Induced production of emericellamides A and B from the marine-derived fungus Emericella sp. in competing co-culture.

Induction of the production of emericellamides A and B (1, 2), by the marine-derived fungus Emericella sp., was observed during co-culture with the marine actinomycete Salinispora arenicola. The planar structures of these new cyclic depsipeptides, which incorporate 3-hydroxy-2,4-dimethyldecanoic acid and 3-hydroxy-2,4,6-trimethyldodecanoic acid, were assigned by combined chemical and spectral methods. The absolute configurations of the amino acids, and those of the chiral centers on the side chain, were established by application of the Marfey's method, by J-based configuration analysis, and by application of the modified Mosher method. Emericellamides A and B show modest antibacterial activities against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus with MIC values of 3.8 and 6.0 microM, respectively.