Bioactive diterpenes

In plant plastids, GGPP is formed from products of glycolysis and is eight enzymatic steps away from central glucose metabolism. The MEP pathway (reviewed in recent literature - ) operates in plastids in plants and is a preferred source (non-mevalonate) of phosphate-activated prenyl units (IPPs) for plastid iso-prenoid accumulation, such as the phytol tail of chlorophyll, the backbones of carotenoids, and the cores of monoterpenes such as menthol, hnalool, and iridoids, diterpenes such as taxadiene, and the side chains of bioactive prenylated terpenophe-nolics such as humulone, lupulone, and xanthohumol. The mevalonic pathway to IPP that operates in the cytoplasm is the source of the carbon chains in isoprenes such as the polyisoprene, rubber, and the sesquiterpenes such as caryophyllene. 

Qi, S., Ding, L., Tian, K., Chen, X., and Hu, Z., Novel and simple nonaqueous capillary electrophoresis separation and determination bioactive diterpenes in Chinese herb, /. Pharm. Biomed. Anal., 40, 35-41, 2006. 

Divinorin C," a New Neoclerodane Diterpene from a Bioactive TLC Fraction of Salvia divinorum... 

The results obtained from the phytochemical study of P. natans and R. maritima suggest that the high concentrations of the bioactive diterpenes found in these plants could interfere with other aquatic organisms, thus playing a role in the equilibrium of the aquatic systems. 

ABSTRACT This article reviews the literature published dealing with the synthesis of some bioactive diterpenes. It describes the biological activity and synthesis of only four diterpenes pisiferic acid, camosic acid, triptolide and miltirone. This review excludes the discussions of Taxodione, a bioactive diterpene, because it has already been reviewed [85], The utility of several reagents in the total synthesis of terpenoid compounds has been documented. It can be observed that several routes have been developed for the synthesis of a single diterpene. 

This review aims to present the most relevant aspects of the synthesis of the above mentioned bioactive diterpenes. It also describes the preparation of several potential intermediates, which have been utilized for the total synthesis of these bioactive diterpenes. 

VALDES, L.J., CHANG, H.M., VISGER, D.C., KOREEDA, M., Salvinorin C, a new neoclerodane diterpene from a bioactive fraction of the hallucinogenic Mexican mint Salvia divinorum., Org. Lett., 2001, 3, 3935-3937. 

ABSTRACT Marine invertebrates such as ascidians, sponges and others are a prolific source of bioactive secondary metabolites. We have isolated a variety of marine natural products from the Okinawan marine invertebrates by using the sea urchin egg assay. Our recent work, the isolation, structure determination and activities of chlorinated macrolides, sesterterpenic acids, a bromotyrosine derivative, acetogenin derived endoperoxides, diterpene alkaloids, sesquiterpene quinones and spiro-sesquiterpenes, is presented in this article. The syntheses of these metabolites are also described. 

In the following section, bioactivities of abietane diterpenes and related activities of rosemary and sage are discussed. 

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