An Acinetobacter strain, given the code name LCH001 and having the potential to be an endophytic antagonist, has been isolated from healthy stems of the plant Cinnamomum camphora (L.) Presl, guided by an in vitro screening technique. The bacterium inhibited the growth of several phytopathogenic fungi such as Cryphonectria parasitica, Glomerella glycines, Phytophthora capsici, Fusarium graminearum, Botrytis cinerea, and Rhizoctonia solani. Biochemical, physiological, and 16S rDNA sequence analysis proved that it is Acinetobacter baumannii. When the filtrate from the fermentation broth of strain LCH001 was tested in vitro and in vivo, it showed strong growth inhibition against several phytopathogens including P. capsici, F. graminearum, and R. solani, indicating that suppression of the growth of the fungi was due to the presence of antifungal compounds in the culture broth. Moreover, the antifungal activity of the culture filtrate was significantly correlated with the cell growth of strain LCH001. The active metabolites in the filtrate were relatively thermally stable, but were sensitive to acidic conditions. Three antifungal compounds were isolated from the culture broth by absorption onto macropore resin, ethanol extraction, chromatography on silica gel or LH-20 columns, and crystallization. The structures of the bioactive compounds were identified by spectroscopic methods as isomers of iturin A, namely, iturin A2, iturin A3, and iturin A6. The characterization of an unusual endophytic bacterial strain LCH001 and its bioactive components may provide an alternative resource for the biocontrol of plant diseases.

Site-specific natural isotope fractionation of hydrogen studied by deuterium NMR (SNIF-NMR) spectroscopy is a powerful source of information on hydrogen pathways occurring in biosyntheses in natural conditions. The potential of the carbon counterpart of this method has been investigated and compared. Three typical molecular species, ethanol, acetic acid, and vanillin, have been considered. Taking into account the requirements of quantitative 13C NMR, appropriate experimental procedures have been defined and the repeatability and reproducibility of the isotope ratio determinations have been checked in different conditions. It is shown that the carbon version of the SNIF-NMR method is capable of detecting small differences in the carbon-13 content of the ethyl fragment of ethanols from different botanical or synthetic origins. These results are in agreement with mass spectrometry determinations of the overall carbon isotope ratios. Deviations with respect to a statistical distribution of 13C have been detected in the case of acetic acid and vanillin. However, since the method is very sensitive to several kinds of systematic error, only a relative significance can be attached at present to the internal parameters directly accessible. Isotope dilution experiments have also been carried out in order to check the consistency of the results. In the present state of experimental accuracy, the 13C NMR method is of more limited potential than 2H SNIF-NMR spectroscopy. However it may provide complementary information. Moreover it is particularly efficient for detecting and quantifying adulterations that aim to mimic the overall carbon-13 content of a natural compound by adding a selectivity enriched species to a less expensive substrate from a different origin.

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