Pigments of the Moss : Isolation and Structure Elucidation of Prenyl-Substituted 8,8'-Linked 9,10-Phenanthrenequinone Dimers.

In a search for new secondary metabolites from mosses, leucobryns A-E, axially chiral 9,10-phenanthrenequinone dimers, were isolated from (-), together with diosmetin triglycoside. Leucobryns B () and C () were proved to be homodimeric atropodiastereomers containing both axial and central chirality elements, while leucobryns D () and E () were found to be heterodimeric atropodiastereomers containing central chirality in only one of the two monomeric units. Axial chirality of the compounds was determined by ECD measurements and sTDA ECD calculations, while the central chirality elements were assigned by TDDFT-SOR calculations. Leucobryns represent the first 9,10-phenanthrenequinone dimers, the monomers of which are linked through their C-8 atoms. Leucobryns B-E contain an uncommon C monoterpenoid side chain, in which isoprenoid units are joined by 3,4 linkages. Leucobryns A and B exhibited weak antiproliferative activity against several human cancer cell lines.