Marine Organisms as Alkaloid Biosynthesizers of Potential Anti-Alzheimer Agents

The incidence of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), increases continuously demanding the urgent development of anti-Alzheimer's agents. Marine organisms (MO) have to create their own defenses due to the adverse environment where they live and so synthesize several classes of compounds, such as akaloids, to defend themselves. Therefore, the identification of marine natural products with neuroprotective effects is a necessity. Being that AD is not only a genetic but also an environmental complex disease, a treatment for AD remains to discover. As the major clinical indications (CI) of AD are extracellular plaques formed by β-amyloid (Aβ) protein, intracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) formed by hyper phosphorylated τ-protein, uncommon inflammatory response and neuron apoptosis and death caused by oxidative stress, alkaloids that may decrease CI, might be used against AD. Most of the alkalolids with those properties are derivatives of the amino acid tryptophan mainly with a planar indole scaffold. Certainly, alkaloids targeting more than one CI, multitarget-directed ligands (MTDL), have the potential to become a lead in AD treatment. Alkaloids to have a maximum of activity against CI, should be planar and contain halogens and amine quaternization.

Secondary metabolites from marine sponges of the genus Agelas: a comprehensive update insight on structural diversity and bioactivity

As one of the most common marine sponges in tropical and subtropical oceans, the sponges of the genus Agelas, have emerged as unique and yet under-investigated pools for discovery of natural products with fabulous molecular diversity and myriad interesting biological activities. The present review highlights the chemical structure and biological activity of 355 compounds that have been isolated and characterized from the members of Agelas sponges, over the period of about five decades (from 1971 to November 2021). For a better understanding, these numerous compounds are firstly classified and presented according to their carbon skeleton as well as their biosynthetic origins. Relevant summaries focusing on the source organism and the associated bioactivity of these compounds belonging to different chemical classes are also provided. This review highlights sponges of the genus Agelas as exciting source for discovery of intriguing natural compounds.

The marine sponges of the genus Agelas, are unique and yet under-investigated pools for discovery of natural products with fabulous molecular diversity and myriad interesting biological activities.

How different are marine microbial natural products compared to their terrestrial counterparts?

Covering: 1877 to 2020A key challenge in natural products research is the selection of biodiversity to yield novel chemistry. Recently, marine microorganisms have become a preferred source. But how novel are marine microorganism natural products compared to those reported from terrestrial microbes? Cluster analysis of chemical fingerprints and molecular scaffold analysis of 55 817 compounds reported from marine and terrestrial microorganisms, and marine macro-organisms showed that 76.7% of the compounds isolated from marine microorganisms are closely related to compounds isolated from terrestrial microorganisms. Only 14.3% of marine microorganism natural products are unique when marine macro-organism natural products are also considered. Studies targeting marine specific and understudied microbial phyla result in a higher likelihood of finding marine specific compounds, whereas the depth and geographic location of microorganism collection have little influence. We recommend marine targeted strain isolation, incorporating early use of genomic sequencing to guide strain selection, innovation in culture media and cultivation techniques and the application of cheminformatics tools to focus on unique natural product diversity, rather than the dereplication of known compounds.

Futunamine, a Pyrrole-Imidazole Alkaloid from the Sponge Stylissa aff. carteri Collected off the Futuna Islands

The chemical investigation of the sponge Stylissa aff. carteri collected around Futuna Islands in the Pacific Ocean led to the isolation of three new dimeric pyrrole 2-aminoimidazole alkaloids (PIAs). Futunamine (1) features an unprecedented pyrrolo[1,2-c]imidazole core, while two other new dimeric PIAs were identified as analogues of palau'amine. Together with other known PIAs isolated from this species, they were shown to exhibit anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective activities.

Bromopyrrole Alkaloids from Okinawan Marine Sponges Agelas spp

In our continuing study for structurally and biogenetically interesting natural products from marine organisms, Okinawan marine sponges Agelas spp. were investigated, resulting in the isolation of 18 unique alkaloids including five dimeric bromopyrrole alkaloids (1-5), ten monomeric bromopyrrole alkaloids (6-15), and three conjugates of monomeric bromopyrrole alkaloid and hydroxykynurenine (16-18). In this mini-review, the isolation, structure elucidation, and antimicrobial activities of these alkaloids are summarized.

