A new quinolone alkaloid, megistolactone (1) was isolated from the bark of Sarcomelicope megistophylla. Its structure has been elucidated on the basis of MS and NMR data. From a biogenetic point of view, this compound should be considered as an oxidation product of 1,2,3,4-tetra-O-subsituted acridone alkaloids, which are also present in the bark.

A spectroscopic study of an organocatalytic Henry reaction between nitroalkanes and aldehydes catalyzed by a quinidine-derived Cinchona alkaloid is described. The binding modes of the reaction substrates are investigated using electronic absorption and fluorescence spectroscopy and further corroborated by nuclear magnetic resonance measurements. Aldehydes are shown to associate with both the 6'...

The incorporation rates of labelled tyrosine, D O P A , tyramine, and dopamine have been inves­ tigated during the in vivo formation of the protoberberine alkaloid, jatrorrhizine, in callus cul­ tures o f Berberis canadensis. W hile tyrosine was equally well incorporated into both the isoquinoline (54% ) and benzyl (46% ) portions o f the alkaloid. D O PA was almost exclusively (91%) transforme...

The alkaloids characteristically produced by the subfamily Amaryllidoideae of the Amaryllidaceae, bulbous plant species that include well know genera such as Narcissus (daffodils) and Galanthus (snowdrops), are a source of new pharmaceutical compounds. Presently, only the Amaryllidaceae alkaloid galanthamine, an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor used to treat symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, is pr...

Baliospermum montanum leaves yielded 3-hydroxy-2,4-dimethoxy-10-methyl-9-acridanone (1), an alkaloid from the CHCl₃ fraction. Spectroscopic analysis was performed to assign the structure of the new compound (1) and its absolute configuration. The compound was evaluated for its effect in anaphylaxis by estimation of the release of histamine in systemic anaphylaxis model. The acridanone alkaloid ...

Delphiniflexine, a new norditerpenoid alkaloid, together with the three known norditerpenoid alkaloids methyllycaconitine, ajadine, and acoseptrigenine were isolated from the aerial parts of Delphinium flexuosum. The structure of delphiniflexine was established on the basis of 1H, 13C, DEPT, homonuclear 1H COSY, NOESY, HSQC, and HMBC NMR studies.

AgOTf-catalyzed one-pot reactions of 2-alkynylbenzaldoximes with various α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds under mild conditions are described, which provides a facile and efficient pathway for the synthesis of 1-alkylated isoquinoline derivatives. The method tolerates a wide range of substrates and allows for the preparation of the products of interest in moderate to excellent yields.

The antibacterial activity of Murrayaquinone A (10), a naturally occurring carbazoloquinone alkaloid, and 6-methoxy-3,7-dimethyl-2,3-dihydro-1H-carbazole-1,4(9H)-dione (11), a synthetic carbazoloquinone, both obtained during the development of the synthesis of Carbazomycin G, having unique quinone moiety, was studied against Gram-positive (Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus) and Gram-n...

This review describes certain reminiscences about an area of chemical pharmacology I have been involved with, on and off, for many years. Specifically it focuses on tropane, a fascinating, naturally occurring bicyclic chemical ring system that lends itself to many pharmaceutical and therapeutic applications. My involvement with the tropane ring has started more than 60 years ago in 1949, when, ...

Fast-growing hairy root cultures of Hyoscyamus muticus induced by Agrobacterium rhizogenes offer a potential production system for tropane alkaloids. Oxygen deficiency has been shown to limit growth and biomass accumulation of hairy roots, whereas little experimental data is available on the effect of oxygen on alkaloid production. We have investigated the effect of Vitreoscilla hemoglobin (VHb...