Narcissus alkaloids homolycorine types

The alkaloids of the lycorine and homolycorine groups are, on the whole, the most common alkaloids in this genus. Lycorine (1), galanthine (7), and pluviine (11) (lycorine type) and homolycorine (26) and lycorenine (35) (homolycorine type) are particularly frequent, lycorine being the most abundant. The presence of these alkaloids is very significant in the sections Narcissus (mainly lycorine type). Pseudonarcissi (mainly homolycorine type), and Tazettae of the wild species, and in the Divisions 1, 2, and 4 of cultivars. 

The alkaloids of the homolycorine series, formed by a restructuring of lycorine-type alkaloids, are absent from some tribes of the Amaryllidaceae, such as the Amaryllideae or Hemantheae (44). For that reason, the presence of these alkaloids is a distinctive feature of the Narcisseae tribe. Moreover, all the Narcissus alkaloids of the homolycorine series display a B/C ring junction with a cis stereochemistry. An exceptional homolycorine-type alkaloid is dubiusine (33), which has an unusual hydroxybutyryl substituent (72). 

The biological conversion of protocatechuic aldehyde into lycorenine (35), which proceeds via (9-methylnorbelladine (87) and norpluviine (12), first involves a reduction of the aldehyde carbonyl, and afterward, in the generation of lycorenine (35), oxidation of this same carbon atom. The absolute stereochemistry of these processes has been elucidated in subsequent experiments (194), and the results show that hydrogen addition and removal take place on the re-face of the molecules concerned (195), the initially introdueed hydrogen being the one later removed (196). It is noteworthy that norpluviine (12), unlike pluviine (11), is converted in Narcissus King Alfred primarily to alkaloids of the homolycorine type. Benzylie... 

It is well established that profiles of alkaloids vary with time, location, and developmental stage. In many instances, the site of biosynthesis is restricted to a single organ, but accumulation of the corresponding products can be detected in several other plant tissues. Long-distance transport must take place in these instances. There are only a few data on the ontogenic variations and distribution of alkaloids in species of the Amaryllidaceae family, and some results have been obtained in Narcissus species, such as N. assoanus (with only lycorine-type alkaloids) or N. confusus (with alkaloids of the homolycorine, hemanthamine, tazettine, and galanthamine types) 84,87). 

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