Search Results (25)

Oxytropis glabra DC, a Fabaceae species distributed across Central Asia, is characterized by a dual biological profile encompassing pronounced toxicity alongside promising pharmacological potential. This review synthesizes current knowledge on its phytochemistry, bioactivity, and toxicological liabilities to clarify the plant’s risk–benefit landscape. The objectives are to summarize the dominant classes of metabolites identified in O. glabra, evaluate their toxicological and therapeutic relevance, and identify key gaps limiting translational research. O. glabra contains a diverse array of secondary metabolites, with quinolizidine and indolizidine alkaloids, including swainsonine, anagyrine, thermopsine, and sparteine, representing the primary determinants of toxicity. These compounds are associated with teratogenicity, neurotoxicity, and locoism through mechanisms involving α-mannosidase inhibition, disruption of glycoprotein processing, and impaired lysosomal homeostasis. In contrast, flavonoids such as quercetin, isoquercitrin, and kaempferol derivatives exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, and cardioprotective effects, while triterpenoid saponins and fatty acids contribute additional cytoprotective and metabolic activities. Despite extensive reports on both toxic and bioactive constituents, critical gaps remain regarding chemotype variability, dose–response relationships, and pharmacokinetics, which currently constrain therapeutic exploitation. Future research should prioritize defining safe exposure thresholds, elucidating structure–activity relationships, and developing standardized extracts or optimized derivatives that balance efficacy and safety. This integrative perspective highlights O. glabra as a chemically rich but biologically ambivalent species whose toxicological risks and pharmacological opportunities warrant systematic mechanistic investigation. Full article

Vinylallenes have been used in Diels–Alder reactions with a variety of dienophiles. However, vinylallenes activated at the allenic part of the molecule have been reacted only with carbon–carbon double bonds. We prepared siloxy vinylallenes by the base-induced equilibrium of silyl-protected allyl-propargyl alcohols. We found that these systems react with imines to form cycloadducts with total regio and facial selectivity, but only moderate endo:exo selectivity. The cycloadducts obtained were transformed into indolizidine derivatives. The reaction was studied computationally using DFT and compared to the reaction of siloxydienes. It was found that the main difference between those systems is the higher nucleophilicity of the siloxydienes compared to the siloxy vinylallenes. Full article

Indolizidines have long been recognized for their valuable bioactivities, their common feature being a bicyclic structure connected via a nitrogen atom. Traditionally, plants have been identified as the primary producers. However, recent discoveries have revealed that certain bacterial strains belonging to the genus of actinomycetes also possess the ability to synthesize various indolizidine-based compounds. Among these strains, Streptomyces sp. HNA39, Saccharopolyspora sp. RL78, and Streptomyces NCIB 11649 have been identified as producers of cyclizidines, characterized by their distinctive cyclopropyl moiety. Additionally, Streptomyces griseus OS-3601 synthesizes a unique class of indolizidine derivatives known as iminimycins, distinguished by their rare imine-cation structure. Protoplast fusion of a Streptomyces griseus strain with Streptomyces tenjimariensis resulted in a new indolizidine named indolizomycin. This review aims to provide an overview of known bacterial indolizidine producers, summarize current knowledge regarding the biosynthesis of cyclizidines and iminimycins, and assess their respective bioactivities. Full article

The medicinal plant Securinega virosa (Roxb ex. Willd) Baill., also known as Flueggea virosa (Roxb. ex Willd.) Royle, is commonly used in traditional medicine in Africa and Asia for the management of diverse pathologies, such as parasite infections, diabetes, and gastrointestinal diseases. Numerous alkaloids have been isolated from the twigs and leaves of the plant, notably a variety of oligomeric indolizidine alkaloids derived from the monomers securinine and norsecurinine which both display anticancer properties. The recent discovery that securinine can bind to tubulin and inhibit microtubule assembly prompted us to investigate the potential binding of two series of alkaloids, fluevirosines A–H and fluevirosinine A–J, with the tubulin dimer by means of molecular modeling. These natural products are rare high-order alkaloids with tri-, tetra-, and pentameric norsecurinine motifs. Despite their large size (up to 2500 ų), these alkaloids can bind easily to the large drug-binding cavity (about 4800 ų) on α-tubulin facing the β-tubulin unit. The molecular docking analysis suggests that these hydrophobic macro-alkaloids can form stable complexes with α/β-tubulin. The tubulin-binding capacity varies depending on the alkaloid size and structure. Structure-binding relationships are discussed. The docking analysis identifies the trimer fluevirosine D, tetramer fluevirosinine D, and pentamer fluevirosinine H as the most interesting tubulin ligands in the series. This study is the first to propose a molecular target for these atypical oligomeric Securinega alkaloids. Full article

