It is well known that when lactating livestock eat avocado (Persea americana) leaves they may develop non-infectious mastitis and agalactia. This is associated with extensive coagulation necrosis of the secretory acinar epithelium and interstitial oedema, congestion, and haemorrhage. Similar lesions have been produced in mammary glands of lactating mice fed a diet containing a small percentage of freeze-dried avocado leaf. Tests using these animals have been used to isolate the active principle, termed "persin," from avocado leaves. The purified persin was examined using IR, NMR, and UV spectroscopy and mass spectrometry, and identified as (Z,Z)-1-(acetyloxy)-2-hydroxy-12,15-heneicosadien-4-one. Persin has previously been isolated from avocado leaves and shown to have antifungal properties and to be toxic to silkworms. Our tests have shown that persin at the dose rate of 60-100 mg/kg has the same effect on mammary glands in lactating mice as leaves from avocado. Enantioselective syntheses of the R and the S isomers of persin and related derivatives were carried out. These compounds were tested for activity required to induce widespread lactating mammary gland necrosis in mice, and only the R isomer was found active. At doses of persin above 100 mg/kg necrosis of myocardial fibres may occur and hydrothorax may be present in severely affected animals. The mechanism of action of persin on both the mammary gland and the myocardium remain to be resolved.

A fraction from Ipomoea lonchophylla, which was toxic to mice, contained an inseparable mixture of resin glycosides with differing numbers of C5 ester groups on the hexasaccharide chain. After alkaline hydrolysis of the esters, the structure of the major component (1) was elucidated using high-field NMR spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, chemical studies, and comparison with known resin glycosides. Compound 1 was identified as 3,11-dihydroxytetradecanoic acid 11-O-beta-quinovopyranosyl-(1-->2)-beta-glucopyranosyl-(1-->3)- [alpha-rhamnopyranosyl- (1-->4)]-quinovopyranosyl-(1-->2)-beta-glucopyranosyl-(1-->2)-beta -fucopyranoside.

The synthesis of the title compound, a member of a family of cyclopent[g]indoles isolated from a marine sponge, is described. Most of the synthetic sequence was developed starting from the more readily available cis-1,3-dimethylindan. An X-ray crystal structure of the indanol (24), the precursor of trans-1,3-dimethylindan, confirmed its relative stereochemistry.

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