Hybrid Pyrrole-Imidazole Alkaloids from the Sponge Agelas sceptrum

A chemical investigation of the tropical sponge Agelas sceptrum from Plana Cays (Bahamas) led to the isolation of two hybrid pyrrole-imidazole alkaloids (PIAs), 15'-oxoadenosceptrin (1) and decarboxyagelamadin C (2). Herein, we report their challenging structure elucidation established by NMR and ECD spectroscopy. 15'-Oxoadenosceptrin (1) shows sceptrin merged with an adenine moiety, not yet encountered in the PIA family, whereas decarboxyagelamadin C (2) is a close derivative of agelamadins C to E recently isolated from an Agelas sp. from Okinawa.

Synthetic analogues of marine alkaloid clathrodin differently induce phosphatidylserine exposure in monocytic cancer cells then in cancer stem cell lines

Activation of apoptosis in cancer cells could stop the development of several cancers.

Natural products from marine organisms with neuroprotective activity in the experimental models of Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and ischemic brain stroke: their molecular targets and action mechanisms

Continuous increases in the incidence of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD), Parkinson's disease (PD), and brain stroke demand the urgent development of therapeutics. Marine organisms are well-known producers of natural products with diverse structures and pharmacological activities. Therefore, researchers have endeavored to identify marine natural products with neuroprotective effects. In this regard, this review summarizes therapeutic targets for AD, PD, and ischemic brain stroke and marine natural products with pharmacological activities on the targets according to taxonomies of marine organisms. Furthermore, several marine natural products on the clinical trials for the treatment of neurological disorders are discussed.

Agelamadins C-E, bromopyrrole alkaloids comprising oroidin and 3-hydroxykynurenine from a marine sponge Agelas sp

Three structurally unique bromopyrrole alkaloids, agelamadins C-E (1-3), were isolated from a marine sponge Agelas sp. Agelamadin C (1) possesses a hybrid structure of oroidin and 3-hydroxykynurenine connected through a dihydro-1,4-oxazine moiety. Agelamadins D (2) and E (3) are a C-9/C-10 diastereomer and a 10-epimer of 1, respectively. The structures of 1-3 were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis as well as application of a PGME method and a TDDFT ECD calculation. Antimicrobial activity of 1-3 was evaluated.

Structures and solution conformational dynamics of stylissamides G and H from the Bahamian sponge Stylissa caribica

Two new peptides, stylissamides G and H, were isolated from extracts of a sample of Stylissa caribica collected in deep waters of the Caribbean Sea. A single sample of S. caribica among a collection of 10 samples that were examined by LC-MS appeared to be a different chemotype from the others in that it lacked the familiar pyrrole-2-aminoimidazole alkaloids, stevensine and oroidin, and contained peptides of the stylissamide class. The structures of the title compounds were solved by integrated analysis of the MS and NMR spectra and chemical degradation. The solution conformation of stylissamide G was briefly examined by electronic circular dichroism and temperature-dependent (1)H NMR chemical shifts of amide NH signals, which supported a conformationally rigid macrocycle.

Synthesis and anticancer activity of focused compound libraries from the natural product lead, oroidin

Oroidin (1), (E)-N-(3-(2-amino-1H-imidazol-4-yl)allyl)-4,5-dibromo-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxamide, is a pyrrole alkaloid isolated from the marine sponge Agelas oroides. Routine screening in a panel of twelve cancer cell lines revealed 1 to be poorly cytotoxic with the 50% growth inhibition concentration (GI50) of 42 μM in MCF-7 (breast) cells and 24 μM in A2780 (ovarian) cells and >50 μM in all other cell lines tested. The development of eight focused libraries comprising thirty compounds total identified N-(biphenyl-4-ylmethyl)-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxamide (4l), N-benzyl-4,5-dibromo-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxamide (5a) and N-(biphenyl-4-ylmethyl)-4,5-dibromo-1H-pyrrole-2-carboxamide (5l) as potent inhibitors of cell growth in our panel of cell lines. Of these compounds GI50 values of <5 μM were observed with 4l against HT29 (colon) and SW480 (colon); 5a against HT29; and 5l against HT29, SW480, MCF-7, A431 (skin), Du145 (prostate), BE2-C (neuroblastoma) and MIA (pancreas) cell lines. As a cancer class, colon cancer appears to be more sensitive to the oroidin series of compounds, with analogue 5l being the most active.