The white berry bush, officially Flueggea virosa (Roxb. ex Willd.) Royle is a medicinal plant distributed throughout tropical areas and traditionally used in Africa, India and China. Root decoctions are used to treat abdominal pain, whereas extracts from the aerial parts serve to treat liver and urinary diseases, inflammatory pathologies and diabetes, among other pathologies. Plant extracts have revealed antiparasitic, antimicrobial, antiepilepsy, antidiabetic, anticancer and analgesic effects. Three main categories of phytochemicals were isolated from F. virosa: polyphenols, with the lead product bergenin; terpenoids, such as the flueggenoids and related podocarpane-type diterpenoids; and many alkaloids derived from securinine and norsecurinine. A remarkable feature of S. virosa is the production of norsecurinine oligomers, including macromolecular tetramers and pentamers, such as fluevirosinines. The most potent anticancer alkaloid in the family is the dimeric indolizidine flueggine B, which was identified as a potential binder to α/β-tubulin dimer, which is a known target for securinine. This review highlights the diversity of phytochemicals identified from S. virosa and the potential therapeutic benefits of dimeric alkaloids. Studies are encouraged to further investigate the therapeutic properties of the lead compounds but also define and finesse the nutritional profile of the edible fruit. Full article

The 5,8-disubstituted indolizidines are the largest family of indolizidines isolated from the skin of amphibians. These compounds exhibit interesting biological activities such as noncompetitive blockers of nicotinic receptors. In this paper, we present a short, simple, and general synthesis of these alkaloids based on the hetero Diels–Alder reaction between suitable monoactivated dienes and Δ¹-pyrroline as the dienophile. The selectivity of the process is explained based on computational studies. Concise synthesis of the indolizidine alkaloid 181B from a hetero Diels–Alder reaction was accomplished in four steps. Full article

Traditionally, Middle Eastern herbal medicines, especially traditional Iranian medicines (TIM), have been used by cancer patients both during and after active cancer treatments. Medicinal plants and herbs which are common in traditional Iranian medicine are considered to be less toxic and less expensive than chemical drugs. Alkaloid anti-cancer compounds are pyrrolidine, tropane, pyridine, piperidine, quinolizidine, pyrrolizidine, isoquinoline, indolizidine, isoxazaole, oxazole, quinoline, quinazoline, purine, indole serin, colchicine, β-phenylethylamine, abornin, benzylamine, narciclasine, and pancratistatin. Anticancer terpenoids compounds from medicinal plants and herbs are alpha-hederin, isoprene, galanal A, galanal B, oleanane, carnosol, and xanthorrhizol. Anticancer phenolic compounds from medicinal plants are kaempferol, flavones, flavonol, curcumin, luteoline, chalcone, apigenin, and cafesterol. All relevant papers in the English language from different research using the keywords traditional Persian medicine, traditional Iranian medicine, natural products, and cancer were collected from PubMed, Google Scholar, and Science Direct. Some of the most important medicinal plants and herbs in the middle east, especially in Iran, with anti-caner activities are Acorus calamus, Aracia seyal, Allium ascalonicum, Allium cepa, Agaricus campestris, Aloe vera, Allium sativum, Apium graveolens, Anethum graveolens, Arum palaestinum, Artemisia absinthium, Beta vulgaris, Astoma seselifolium, Brassica oleraceae, Brassica nigra, Boswellia carterii, Capparis spinosa, Bryonia syriaca, Ceterach officinarum, Cassia senna, Cichorium intybus, Chrysanthemum coronarium, Citrullus colocynthis, Cinnamomum camphora, Crataegus azarolus, Crocus sativus, Cucumis melo, Nigella sativa, Olea europaea, Peganum harmala, Punica granatum, Pistacia lentiscus, Zingiber officinale, Thymus vulgaris, Vitis vinifera, Viscum cruciatum, and Urtica pilulifera. Iranian medicinal plants and herbs should be considered more as a notable and great potential source of novel chemical ingredients with anti-cancer activities. Full article

