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AbstractTwo isocoumarins (6-methoxymellein and 6-hydroxymellein), one pyrrole compound (minaline), one lactone derivative (butyrolactone II), five phenolic acids (phenylacetic, veratric (3,4-dimethoxybenzoic), 4-hydroxyphenylacetic, 4-hydroxybenzoic and protocatechuic acid), and two phenolic acid methyl esters ((2-hydroxyphenyl) acetic acid methyl ester and methyl 4-hydroxyphenylacetate), along with 1,3-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl) propan-2-one were isolated from the fungal strain Aspergillus terreusXJA8. The fungal strain was isolated from the root of the medicinal plant Vernonia anthelminticafor first time. All isolated secondary metabolites were evaluated for their antimicrobial activity and melanin synthesis in murine B16 cells.

Physicochemical properties, structural features, and biological activities of polysaccharide fractions isolated from Nitraria sibirica(NS) pall fruit were investigated. Structural characterization was carried out using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, gas chromatography, partial acid hydrolysis, peroxide oxidation, Smith degradation, and nuclear magnetic resonance. The results showed that three of the polysaccharide fractions with average molecular weights of 21.5, 14.4, and 49.4 kDa were composed of different molar ratios of rhamnose, galactose, glucose, mannose, and arabinose, and have different chain structures and glycosidic linkages. The structural characteristics of polysaccharide fractions were also evaluated by scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and thermogravimetric analysis. NSP-3 exhibited a better biological activity compared to NSP-1 and NSP-2, with IC50value of anti- MCF-7 at 50.89 μg/mL, and inhibition rate against cyclooxygenase-2 was 85.60% at a concentration of 100 μg/mL. These results suggested that polysaccharides obtained from N. sibiricafruits could be a promising ingredient for health-beneficial functional foods.