• Archives of Pharmacal Research
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• v.29 no.11
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• pp.942-945
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• 2006

A novel quinone derivative, Griseusin C (1), along with a known quinone, Naphthoquinone C (2), was isolated from the lyophilized culture broth of the marine-derived fungus Penicillium sp. The structures were elucidated on the basis of extensive 1D-and 2D-NMR, as well as HRESIMS, spectroscopic analysis. The relative stereochemistries of the compounds were assessed by NOESY analysis.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.117-142
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• 2003

The sphingolipids isolated from marine organisms and their biological activities have been reviewed.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.273-277
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• 2015

Comprehensive chemical analysis of extracts and fractions of marine actinomycete strains led to the discovery of a new minor secondary metabolite, salternamide E (1), from a saltern-derived halophilic Streptomyces strain. The planar structure of salternamide E (1) was elucidated by a combinational analysis of spectroscopic data including NMR, MS, UV, and IR. The absolute configuration of salternamide E (1) was determined by circular dichroism spectroscopic analysis. Salternamide E displayed weak cytotoxicity against various human carcinoma cell lines.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.227-230
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• 2015

Chemical investigation of the fermentation broth of a Soft Coral-Derived fungus Pestalotiopsis sp., led to the isolation of a new phthalide derivative, pestalotiolide A (1), three known analogues (2, 3 and 4), along with 5'-O-acetyl uridine (5) first isolated as a natural product. The structure of the new compound (1) was established by comprehensive spectroscopic analysis and chemical methods. Compounds 1 - 4 possessed varying degrees of antiviral activities, which was reported for the first time. Compared to the positive control ribavirin ($IC_{50}=418.0{\mu}M$), pestalotiolide A (1) exhibited significant anti-EV71 activity in vitro, with an $IC_{50}$ value of $27.7{\mu}M$. Furthermore, the preliminary structure-activity relationship of antiviral activities was also discussed.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.110-113
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• 2006

We tested effect of sarcotride A, a bioactive cyclitol derivative from a marine sponge, on membrane potential in C6 glioma cells. Membrane potential was estimated by measuring fluorescence change of DiBAC-loaded glioma cells. Sarcotride A increased membrane potential in a concentration-dependent manner. We tested effects of pertussis toxin, U73122, EIPA, and $Na^+-free$ media on sarcotride A-induced increase of membrane potential to investigate involvement of G proteins, phospholipase C, $Na^+/H^+$ exchanger, and $Na^+$ channels. However, we were not able to observe any significant effect of those pharmacological inhibitors, excluding the involvement of the molecules as candidate targets or signaling molecules of sarcotride A-induced increase of membrane potential. Further investigation is necessary to elucidate action mechanism of sarcotride A.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.289-292
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• 2015

Intensive chemical investigation of Korean marine sponge Spongia sp. has led to the isolation of two new scalaranes. The planar structures of the new compounds 1 and 2 were determined through 1D and 2D NMR spectral data analysis, while the relative stereochemistry of the compounds was determined based on the analysis of $^1H-^1H$ coupling constants and NOESY spectroscopic data. Compounds 1 and 2 did not display any significant biological activities on farnesoid X-activated receptor (FXR) in co-transfection assay.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.651-660
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• 2006

Natural products are a rich source of biologically active small molecules and a fertile area for lead discovery of new drugs [10, 52]. For instance, 5% of the 1,031 new chemical entities approved as drugs by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) were natural products between 1981 and 2002, and another 23% were natural product-derived molecules [53]. These molecules have evolved through millions of years of natural selection to interact with biomolecules in the cells or organisms and offer unrivaled chemical and structural diversity [14, 37]. Nonetheless, a large percentage of nature remains unexplored, in particular, in the marine and microbial environments. Therefore, natural products are still major valuable sources of innovative therapeutic agents for human diseases. However, even when a natural product is found to exhibit biological activity, the cellular target and mode of action of the compound are mostly mysterious. This is also true of many natural products that are currently under clinical trials or have already been approved as clinical drugs [11]. The lack of information on a definitive cellular target for a biologically active natural product prevents the rational design and development of more potent therapeutics. Therefore, there is a great need for new techniques to expedite the rapid identification and validation of cellular targets for biologically active natural products. Chemical genomics is a new integrated research engine toward functional studies of genome and drug discovery [40, 69]. The identification and validation of cellular receptors of biologically active small molecules is one of the key goals of the discipline. This eventually facilitates subsequent rational drug design, and provides valuable information on the receptors in cellular processes. Indeed, several biologically crucial proteins have already been identified as targets for natural products using chemical genomics approach (Table 1). Herein, the representative case studies of chemical genomics using natural products derived from microbes, marine sources, and plants will be introduced.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.98-103
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• 2021

