Polybenzyls from Gastrodia elata, their agonistic effects on melatonin receptors and structure-activity relationships
- Bioorg Med Chem. 2019 Aug 1;27(15):3299-3306. doi: 10.1016/j.bmc.2019.06.008.
- 1. State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming 650201, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
- 2. State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming 650201, China.
- 3. State Key Laboratory of Phytochemistry and Plant Resources in West China, Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming 650201, China; Yunnan Key Laboratory of Natural Medicinal Chemistry, Kunming 650201, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China. Electronic address: [email protected].
Gastrodia elata is a famous traditional Chinese herb with medicinal and edible application. In this study, nine polybenzyls (1-9), including six new ones (2-5, 7 and 9), were isolated from the EtOAc extract of G. elata. Five compounds 1, 3, 4, 6 and 8 were found to activate melatonin receptors. Especially, compound 1 showed agonistic effects on MT1 and MT2 receptors with EC50 values of 237 and 244 μM. For better understanding their structure-activity relationships (SARs), ten polybenzyl analogs were further synthesized and assayed for their activities on melatonin receptors. Preliminary SARs study suggested that two para-hydroxy groups were the key pharmacophore for maintaining activity. Molecular docking simulations verified that compound 1 could strongly interact with MT2 receptor by bonding to Phe 118, Gly 121, His 208, Try 294 and Ala 297 residues.