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Diversity and bioactivity of Armillaria sesquiterpene aryl ester natural products

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Abstract

Species of the basidiomycete genus Armillaria produce bioactive small molecule natural products, referred to as melleolides. With more than 70 described members, this class of natural products is a prime example for diversity-oriented biosynthesis. Chemically, they represent hybrid molecules, composed of a tricyclic, chiral sesquiterpene protoilludene alcohol, esterified with the tetraketide orsellinic acid or its derivatives. In this review article, we summarize the melleolide’s structural diversity and present—to the extent elucidated—the enzymatic basis how their backbone structures are biosynthesized and modified. We also highlight the current knowledge on their antimicrobial, phytotoxic, and cytotoxic bioactivities, along with a view on the molecular targets of the melleolides, their unparalleled structure-activity relationships, and their modes of action.

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Funding

Studies on melleolide biosynthesis and mode of action in D.H.’s laboratory were supported by the Excellence Graduate School JSMC (Jena School for Microbial Communication) and by the Collaborative Research Center ChemBioSys (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, grant SFB1127).

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  1. Department Pharmaceutical Microbiology at the Hans-Knöll-Institute, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität, Winzerlaer Strasse 2, 07745, Jena, Germany

    Maximilian Dörfer, Markus Gressler & Dirk Hoffmeister

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  1. Maximilian Dörfer
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  2. Markus Gressler
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  3. Dirk Hoffmeister
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Correspondence to Dirk Hoffmeister.

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This article is part of the “Topic collection on Basidiomycote Mycology in honor of Franz Oberwinkler who passed away in March 2018.”

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Dörfer, M., Gressler, M. & Hoffmeister, D. Diversity and bioactivity of Armillaria sesquiterpene aryl ester natural products. Mycol Progress 18, 1027–1037 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11557-019-01508-z

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