The demand for natural substances with anti-melanogenic activity is increasing due to the recent interest in skin whitening. Intensive investigation on the culture broth of Streptomyces sp. SCO-736, a marine bacterium from the Antarctica coast, has led to the isolation of a new natural product named antaroide (1). The chemical structure was established through the interpretation of MS, UV, and NMR spectroscopic data. Antaroide is a nine-membered macrolide with lactone and lactam moieties. To investigate its applicability in skin whitening cosmetics, its anti-melanogenic activity in B16F10 murine melanoma cells was examined. As a result, antaroide displayed strong inhibitory activities against melanin synthesis and also attenuated the dendrite formation induced by the α-melanocyte stimulating hormone (α-MSH). Antaroide suppressed the mRNA expression of the melanogenic enzymes such as tyrosinase, TRP-1 and TRP-2. This suggests that it may serve as a transcriptional regulator of melanogenesis. Collectively, the discovery of this novel natural nine-membered macrolide and its anti-melanogenic activity could give new insights for the development of skin whitening agents.

• Natural Product Sciences
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.251-254
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• 2015

Recently, we reported violapyrones B, C, H and I, unusual 3, 4, 6-trisubstituted ${\alpha}-pyrones$ derivatives, from the culture broth of the marine Streptomyces sp. 112CH148. In previous studies, violapyrones have been shown to have antibacterial and antitumor activities. However, the anti-inflammatory effect of violapyrones has not been reported yet. As part of our ongoing study for the discovery of bioactive metabolites from marine microorganisms, we found that violapyrones also have anti-inflammatory activity. In this study, we investigated the effect of violapyrones on LPS-induced inflammatory responses in vitro. Violapyrones B and C did not affect the viability of RAW 264.7 cells at concentrations up to $25{\mu}M$. However, violapyrones B and C inhibited the production of NO compared to the LPS-induced control. In addition, violapyrones B and C down-regulated the expression of iNOS protein in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report on the anti-inflammatory activity of violapyrones B and C.

• Journal of Plant Biotechnology
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• v.2 no.3
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• pp.157-163
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• 2000

Optimization of chemicals in the large scale sea water medium and inoculum for biomass and natural colourants production in the marine cyanobacteria, Phomidium tenue BDU 46241 (phycoerythrin producer) and P.valderianum BDU 30501 (phycocyanin producer) was carried out by experiments in L8 orthogonal array. Mathematical analysis revealed the significance of these factors. The factor(s) that critically control the yield varied with the organism and the end-product further, the desirable level of these factors between the normal and a higher level tested was identified and improved media were evolved. In both cyanobacteria, higher level of $K_2$$HPO_4$, $NaNO_3$ and inoculum with normal level of ferric ammonium citrate was found to be desirable for biomass production and additionally, higher level of $MgSO_4$ for pigment production. The level of other factors varied with the organism and the end-product. Confirmation experiments showed that the clues obtained based on mathematical experimentation are valid. In P.tenue, the medium optimized for biomass production increased the yield of biomass by 495% and the medium optimized for phycoerythrin production increased the yield of biomass by 408% with 30% increase in phycoerythrin content of the biomass. Similarly in P.valderianum, the medium optimized for biomass production increased the yield of biomass by 224% and the medium optimized for phycocyanin production increased the yield of biomass by 143% with 44% increase in phycocyanin content of the biomass.