Thiolactones and Δ8,9-Pregnene Steroids from the Marine-Derived Fungus Meira sp. 1210CH-42 and Their α-Glucosidase Inhibitory Activity

Marine Fungal Metabolites as Potential Antidiabetic Agents: A Comprehensive Review of Their Structures and Enzyme Inhibitory Activities

Diabetes mellitus has emerged as a global public health crisis, with Type 2 diabetes (T2D) constituting over 90% of cases. Current treatments are palliative, primarily focusing on blood glucose modulation. This review systematically evaluates 181 bioactive compounds isolated from 66 marine fungal strains for their inhibitory activities against key diabetes-related enzymes, including α-glucosidase, protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B), dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4), glycogen synthase kinase-3β (GSK-3β), and fatty acid-binding protein 4 (FABP4). These compounds, categorized into polyketides, alkaloids, terpenoids, and lignans, exhibit multitarget engagement and nanomolar-to-micromolar potency. The review highlights the potential of marine fungal metabolites as novel antidiabetic agents, emphasizing their structural novelty and diverse mechanisms of action. Future research should focus on overcoming challenges related to yield and extraction, leveraging advanced technologies such as genetic engineering and synthetic biology to enhance drug development.

Bioactive steroids from marine-derived fungi: a review (2015-2023)

Marine fungi, rich in unique secondary metabolites with diverse activities, are a valuable source for novel lead compounds. Steroids, a prominent class of bioactive compounds from marine fungi, have been extensively studied for their diverse pharmacological properties. This review describes the structural diversity, bioactivities, and sources of 175 marine fungal steroids (2015-2023), mainly from Aspergillus, Penicillium, Talaromyces, etc., in seaweed, mangroves, sediments, and marine animals like sponges and corals. Among them, 74 steroids exhibit antibacterial, antitumor, enzyme inhibitory, antiviral, and other activities, providing valuable leads for steroid drug development and advancing marine pharmaceutical research.

Marine natural products

Covering: January to the end of December 2023This review covers the literature published in 2023 for marine natural products (MNPs), with 582 citations (541 for the period January to December 2023) referring to compounds isolated from marine microorganisms and phytoplankton, green, brown and red algae, sponges, cnidarians, bryozoans, molluscs, tunicates, echinoderms, the submerged parts of mangroves and other intertidal plants. The emphasis is on new compounds (1220 in 340 papers for 2023), together with the relevant biological activities, source organisms and country of origin. Pertinent reviews, biosynthetic studies, first syntheses, and syntheses that led to the revision of structures or stereochemistries, have been included. An analysis of the progress in the study of prokaryote involvement in macro-invertebrate MNP production is discussed.

Meirols A-C: Bioactive Catecholic Compounds from the Marine-Derived Fungus Meira sp. 1210CH-42

Three new catecholic compounds, named meirols A-C (2-4), and one known analog, argovin (1), were isolated from the marine-derived fungus Meira sp. 1210CH-42. Their structures were determined by extensive analysis of 1D, 2D NMR, and HR-ESIMS spectroscopic data. Their absolute configurations were elucidated based on ECD calculations. All the compounds exhibited strong antioxidant capabilities with EC50 values ranging from 6.01 to 7.47 μM (ascorbic acid, EC50 = 7.81 μM), as demonstrated by DPPH radical scavenging activity assays. In the α-glucosidase inhibition assay, 1 and 2 showed potent in vitro inhibitory activity with IC50 values of 184.50 and 199.70 μM, respectively (acarbose, IC50 = 301.93 μM). Although none of the isolated compounds exhibited cytotoxicity against one normal and six solid cancer cell lines, 1 exhibited moderate cytotoxicity against the NALM6 and RPMI-8402 blood cancer cell lines with GI50 values of 9.48 and 21.00 μM, respectively. Compound 2 also demonstrated weak cytotoxicity against the NALM6 blood cancer cell line with a GI50 value of 29.40 μM.