Chemistry of the Secondary Metabolites of Termites

Gössinger, Edda

doi:10.1007/978-3-030-12858-6_1

Cited by 3 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 693 publications

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“…First, 1.4 g MBE AB was fractionated by centrifugal partition chromatography (CPC) using the ternary two-phase solvent system ethyl acetate/acetonitrile/water (3:3:4, v/v/v) in ascending mode, and a total of 12 fractions was obtained (Table 1). The mass of each recovered fraction (4.8-892.4 mg) was enough to record 13 C-NMR spectra with good resolution in about 20 min. The spectra were then submitted to an automatic peak picking and therefore reduced to a list of peak coordinates.…”

Section: Chemical Profilementioning

confidence: 99%

“…The content of the bins was stored in a table: bin index in rows, fraction index in columns, peak intensities for values in table. In the present work, this-NMR data treatment resulted in a table with 12 columns (one per fraction) and 217 rows (one per chemical shift bin containing at least one 13 C-NMR signal in at least one fraction). This table was submitted to HCA on the rows.…”

Section: Chemical Profilementioning

confidence: 99%

“…This table was submitted to HCA on the rows. In this way, statistical correlations between 13 C-NMR resonances belonging to a single structure within the fraction series were visualized as chemical shift clusters beneath the corresponding dendrogram (Figure 1). Each cluster was finally assigned to a molecular structure with the help of a calculated 13 C-NMR chemical shift database of natural metabolites and all database proposals were validated (or rejected) through simultaneous interpretation of 2D-NMR spectra (HSQC, HMBC and COSY).…”

Section: Chemical Profilementioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, HQ was found in the labial gland of other termite species [10][11][12]. Hydroquinone and other hydroquinone derivatives, which are secreted by the labial gland, are known to serve as food-marking pheromones in lower and defensive agents in higher concentrations [13,14]. NADA is present in several insect species and acts as a precursor for quinonoid-sclerotizing agents in insect cuticle [15,16].…”

Section: Chemical Profilementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Lastly, some of the biologically active metabolites, that could contribute to the antimicrobial activity, were identified. Chemical profiling was performed using centrifugal partition chromatography and 13 C Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ( 13 C-NMR) followed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) to evaluate the lipid composition. The antimicrobial properties of M. bellicosus extracts as well as fractions thereof and identified compounds were screened against selected pathogenic microorganisms using the Kirby-Bauer disc diffusion method and further characterized with the broth microdilution assay.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Chemical Profile and Antimicrobial Activity of the Fungus-Growing Termite Strain Macrotermes Bellicosus Used in Traditional Medicine in the Republic of Benin

et al. 2020

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The fungus growing termite species Macrotermes bellicosus (M. bellicosus) is used in nutrition and traditional medicine in the Republic of Benin for the treatment of infectious and inflammatory diseases. Previous findings demonstrated evidence of anti-inflammatory and spasmolytic properties of M. bellicosus. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the antimicrobial potential of different extracts of M. bellicosus samples and determine the chemical profile of an ethanolic M. bellicosus extract. Chemical profiling was conducted using centrifugal partition chromatography and 13C-NMR, followed by MALDI-TOF MS. Major identified compounds include hydroquinone (HQ), methylhydroquinone (MHQ), 3,4-dihydroxyphenethyl glycol (DHPG), N-acetyldopamine (NADA) and niacinamide. The fatty acid mixture of the extract was mainly composed of linoleic and oleic acid and highlights the nutritional purpose of M. bellicosus. Using the Kirby–Bauer disc diffusion and broth microdilution assay, an antibacterial activity of M. bellicosus samples was observed against various clinical strains with a highest growth inhibition of S. aureus. In addition, HQ and MHQ as well as fractions containing DHPG, niacinamide and NADA inhibited S. aureus growth. The reported antimicrobial activity of M. bellicosus and identified active substances provide a rationale for the traditional medicinal use of M. bellicosus.

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Section: Chemical Profilementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Chemical Profilementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Chemical Profilementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Chemical Profilementioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Chemical Profile and Antimicrobial Activity of the Fungus-Growing Termite Strain Macrotermes Bellicosus Used in Traditional Medicine in the Republic of Benin

et al. 2020

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Trail-Following Pheromones in the Termite Subfamily Syntermitinae (Blattodea, Termitoidae, Termitidae)

et al. 2020

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Trail-following behaviour is a key to termite ecological success, allowing to orient themselves between the nesting and foraging sites. This behaviour is controlled by specific trail-following pheromones produced always by the abdominal sternal gland occurring in all termite species and developmental stages. Trail-following communication was studied in a broad spectrum of species, but the "higher" termites (i.e. Termitidae) from the subfamily Syntermitinae remain surprisingly neglected. To fill this gap, we studied the trail-following pheromone in 6 genera and 9 species of Syntermitinae. Our chemical and behavioural experiments showed that (3Z,6Z,8E)-dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol is the single component of the pheromone of all the termite species studied, except Silvestritermes euamignathus. This species produces both (3Z,6Z)-dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol and neocembrene, but only (3Z,6Z)dodeca-3,6-dien-1-ol elicits trail-following behaviour. Our results indicate the importance of (3Z,6Z,8E)-dodeca-3,6,8-trien-1-ol, the most widespread communication compound in termites, but also the repeated switches to other common pheromones as exemplified by S. euamignathus.

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Identification of the trail-following pheromone receptor in termites

Diallo,

Kašparová,

Šulc

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Chemical communication is the cornerstone of eusocial insect societies since it mediates the social hierarchy, division of labor, and concerted activities of colony members. The chemistry of social insect pheromones received considerable attention in both major groups of social insects, the eusocial Hymenoptera and termites. By contrast, current knowledge on molecular mechanisms of social insect pheromone detection by odorant receptors (ORs) is limited to hymenopteran social insects and no OR was yet functionally characterized in termites, the oldest eusocial insect clade. Here, we present the first OR deorphanization in termites. Using the data from antennal transcriptome and genome of the termite Prorhinotermes simplex (Rhinotermitidae), we selected 4 candidate OR sequences, expressed them in Empty Neuron Drosophila, and functionally characterized using single sensillum recording (SSR) and a panel of termite semiochemicals. In one of the selected ORs, PsimOR14, we succeeded in obtaining strong and reliable responses to the main component of P. simplex trail-following pheromone, the monocyclic diterpene neocembrene. PsimOR14 showed a narrow tuning to neocembrene; only one additional compound out of 72 tested (geranylgeraniol) generated non-negligible responses. Subsequently, we used SSR and P. simplex workers to identify the olfactory sensillum specifically responding to neocembrene, thus likely expressing PsimOR14. We report on homology-based modelling of neocembrene binding by PsimOR14 and show how different ligands impact the receptor dynamicity using molecular dynamics simulations. Finally, we demonstrate that PsimOR14 is significantly more expressed in workers than in soldiers, which correlates with higher sensitivity of workers to neocembrene.

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Chemistry of the Secondary Metabolites of Termites

Cited by 3 publications

References 693 publications

Chemical Profile and Antimicrobial Activity of the Fungus-Growing Termite Strain Macrotermes Bellicosus Used in Traditional Medicine in the Republic of Benin

Chemical Profile and Antimicrobial Activity of the Fungus-Growing Termite Strain Macrotermes Bellicosus Used in Traditional Medicine in the Republic of Benin

Trail-Following Pheromones in the Termite Subfamily Syntermitinae (Blattodea, Termitoidae, Termitidae)

Identification of the trail-following pheromone receptor in termites

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