The indolizidine alkaloid-swainsonine (SW) is the main toxic component of locoweeds and the main cause of locoweed poisoning in grazing animals. The endophytic fungi, Alternaria Section Undifilum spp., are responsible for the biosynthesis of SW in locoweeds. The swnK gene is a multifunctional complex enzyme encoding gene in fungal SW biosynthesis, and its encoding product plays a key role in the multistep catalytic synthesis of SW by fungi using pipecolic acid as a precursor. However, the transcriptional regulation mechanism of the swnK gene is still unclear. To identify the transcriptional regulators involved in the swnK gene in endophytic fungi of locoweeds, we first analyzed the upstream non-coding region of the swnK gene in the A. oxytropis UA003 strain and predicted its high transcriptional activity region combined with dual-luciferase reporter assay. Then, a yeast one-hybrid library of A. oxytropis UA003 strain was constructed, and the transcriptional regulatory factors that may bind to the high-transcriptional activity region of the upstream non-coding region of the swnK gene were screened by this system. The results showed that the high transcriptional activity region was located at −656 bp and −392 bp of the upstream regulatory region of the swnK gene. A total of nine candidate transcriptional regulator molecules, including a C2H2 type transcription factor, seven annotated proteins, and an unannotated protein, were screened out through the Y1H system, which were bound to the upstream high transcriptional activity region of the swnK gene. This study provides new insight into the transcriptional regulation of the swnK gene and lays the foundation for further exploration of the regulatory mechanisms of SW biosynthesis in fungal endophytic locoweeds. Full article

Cnidoscolus aconitifolius (CA) and Porophyllum ruderale (PR) are representative edible plants that are a traditional food source in Mexico. This research aimed to analyze the phytochemical composition and untargeted metabolomics analysis of CA and PR and evaluate their antiproliferative effect in vitro. The phytochemical composition (UPLC-DAD-QToF/MS-ESI) identified up to 38 polyphenols and selected organic acids that were clustered by the untargeted metabolomics in functional activities linked to indolizidines, pyridines, and organic acids. Compared with PR, CA displayed a higher reduction in the metabolic activity of human SW480 colon adenocarcinoma cells (LC₅₀: 10.65 mg/mL), and both extracts increased the total apoptotic cells and arrested cell cycle at G0/G1 phase. PR increased mRNA Apc gene expression, whereas both extracts reduced mRNA Kras expression. Rutin/epigallocatechin gallate displayed the highest affinity to APC and K-RAS proteins in silico. Further research is needed to experiment on other cell lines. Results suggested that CA and PR are polyphenol-rich plant sources exhibiting antiproliferative effects in vitro. Full article

Camptothecin-like compounds are actively employed as anticancer drugs in clinical treatments. The aromathecin family of compounds, which contains the same indazolidine core structure as the camptothecin family of compounds, is also expected to display promising anticancer activity. Therefore, the development of a suitable and scalable synthetic method of aromathecin synthesis is of great research interest. In this study, we report the development of a new synthetic approach for constructing the pentacyclic scaffold of the aromathecin family by forming the indolizidine moiety after synthesizing the isoquinolone moiety. Thermal cyclization of 2-alkynylbenzaldehyde oxime to the isoquinoline N-oxide, followed by a Reissert–Henze-type reaction, forms the key strategy in this isoquinolone synthesis. Under the optimum reaction conditions for the Reissert–Henze-type reaction step, microwave irradiation-assisted heating of the purified N-oxide in acetic anhydride at 50 °C reduced the formation of the 4-acetoxyisoquinoline byproduct to deliver the desired isoquinolone at a 73% yield after just 3.5 h. The eight-step sequence employed afforded rosettacin (simplest member of the aromathecin family) at a 23.8% overall yield. The synthesis of rosettacin analogs was achieved by applying the developed strategy and may be generally applicable to the production of other fused indolizidine compounds. Full article

We developed a straightforward synthetic route to pharmacologically important 1,5-substituted pyrrolidin-2-ones from donor–acceptor cyclopropanes bearing an ester group as one of the acceptor substituents. This method includes a Lewis acid-catalyzed opening of the donor–acceptor cyclopropane with primary amines (anilines, benzylamines, etc.) to γ-amino esters, followed by in situ lactamization and dealkoxycarbonylation. The reaction has a broad scope of applicability; a variety of substituted anilines, benzylamines, and other primary amines as well as a wide range of donor–acceptor cyclopropanes bearing (hetero)aromatic or alkenyl donor groups and various acceptor substituents can be involved in this transformation. In this process, donor–acceptor cyclopropanes react as 1,4-C,C-dielectrophiles, and amines react as 1,1-dinucleophiles. The resulting di- and trisubstituted pyrrolidin-2-ones can be also used in subsequent chemistry to obtain various nitrogen-containing polycyclic compounds of interest to medicinal chemistry and pharmacology, such as benz[g]indolizidine derivatives. Full article

