. Our diagnostic NMR fingerprints for formyl phloroglucinol meroterpenoids revealed discrepancies in the structures reported for eucalyprobusal C (1a) and eucalypcamal K (2a). NMR fingerprinting PCA analyses identified 1a as an oxepine-diformyl phloroglucinol and 2a as an oxepine 3-acyl-1-formyl phloroglucinol, contrary to their initial assignments as pyrano-diformyl and pyrano 3-acyl-1-formyl phloroglucinols, respectively. Extensive reinterpretation of their reported one- and two-dimensional NMR data, coupled with GIAO DFT-calculated 1H and 13C NMR chemical shift and DP4+ analyses, supported the unequivocal reassignment of eucalyprobusal C to 1b and eucalypcamal K to 2b. The absolute configurations of the revised oxepine-containing phloroglucinol meroterpenoids were confirmed via the reinterpretation of their reported ROESY and NOESY NMR data, along with comparative TDDFT-calculated and experimental ECD spectra.

Sequential Dieckmann cyclization enables the total synthesis of 7-epi-clusianone and 18-hydroxy-7-epi-clusianone

A unified approach for the construction of the bicyclo[3.3.1]nonane-2,4,9-trione core of polycyclic polyprenylated acylphloroglucinols (PPAPs) was reported. This approach involves a sequential process of two distinct Dieckmann condensation reactions from the linear precursor. Using this method, the divergent total synthesis of the natural products 7-epi-clusianone and 18-hydroxy-7-epi-clusianone and the formal synthesis of sampsonione P were achieved. Additionally, other key steps to realize this strategy include RuCl3-catalyzed oxidative olefin cleavage and Pd-catalyzed Tsuji-Trost decarboxylative allylation. The synthesis indicated that bicyclo[3.3.1]nonane-2,4,9-triones could also be constructed via 6-membered intermediates.

A review of nemorosone: Chemistry and biological properties

Nemorosone is a bicyclic polyprenylated acylphloroglucinol derivative originally isolated from Clusia spp. and it can be obtained through chemical synthesis employing different synthetic strategies. Since its discovery, it has attracted great attention both from a biological and chemical viewpoint. In the present article, we attempted to review various chemical and biological topics around nemorosone, with an emphasis on its antiproliferative activities. For this purpose, relevant data was collected from different scientific databases including Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus and ISI Web of Knowledge. This natural compound has shown activity against several types of malignancies such as leukemia, human colorectal, pancreatic, and breast cancer because it modulates multiple molecular pathways. Nemorosone has both cytostatic and cytotoxic activity and it also seems to induce apoptosis and ferroptosis. Additionally, it has antimicrobial capabilities against Gram-positive bacteria and parasites belonging to genus Leishmania. Its promising antiproliferative pre-clinical effects deserve further attention for anticancer and anti-parasitic drug development and translation to the clinic.

Phloroglucinol Attenuates DNA Damage and Apoptosis Induced by Oxidative Stress in Human Retinal Pigment Epithelium ARPE-19 Cells by Blocking the Production of Mitochondrial ROS

Phloroglucinol, a phenolic compound, is known to possess a potent antioxidant ability. However, its role in retinal cells susceptible to oxidative stress has not been well elucidated yet. Thus, the objective of this study was to evaluate whether phloroglucinol could protect against oxidative damage in cultured human retinal pigment epithelium ARPE-19 cells. For this purpose, ARPE-19 cells were stimula ted with hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) to mimic oxidative stress. Cell viability, cytotoxicity, apoptosis, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, mitochondrial function, DNA damage, and autophagy were then assessed. Our results revealed that phloroglucinol ameliorated cell viability, cytotoxicity, and DNA damage in H₂O₂-exposued ARPE-19 cells and blocked production of ROS. Phloroglucinol also counteracted H₂O₂-induced apoptosis by reducing Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, blocking activation of caspase-3, and inhibiting degradation of poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase. H₂O₂ caused mitochondrial impairment and increased expression levels of mitophagy markers such as PINK1and PARKIN known to be associated with mitochondrial ROS (mtROS) generation and cytosolic release of cytochrome c. However, these changes were significantly attenuated by phloroglucinol. Mito-TEMPO, a selective mitochondrial antioxidant, further enhanced the protective effect of phloroglucinol against dysfunctional mitochondria. Furthermore, H₂O₂ induced autophagy, but not when ARPE-19 cells were pretreated with phloroglucinol, meaning that autophagy by H₂O₂ contributed to the pro-survival mechanism and that phloroglucinol protected ARPE-19 cells from apoptosis by blocking autophagy. Taken together, these results suggest that phloroglucinol can inhibit oxidative stress-induced ARPE-19 cell damage and dysfunction by protecting DNA damage, autophagy, and subsequent apoptosis through mitigation of mtROS generation. Thus, phloroglucinol might have therapeutic potential to prevent oxidative stress-mediated damage in RPE cells.

Phloroglucinol Derivative Carbomer Hydrogel Accelerates MRSA-Infected Wounds’ Healing

Globally, wound infection is considered to be one of the major healthcare problems, with bacterial infections being the most critical threat, leading to poor and delayed wound healing, and even death. As a superbug, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) causes a profound hazard to public health safety, prompting us to search for alternative treatment approaches. Herein, the MTT test and Hoechst/propidium iodide (PI) staining demonstrated that PD was slightly less toxic to human fibroblasts including Human keratinocytes (HaCaT) cell line than Silver sulfadiazine (SSD), and Vancomycin (Van). In the MRSA-infected wound model, PD hydrogel (1%, 2.5%) was applied with for 14 days. The wound healing of PD hydrogel groups was superior to the SSD, Van, and control groups. Remarkably, the experimental results showed that PD reduced the number of skin bacteria, reduced inflammation, and upregulated the expression of PCNA (keratinocyte proliferation marker) and CD31 (angiogenesis manufacturer) at the wound site by histology (including hematoxylin–eosin (HE) staining, Masson staining) and immunohistochemistry. Additionally, no toxicity, hemocompatibility or histopathological changes to organs were observed. Altogether, these results suggested the potential of PD hydrogel as a safe, effective, and low toxicity hydrogel for the future clinical treatment of MRSA-infected wounds.