Furofuran lignans display schistosomicidal and trypanocidal activities.

Parasitic diseases continue to be a major worldwide health problem, and there is an urgent need for development of therapeutic drugs. This paper describes synthesis of dehydrodiferulic acid dilactone 1 and dehydrodisinapic acid dilactone 2 furofuran lignans by oxidative coupling of ferulic and sinapic acids, respectively. Their schistosomicidal, trypanocidal, and leishmanicidal activities were evaluated in vitro against Schistosoma mansoni adult worms, trypomastigote and amastigotes forms of Trypanosoma cruzi, and promastigote forms of Leishmania amazonensis.

Mycoleptones A-C and polyketides from the endophyte Mycoleptodiscus indicus.

Three new azaphilones with an unusual methylene bridge, named mycoleptones A, B, and C (2, 4, and 5), were isolated from cultures of Mycoleptodiscus indicus, a fungus associated with the South American medicinal plant Borreria verticillata. Additionally, four known polyketides, austdiol (1), eugenitin (3), 6-methoxyeugenin (6), and 9-hydroxyeugenin (7), were also isolated. The structural characterization of compounds was carried out by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, high-resolution mass spectrometry, electronic circular dichroism spectroscopy, time-dependent density functional theory calculations, and X-ray crystallography.

Evaluation of antimicrobial and antimalarial activities of crude extract, fractions and 4-nerolidylcathecol from the aerial parts of Piper umbellata L. (Piperaceae).

Presently, natural products, such as Piper umbellata L. (Piperaceae), have been evaluated as sources of antimicrobial agents with efficacies against microorganisms. The in vitro antimicrobial activity was performed by broth micro-dilution susceptibility assay, according to the protocols of the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards, and described the antibacterial and antifungal activities of crude ethanolic extract and fractions obtained by partitions sequentially among water-methanol, methylene chloride and ethyl acetate, as well as the major constituent, 4-nerolidylcatechol from the aerial parts of P.

Antioxidant and cytotoxic effects of crude extract, fractions and 4-nerolidylcathecol from aerial parts of Pothomorphe umbellata L. (Piperaceae).

The crude ethanolic extract from aerial parts of Pothomorphe umbellata L. (Piperaceae) and fractions obtained by partitions sequentially among water-methanol, methylene chloride, and ethyl acetate, as well as the major constituent, 4-nerolidylcatechol, were, respectively, evaluated and evidenced for antioxidant and cytotoxic effects through fluorometric microplate and microculture tetrazolium assays in HL-60 cells. The crude ethanolic extract demonstrated the preeminent antioxidant activity (IC50 = 1.

Enantiomeric resolution of (±)-licarin A by high-performance liquid-chromatography using a chiral stationary phase.

(±)-Licarin A (1), a neolignan obtained by the oxidative coupling reaction of isoeugenol, had in this study its enantiomers resolved. A novel, quick and efficient enantiomeric resolution of 1 was directly performed by chiral high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC-PDA) protocol (CHIRALPACK(®) AD column; 9:1 (v/v) n-hexane:2-propanol; 1.0 mL/min).