• The Korean Journal of Mycology
• /
• v.17 no.4
• /
• pp.202-208
• /
• 1989

The photochemical reaction of harmaline and N-methylmaleimide has been investigated by spectroscopic methods. A photoproduct was isolated from the irradiation mixture of harmaline and N-methylmaleimide. Spectroscopic results suggested that the amine group of harmaline was added photochemically to the double C=C bond of N-methylmaleimide. This synthesized harmaline derivative has a biological toxicity, because it inhibits the growth of some yeasts and photosynthetic bacteria.

• Molecules and Cells
• /
• v.38 no.10
• /
• pp.911-917
• /
• 2015

Citronellal, a well-known plant-derived mosquito repellent, was previously reported to repel Drosophila melanogaster via olfactory pathways involving but not directly activating Transient Receptor Potential Ankyrin 1 (TRPA1). Here, we show that citronellal is a direct agonist for Drosophila and human TRPA1s (dTRPA1 and hTRPA1) as well as Anopheles gambiae TRPA1 (agTRPA1). Citronellal-induced activity is isoform-dependent for Drosophila and Anopheles gambiae TRPA1s. The recently identified dTRPA1(A) and ag-TRPA1(A) isoforms showed citronellal-provoked currents with EC50s of $1.0{\pm}0.2$ and $0.1{\pm}0.03mM$, respectively, in Xenopus oocytes, while the sensitivities of TRPA1(B)s were much inferior to those of TRPA1(A)s. Citronellal dramatically enhanced the feeding-inhibitory effect of the TRPA1 agonist N-methylmaleimide (NMM) in Drosophila at an NMM concentration that barely repels flies. Thus, citronellal can promote feeding deterrence of fruit flies through direct action on gustatory dTRPA1, revealing the first isoform-specific function for TRPA1(A).