Synthesis and anticancer activity of all known (-)-agelastatin alkaloids

The full details of our enantioselective total syntheses of (-)-agelastatins A-F (1-6), the evolution of a new methodology for synthesis of substituted azaheterocycles, and the first side-by-side evaluation of all known (-)-agelastatin alkaloids against nine human cancer cell lines are described. Our concise synthesis of these alkaloids exploits the intrinsic chemistry of plausible biosynthetic precursors and capitalizes on a late-stage synthesis of the C-ring. The critical copper-mediated cross-coupling reaction was expanded to include guanidine-based systems, offering a versatile preparation of substituted imidazoles. The direct comparison of the anticancer activity of all naturally occurring (-)-agelastatins in addition to eight advanced synthetic intermediates enabled a systematic analysis of the structure-activity relationship within the natural series. Significantly, (-)-agelastatin A (1) is highly potent against six blood cancer cell lines (20-190 nM) without affecting normal red blood cells (>333 μM). (-)-Agelastatin A (1) and (-)-agelastatin D (4), the two most potent members of this family, induce dose-dependent apoptosis and arrest cells in the G2/M-phase of the cell cycle; however, using confocal microscopy, we have determined that neither alkaloid affects tubulin dynamics within cells.

Nagelamides X-Z, dimeric bromopyrrole alkaloids from a marine sponge Agelas sp

Three new dimeric bromopyrrole alkaloids, nagelamides X-Z (1-3), were isolated from a marine sponge Agelas sp. Nagelamides X (1) and Y (2) possess a novel tricyclic skeleton consisting of spiro-bonded tetrahydrobenzaminoimidazole and aminoimidazolidine moieties. Nagelamide Z (3) is the first dimeric bromopyrrole alkaloid involving the C-8 position in dimerization. The structures of 1-3 were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic data. Nagelamides X-Z (1-3) exhibited antimicrobial activity.

Unprecedented biomimetic homodimerization of oroidin and clathrodin marine metabolites in the presence of HMPA or phosphonate salt tweezers

The first biomimetic homodimerization of oroidin and clathrodin was effected in the presence HMPA and diphosphonate salts, strong guanidinium and amide chelating agents. The intermolecular associations probably interfere with the entropically and kinetically favored intramolecular cyclizations. Use of oroidin·(1)/2HCl salt or clathrodin·(1)/2HCl was indicative in the presence of the ambident nucleophilic and electrophilic tautomers of the 2-aminoimidazolic oroidin and clathrodin precursors. Surprisingly, the homodimerization of oroidin led to the nagelamide D skeleton, while the homodimerization of clathrodin gave the benzene para-symmetrical structure 19. The common process was rationalized from tautomeric precursors I and III.

Marine natural products

This review covers the literature published in 2011 for marine natural products, with 870 citations (558 for the period January to December 2011) referring to compounds isolated from marine microorganisms and phytoplankton, green, brown and red algae, sponges, cnidarians, bryozoans, molluscs, tunicates, echinoderms, mangroves and other intertidal plants and microorganisms. The emphasis is on new compounds (1152 for 2011), together with the relevant biological activities, source organisms and country of origin. Biosynthetic studies, first syntheses, and syntheses that lead to the revision of structures or stereochemistries, have been included.

Pyrrole aminoimidazole alkaloid metabiosynthesis with marine sponges Agelas conifera and Stylissa caribica

Game-SET-match: Pyrrole aminoimidazole alkaloids (PAIs) are metabiosynthesized from chlorinated analogues of oroidin by cell-free enzyme preparations from PAI-producing sponges. Evidence and implications for the biosynthesis of PAIs include putative single-electron transfers (SETs) that promote C-C bond-forming reactions of precursors.

De novo synthesis of benzosceptrin C and nagelamide H from 7-15N-oroidin: implications for pyrrole-aminoimidazole alkaloid biosynthesis

De novo synthesis of the natural products benzosceptrin C (7) and nagelamide H (8) was achieved using cell-free enzyme preparations from the marine sponges Agelas sceptrum and Stylissa caribica employing synthetic 7-(15)N-oroidin. These studies provide direct experimental evidence to support the long-standing, but untested, hypothesis that oroidin is a precursor to more complex pyrrole-aminoimidazole alkaloids, such as the sceptrins, benzosceptrins, and nagelamides. In addition, a new nagelamide, didebromonagelamide A (5b), was isolated from S. caribica, representing the first report of a nagelamide-like compound from the Caribbean.