The constrained dipeptide surrogates 5- and 7-hydroxy indolizidin-2-one N-(Boc)amino acids have been synthesized from L-serine as a chiral educt. A linear precursor ∆⁴-unsaturated (2S,8S)-2,8-bis[N-(Boc)amino]azelic acid was prepared in five steps from L-serine. Although epoxidation and dihydroxylation pathways gave mixtures of hydroxy indolizidin-2-one diastereomers, iodolactonization of the ∆⁴-azelate stereoselectively delivered a lactone iodide from which separable (5S)- and (7S)-hydroxy indolizidin-2-one N-(Boc)amino esters were synthesized by sequences featuring intramolecular iodide displacement and lactam formation. X-ray analysis of the (7S)-hydroxy indolizidin-2-one N-(Boc)amino ester indicated that the backbone dihedral angles embedded in the bicyclic ring system resembled those of the central residues of an ideal type II’ β-turn indicating the potential for peptide mimicry. Full article

The marine environment is an excellent resource for natural products with therapeutic potential. Its microbial inhabitants, often associated with other marine organisms, are specialized in the synthesis of bioactive secondary metabolites. Similar to their terrestrial counterparts, marine Actinobacteria are a prevalent source of these natural products. Here, we discuss 77 newly discovered alkaloids produced by such marine Actinobacteria between 2017 and mid-2021, as well as the strategies employed in their elucidation. While 12 different classes of alkaloids were unraveled, indoles, diketopiperazines, glutarimides, indolizidines, and pyrroles were most dominant. Discoveries were mainly based on experimental approaches where microbial extracts were analyzed in relation to novel compounds. Although such experimental procedures have proven useful in the past, the methodologies need adaptations to limit the chance of compound rediscovery. On the other hand, genome mining provides a different angle for natural product discovery. While the technology is still relatively young compared to experimental screening, significant improvement has been made in recent years. Together with synthetic biology tools, both genome mining and extract screening provide excellent opportunities for continued drug discovery from marine Actinobacteria. Full article

A five-step transformation of a spiroketal side chain of tigogenin into an indolizidine system present in solanidane alkaloids such as demissidine and solanidine was elaborated. The key intermediate in the synthesis was spiroimine 3 readily obtained from tigogenin by its RuO₄ oxidation to 5,6-dihydrokryptogenin followed by amination with aluminum amide generated in situ from DIBAlH and ammonium chloride. The mild reduction of spiroimine to a 26-hydroxy-dihydropyrrole derivative and subsequent mesylation resulted in the formation of 25-epidemissidinium salt or 23-sulfone depending on reaction conditions. Full article

Smoking-cessation drugs bind many off-target nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) and cause severe side effects if they are based on nicotine. New drugs that bind only those receptors, such as $\alpha$6$\beta$2* nAChR, implicated in nicotine addiction would avoid the off-target binding. Indolizidine (-)-237D (IND (-)-237D), a bicyclic alkaloid, has been shown to block $\alpha$6$\beta$2* containing nAChRs and functionally inhibit the nicotine-evoked dopamine release. To improve the affinity of indolizidine (-)-237D for $\alpha$6$\beta$2*, we built a library of 2226 analogs. We screened virtually the library against a homology model of $\alpha$6$\beta$2 nAChR that we derived from the recent crystal structure of $\alpha$4$\beta$2 nAChR. We also screened the crystal structure of $\alpha$4$\beta$2 nAChR as a control on specificity. We ranked the compounds based on their predicted free energy of binding. We selected the top eight compounds bound in their best pose and subjected the complexes to 100 ns molecular dynamics simulations to assess the stability of the complexes. All eight analogs formed stable complexes for the duration of the simulations. The results from this work highlight nine distinct analogs of IND (-)-237D with high affinity towards $\alpha$6$\beta$2* nAChR. These leads can be synthesized and tested in in vitro and in vivo studies as lead candidates for drugs to treat nicotine addiction. Full article