A new heptaketide named oryzanigral (1) was isolated from the fermentation extract of the endophytic fungus Nigrospora oryzae isolated from the leaves of Coccinia grandis, along with five known compounds, (R)-mellein, (R)-O-methylmellein, (3R,4R)-4-hydroxymellein, (3R,4S)-4-hydroxymellein and abscisic acid. The structure of oryzanigral was elucidated by spectroscopic analyses including 2D-NMR. A plausible biosynthetic pathway involving Diels-Alder reaction was proposed for compound 1 and related polyketides previously reported. In addition, structure revision of the double bond geometry for coicenal A was described.
Keywords: Coccinia grandis; Nigrospora oryzae; Oryzanigral; coicenal A; endophytic fungus; heptaketide.