Occurrence of halogenated alkaloids

Once considered to be isolation artifacts or chemical "mistakes" of nature, the number of naturally occurring organohalogen compounds has grown from a dozen in 1954 to >5000 today. Of these, at least 25% are halogenated alkaloids. This is not surprising since nitrogen-containing pyrroles, indoles, carbolines, tryptamines, tyrosines, and tyramines are excellent platforms for biohalogenation, particularly in the marine environment where both chloride and bromide are plentiful for biooxidation and subsequent incorporation into these electron-rich substrates. This review presents the occurrence of all halogenated alkaloids, with the exception of marine bromotyrosines where coverage begins where it left off in volume 61 of The Alkaloids. Whereas the biological activity of these extraordinary compounds is briefly cited for some examples, a future volume of The Alkaloids will present full coverage of this topic and will also include selected syntheses of halogenated alkaloids. Natural organohalogens of all types, especially marine and terrestrial halogenated alkaloids, comprise a rapidly expanding class of natural products, in many cases expressing powerful biological activity. This enormous proliferation has several origins: (1) a revitalization of natural product research in a search for new drugs, (2) improved compound characterization methods (multidimensional NMR, high-resolution mass spectrometry), (3) specific enzyme-based and other biological assays, (4) sophisticated collection methods (SCUBA and remote submersibles for deep ocean marine collections), (5) new separation and purification techniques (HPLC and countercurrent separation), (6) a greater appreciation of traditional folk medicine and ethobotany, and (7) marine bacteria and fungi as novel sources of natural products. Halogenated alkaloids are truly omnipresent in the environment. Indeed, one compound, Q1 (234), is ubiquitous in the marine food web and is found in the Inuit from their diet of whale blubber. Given the fact that of the 500,000 estimated marine organisms--which are the source of most halogenated alkaloids--only a small percentage have been investigated for their chemical content, it is certain that myriad new halogenated alkaloids are awaiting discovery. For example, it is estimated that nearly 4000 species of bryozoans have not been examined for their chemical content. The few species that have been studied contain some extraordinary halogenated alkaloids, such as hinckdentine A (610) and the chartellines (611-613). Of the estimated 1.5 million species of fungi, secondary metabolites have been characterized from only 5000 species. The future seems bright for the collector of halogenated alkaloids!

Theoretical NMR correlations based Structure Discussion

The constitutional assignment of natural products by NMR spectroscopy is usually based on 2D NMR experiments like COSY, HSQC, and HMBC. The actual difficulty of the structure elucidation problem depends more on the type of the investigated molecule than on its size. The moment HMBC data is involved in the process or a large number of heteroatoms is present, a possibility of multiple solutions fitting the same data set exists. A structure elucidation software can be used to find such alternative constitutional assignments and help in the discussion in order to find the correct solution. But this is rarely done. This article describes the use of theoretical NMR correlation data in the structure elucidation process with WEBCOCON, not for the initial constitutional assignments, but to define how well a suggested molecule could have been described by NMR correlation data. The results of this analysis can be used to decide on further steps needed to assure the correctness of the structural assignment. As first step the analysis of the deviation of carbon chemical shifts is performed, comparing chemical shifts predicted for each possible solution with the experimental data. The application of this technique to three well known compounds is shown. Using NMR correlation data alone for the description of the constitutions is not always enough, even when including ¹³C chemical shift prediction.

Oroidin inhibits the activity of the multidrug resistance target Pdr5p from yeast plasma membranes

Oroidin was isolated from the marine sponge Agelassventres and inhibited the activity and function of Pdr5p, an enzyme responsible for the multidrug resistance phenotype in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This compound may help in the development of new drugs that reverse this dangerous phenotype of pathogenic yeast and fungi.

Asymmetric total synthesis of ent-cyclooroidin

An enantiospecific total synthesis of the pyrrole-imidazole natural product cyclooroidin from histidine is described. The key N1-C9 bond is constructed through an intramolecular SN2-type of reaction of a chloro ester. Subsequent imidazole azidation at the 2-position, pyrrole bromination, azide reduction, and deprotection leads to the completion of the synthesis.

Cylindradines A and B: novel bromopyrrole alkaloids from the marine sponge Axinella cylindratus

The novel alkaloids cylindradines A and B were isolated from Axinella cylindratus, and their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analyses. Stereochemistries of these compounds were determined by X-ray analysis. Cylindradines showed moderate inhibitory activity against the murine leukemia cell line P388.

