New Abietane-Type Diterpenes from the Heartwood of Picea morrisonicola

Phytochemical and biological studies on rare and endangered plants endemic to China. Part XXXVI. Tsugaforrestiacids A-O: Structurally diverse C-18 carboxylated diterpenoids from the twigs and needles of the 'vulnerable' conifer Tsuga forrestii and their inhibitory effects on ATP-citrate lyase

An extensive phytochemical investigation on the EtOAc-soluble fraction of the 90% MeOH extract from the twigs and needles of the 'vulnerable' Chinese endemic conifer Tsuga forrestii (Forrest's hemlock) led to the isolation and characterization of 50 structurally diverse diterpenoids, including 15 unreported C-18 carboxylated ones (tsugaforrestiacids A-O, 1-15, resp.). Among them, compounds 1-7 are abieten-18-oic acids, compound 8 is an abieten-18-succinate, and compounds 10-12 are podocarpen-18-oic acids, whereas compounds 13-15 are pimarane-type, isopimarane-type, and totarane-type diterpenoid acids, respectively. Their structures and absolute configurations were determined by a combination of spectroscopic methods, GIAO NMR calculations and DP4+ probability analyses, electronic circular dichroism (ECD) data, and single crystal X-ray diffraction analyses. All the isolates were evaluated for their inhibitory activities against the ATP-citrate lyase (ACL), a key enzyme in cellular metabolism. Tsugaforrestiacids E (5) and H (8) were found to have significant inhibitory effects against ACL, with IC50 values of 5.3 and 6.2 μM, respectively. The interactions of the bioactive molecules with the ACL enzyme were examined by molecular docking studies. The isolated diterpenoids also provide chemotaxonomic evidence to support the delimitation of Tsuga from its closest sister group (Nothotsuga). The above findings highlight the importance of protecting plant species with unique and diverse secondary metabolites, which may be potential sources of new therapeutic agents for the treating ACL-associated diseases.

Harnessing the potential diversity of resinic diterpenes through visible light-induced sensitized oxygenation coupled to Kornblum–DeLaMare and Hock reactions

A biomimetic procedure for the late functionalization of resinic acids is reported, implementing photooxygenation by singlet oxygen, using visible light and a photosensitized, combined to the Kornblum–DeLaMare reaction or the Hock rearrangement.

Diterpenoids from the shed trunk barks of the endangered plant Pinus dabeshanensis and their PTP1B inhibitory effects

11 new (including an unprecedented skeleton, 3) and 28 related known diterpenoids with interesting PTP1B inhibitory effects were identified.

New Constituents from the Heartwood of Picea morrisonicola HAYATA

Three new constituents, including a p-menthane type monoterpene, trans-p-menthane-7,8,9-triol (1), an aromatic, 2,6-dihydroxy-3,4-dimethylbenzoic acid methyl ester (2), and a lignan, (+)-morrisonicolanin (3), were isolated from the low polar layer of heartwood extracts of Picea morrisonicola, and their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis. Of these compounds identified, 1 was obtained as its diacetylated derivative 1a, and 2 was the chemical entity first isolated from a natural source.