Wilforgine

Effects of plant stress signal molecules on the production of wilforgine in an endophytic actinomycete isolated from Tripterygium wilfordii Hook.f.[Pubmed: 25523369]

Curr Microbiol. 2015 Apr;70(4):571-9.

The endophytic actinomycete F4-20 was isolated from Tripterygium wilfordii Hook.f. and was confirmed to produce Wilforgine, a secondary metabolite discovered in its host.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
F4-20 showed a close phylogenetic relationship to Streptomyces species.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
To seek elicitors that may enhance the production of Wilforgine in F4-20, four plant stress molecules were applied to the in vitro liquid cultures. Results showed that methyl jasmonate (MeJA), salicylic acid (SA), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) inhibited bacterial growth, whereas glutathione (GSH) treatment significantly increased bacterial growth. The Wilforgine contents in the mycelia of F4-20 were reduced by MeJA and GSH but were induced by SA and H2O2. When added in the end of the culture period (7 day), 1 mM SA and 5 mM H2O2 resulted in 69.35 ± 1.71 and 71.80 ± 3.35 µg/g DW of Wilforgine production, 1.55 and 1.60 fold to that of control (44.83 ± 1.35 µg/g DW), respectively.
CONCLUSIONS:
Though this improved production was about 6.5 times lower than that of the natural root (454.00 µg/g dry root bark), it provided an alternative method for the production of valuable plant secondary metabolites.

Insecticidal activities and active ingredients of Tripterygium hypoglaucum (Levl.) Hutch[Reference: WebLink]

Acta Entomologica Sinica,2007,50(8):795-800.

Isolating insecticidal activities compounds is an important method to discover new pesticides.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
Insecticidal activities and active ingredients of Tripterygium hypoglaucum against six lepidopteran insects were studied with bioassay-guided fractionation methods. The results showed the petroleum extract, methanol extract and acetic ether extract of the root of T. hypoglaucum had antifeedant activity against the 3th instar larvae of Mythimna separata Walker, with the AFC_ 50 value 1 165.7 μg/mL, 104.3 μg/mL and 47.3 μg/mL 24 h after treatment, respectively. The methanol extract of the root bark had contact toxicity to the 4th instar larvae of M. separatar, with the LD_ 50 values 100.4 μg/larva 24 h after treatment. Four sesquiterpenes pyridine alkaloids, i.e., wilfortrine, Wilforgine, wilfordine and wilforine, were isolated from the methanol extract of the root bark of T. hypoglaucum by bioassay-guided fractionation. The bioassay results showed that wilfortrine and Wilforgine had stomach toxicity with the ND_ 50 value 18.1 μg/larva and 7.4 μg/larva, respectively against M. separata; wilfordine and wilforine had topical toxicity with the ND_ 50 value 0.33 μg/larva and 0.06 μg/larva, respectively against M. separata and stomach toxicity with the ND_ 50 value 5.62 μg/larva and 1.24 μg/larva, respectively against Agrotis ypsilon.
CONCLUSIONS:
T. hypoglaucum exhibited insecticidal activity of some degree against the all six lepidopteran insects tested, and the main active ingredients were wilfortrine, Wilforgine, wilfordine and wilforine.

Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2014 Jun;39(12):2267-74.

Effects of amino acid on growth and secondary metabolites contents of adventitious roots of Tripterygium wilfordii.[Pubmed: 25244757]

The adventitious root of Tripterygium wilfordii was used as experiment material to study effects of various concentration of aspartic acid, isoleucine, cysteine and arginine in MS medium on the growth and triptolide, Wilforgine, wilforine contents of the adventitious roots.
METHODS AND RESULTS:
The results showed that compared with the control, supplemented with 0.25 mmol x L(-1) aspartic acid at 3rd week, the growth of the adventitious roots only accounted for 80%, but the content of triptolide of the adventitious roots and the medium was 1.36, 1.30 times, the content of Wilforgine was 1.16, 1.37 times, the content of wilforine was 1.22, 1.63 times, respectively. At 3rd week 0.05 mmol x L(-1) isoleucine, the growth of adventitious roots was 97.3%, Wilforgine of adventitious roots and medium 1.02, 1.27 times, wilforine 1.36 times and 1.15 times. At 1st week 0.25 mmol x L(-1) cysteine, the growth of the adventitious roots comprised 77.5% of the control, while content of triptolide of adventitious roots reached 1.87 times. At 2nd week 1.00 mmol x L(-1) cysteine, the growth of adventitious roots was 44.6% of the control, the content of wilforine in medium was 2.97 times. At 3rd week 0.50 mmol x L(-1) arginine, the growth of adventitious roots was 124.2%, the content of Wilforgine and wilforine was 1.3, 1.4 times, respectively.