Antimicrobial Activity of Hydrophobic Xanthones from Cudrania cochinchinensis against Bacillus subtilis and Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus

• Published in: Chemistry & biodiversity Vol. 1; no. 9; pp. 1385 - 1390
• Main Authors: Fukai, Toshio, Oku, Yukio, Hou, Ai-Jun, Yonekawa, Makiko, Terada, Sumio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Zürich WILEY-VCH Verlag 01.09.2004; WILEY‐VCH Verlag
• Subjects: Anti-Infective Agents - isolation & purification; Anti-Infective Agents - pharmacology; Bacillus subtilis; Bacillus subtilis - drug effects; Bacillus subtilis - growth & development; Cudrania cochinchinensis; Drug Resistance, Microbial - physiology; Methicillin Resistance - drug effects; Methicillin Resistance - physiology; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Micrococcus luteus; Moraceae; Plant Extracts - isolation & purification; Plant Extracts - pharmacology; Plant Roots; Staphylococcus aureus; Staphylococcus aureus - drug effects; Staphylococcus aureus - growth & development; Xanthones - isolation & purification; Xanthones - pharmacology
• ISSN: 1612-1872; 1612-1880
• DOI: 10.1002/cbdv.200490101

Ten xanthones with one or two isoprenoid groups and a prenylated benzophenone isolated from roots of Cudrania cochinchinensis (Moraceae) were tested for their antimicrobial activities against Bacillus subtilis and methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Among these compounds, gerontoxanthone H exhibited considerable antibacterial activity against B. subtilis (MIC=1.56 μg/ml). Four xanthones, gerontoxanthone I, toxyloxanthone C, cudraxanthone S, and 1,3,7‐trihydroxy‐2‐prenylxanthone, showed weak antibacterial activity against the bacterium (MICs=3.13–6.25 μg/ml). These compounds also exhibited similar MIC values against methicillin‐sensitive S. aureus, MRSAs, and Micrococcus luteus.