In order to understand the antifungal activity of some derivatives of sanguinarine (S) and chelerythrine (C) and their structure-activity relationships, sixteen derivatives of S and C were prepared and evaluated for in vitro antifungal activity against seven phytopathogenic fungi by the mycelial growth rate method. The results showed that S, C and their 6-alkoxy dihydro derivatives S1–S4, C1–C4 and 6-cyanodihydro derivatives S5, C5 showed significant antifungal activity at 100 µg/mL against all the tested fungi. For most tested fungi, the median effective concentrations of S, S1, C and C1 were in a range of 14–50 µg/mL. The structure-activity relationship showed that the C=N+ moiety was the determinant for the antifungal activity of S and C. S1–S5 and C1–C5 could be considered as the precursors of S and C, respectively. Thus, the present results strongly suggested that S and C or their derivatives S1–S5 and C1–C5 should be considered as good lead compounds or model molecules to develop new anti-phytopathogenic fungal agents.
Structural Modification of Sanguinarine and Chelerythrine and Their <i>in Vitro</i> Acaricidal Activity against <i>Psoroptes cuniculi</i>
Sanguinarine (1) and chelerythrine (2) are two quaternary benzo[c]phenanthridine alkaloids (QBAs). Eighteen derivatives of 1 and 2 were synthesized by modification of C=N+ bond and evaluated for their in vitro acaricidal activity against Psoroptes cuniculi, a mange mite. A new method was developed to prepare 6-alkoxy dihydro derivatives of 1 and 2 (1a–e, 2a–e). Among all the compounds, only 6-alkoxy dihydrosanguinarines (1a–e) showed significant acaricidal activity at 5.0 mg/mL and 1a possessed the strongest activity (50% lethal concentrations (LC50)=339.70±0.75 mg/L, 50% lethal time (LT50)=6.53±0.04 h), comparable with a standard drug ivermectin (LC50=168.19±11.79 mg/L, LT50=16.54±0.11 h). The iminium moiety in 1 and 2 was proven to be the determinant for their acaricidal properties. 6-Alkoxy dihydro derivatives (1a–e, 2a–e) were prodrugs of 1 and 2. Compared with 7,8-dimethoxy groups, 7,8-methylenedioxy group was able to significantly improve the bioactivity. The present results suggested that QBAs are promising candidates or lead compounds for the development of new isoquinoline acaricidal agents.