Total synthesis of all (-)-Agelastatin alkaloids

The pyrrole-imidazole family of marine alkaloids, derived from linear clathrodin-like precursors, constitutes a diverse array of structurally complex natural products. The bioactive agelastatins are members of this family that possess a tetracyclic molecular framework incorporating C4-C8 and C7-N12 bond connectivities. We provide a hypothesis for the formation of the unique agelastatin architecture that maximally exploits the intrinsic chemistry of plausible biosynthetic precursors. We report the concise enantioselective total syntheses of all known agelastatin alkaloids including the first total syntheses of agelastatins C, D, E, and F. Our gram-scale chemical synthesis of agelastatin A was inspired by our hypothesis for the biogenesis of the cyclopentane C-ring and required the development of new transformations including an imidazolone-forming annulation reaction and a carbohydroxylative trapping of imidazolones.

Dibromopyrrole Alkaloids from the Marine Sponge Acanthostylotella sp

Fourteen dibromopyrrole alkaloids were isolated from the marine sponge Acanthostylotella sp. collected in Indonesia. In addition to the known compounds 4,5-dibromo-N-(methoxy-methyl)-1 H-pyrrole-2-carboxamide (7), 4,5-dibromo-1 H-pyrrole-2-carboxamide (8), mukanadin D (9), (±)-longamide B methyl ester (10), (±)-longamide B (11), (±)-longamide (12), 3,4-dibromo-1 H-pyrrole-2-carboxamide (13), 2-cyano-4,5-dibromo-1 H-pyrrole (14), six compounds were isolated that proved to be new natural products including acanthamides A – D (1 – 4), methyl 3,4-dibromo-1 H-pyrrole-2-carboxylate (5) and 3,5-dibromo-1 H-pyrrole-2-carboxylic acid (6). The structures of the new compounds were unequivocally identified based on one and two dimensional NMR and on HRFTMS as well as by comparison with the literature.

Total synthesis and biological evaluation of the marine bromopyrrole alkaloid dispyrin: elucidation of discrete molecular targets with therapeutic potential

The first total synthesis of dispyrin, a recently reported bromopyrrole alkaloid from Agelas dispar with an unprecedented bromopyrrole tyramine motif, was achieved in three steps on a gram scale (68.4% overall). No biological activity was reported for dispyrin, so we evaluated synthetic dispyrin against>200 discrete molecular targets in radioligand binding and functional assays. Unlike most marine natural products, dispyrin (1) possesses no antibacterial or anticancer activity, but was found to be a potent ligand and antagonist of several therapeutically relevant GPCRs, the alpha1D and alpha2A adrenergic receptors and the H2 and H3 histamine receptors.

NMR studies of phakellins and isophakellins

Phakellins 3 and 4 and isophakellins 5 and 6 are tetracyclic pyrrole-imidazole alkaloids. Their structure elucidation is herein reviewed using state-of-the-art NMR methods. Special emphasis has been given to the application of ADEQUATE NMR pulse sequences. Furthermore, (15)N NMR chemical shifts, proton T1 relaxation times, and (1)J(CH) coupling constants were determined.

An efficient and expeditious synthesis of di- and monosubstituted 2-aminoimidazoles

A microwave-assisted protocol was developed for the construction of di- and monosubstituted 2-aminoimidazoles. The two-step reaction involves the synthesis of N-(1H-imidazol-2-yl)acetamides from readily available alpha-haloketones and N-acetylguanidine, followed by deacetylation. Significant rate enhancement was observed for both steps of the protocol, and the overall reaction time was shortened to 20 min compared to 48 h of the conventional procedures. A representative set of di- and monosubstituted 2-aminoimidazoles was prepared using commercially available parallel reactors.

Agesamides A and B, Bromopyrrole Alkaloids from SpongeAgelasSpecies: Application of DOSY for Chemical Screening of New Metabolites

Diffusion-ordered NMR spectroscopy (DOSY) is a versatile and powerful NMR technique and a noninvasive analytical method for mixture analysis that does not require prior physical separation of the analytes. In our search for new metabolites from natural resources, DOSY was applied for constituent analysis of crude bromopyrrole fractions separated from an Okinawan marine sponge Agelas sp. so that two new bromopyrrole alkaloids, agesamides A (1) and B (2), have been isolated. The structures and relative stereochemistry of 1 and 2 were elucidated from spectroscopic data.