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Research Project: New Weed Management Tools from Natural Product-Based Discoveries

Location: Natural Products Utilization Research

Title: Secondary metabolites of Thymelaea hirsuta, a plant collected from the Sicilian Island of Lampedusa

Author
item NOCERA, PAOLA - The University Of Naples Federico Ii
item Bajsa-Hirschel, Joanna
item MASI, MARCO - The University Of Naples Federico Ii
item ROSS, SAMIR - University Of Mississippi
item Cantrell, Charles
item Duke, Stephen
item SURICO, GIUSEPPE - University Of Florence
item EVIDENTE, ANTONIO - The University Of Naples Federico Ii

Submitted to: Natural Product Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/30/2020
Publication Date: 4/14/2020
Citation: Nocera, P., Bajsa Hirschel, J.N., Masi, M., Ross, S.A., Cantrell, C.L., Duke, S.O., Surico, G., Evidente, A. 2020. Secondary metabolites of Thymelaea hirsuta, a plant collected from the Sicilian Island of Lampedusa. Natural Product Research. https://doi.org/10.1080/14786419.2020.1752212.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/14786419.2020.1752212

Interpretive Summary: Ten secondary metabolites were isolated and identified from Thymelaea hirsute, a xerophyte shrub collected in Lampedusa island located near Sicily. The biological activity of these natural products was assessed in phytotoxic and antifungal bioassays. Four of the compounds displayed only a minor herbicidal potential against dicot and no activity towards monocot plant species. One compound was found to possess some of the antifungal activity against fungal plant pathogens.

Technical Abstract: An investigation of the secondary metabolites was carried out on Thymelaea hirsuta collected from Lampedusa, the largest island of the Pelagie archipelago, located about 100 km from the North African coast and 200 km from the coast of Sicily. Ten secondary metabolites were isolated and found to belong to cheomenes, cyclohexanones, furanyl, bis-furanyl and furanone polyphenols and acrylates. The phytotoxic and the antifungal activity of the isolated metabolites were investigated. Compounds 7, 8, 9 and 10 were slightly phytotoxic to lettuce reaching phytotoxicity of 1 (7, 8 and 9) and 2 (10) using a 1-5 point scale. None of the compounds were active against Agrostis stolonifera L., a perennial grass of the family Poaceae. Tested against three Colletotrichum species (C. acutatum, C. fragarie and C. gloeosporioides) pathogenic for agricultural plants, only compound 6 had activity against all three species, but it was not as active as captan, the commercial fungicide used as a positive control.