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Purpose: To analyze the impact of hyperglycemia on the clinical outcome of COVID-19 in patients with newly diagnosed diabetes (NDD). Patients and Methods: We performed a retrospective study of 3114 cases of COVID-19 without pre-existing diabetes, 351 of which had NDD, in Hubei Province, China. The Cox regression model was used to calculate the risk of adverse clinical outcomes comparing the NDD vs non-NDD group before and after propensity score-matched (PSM) analysis. Patients with NDD were further divided into a sustained hyperglycemia group, a fluctuating group, and a remitted group based on their blood glucose levels during hospitalization as well as into hypoglycemic agent users and nonusers. Results: Compared to the non-NDD individuals, individuals with NDD had a significantly increased risk of all-cause mortality (adjusted HR after PSM, 2.65; 95% CI, 1.49– 4.72; P = 0.001) and secondary outcomes involving organ damage during the 28-day follow-up period. Subgroup analyses indicated that among individuals with NDD, the individuals with remitted hyperglycemia had the lowest 28-day mortality, whereas those with sustained hyperglycemia had the highest (IRR 24.27; 95% CI, 3.21– 183.36; P < 0.001). Moreover, individuals treated with hypoglycemic agents had significantly lower all-cause mortality than those not treated with hypoglycemic agents (IRR 0.08; 95% CI, 0.01– 0.56; P < 0.001). Conclusion: Our study reinforces the clinical message that NDD is strongly associated with poor outcomes in COVID-19 patients. Furthermore, resolved hyperglycemia in the later phase of the disease and the use of hypoglycemic agents were associated with improved prognosis in patients with NDD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new diimide derivative, named ( - )-byssochlamic acid bisdiimide (1), was isolated from the mixed broth of two mangrove fungi (strain no. K38 and E33) from the South China sea coast. The structure of 1 was determined by comprehensive spectroscopic methods, including 1D and 2D NMR (COSY, HMQC, and HMBC) and semi-synthesis. Primary bioassays showed that 1 had weak cytotoxic activity against Hep-2 and HepG2 cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two new metabolites, named no. 2106 A (1) and cyclo-(N-MeVal-N-MeAla) (2), have been produced by the endophytic fungus no. 2106 isolated from the seeds of the mangrove Avicennia marina in Hong Kong. The structures were elucidated by 2D NMR, HR-MS, and X-ray diffraction analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The distribution of lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] has not been well-studied in a large population in China. The relationship between Lp(a) and carotid atherosclerosis remains undefined. In this study, we aimed to investigate the distribution of Lp(a) levels and to assess their association with carotid arteriopathy in China. In this cross-sectional study, 411,634 adults with Lp(a) measurements from 22 health check-up centers were used to investigate Lp(a) distribution in China. Among participants with Lp(a) data, carotid ultrasound was performed routinely at seven health check-up centers covering 75,305 subjects. Carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) and carotid plaque were used as surrogate biomarkers of carotid arteriopathy. The multivariate logistic regression model was applied to evaluate the association of increased Lp(a) levels with carotid arteriopathy. The distribution of Lp(a) concentrations was right-skewed, with a median concentration of 10.60 mg/dL. The proportions of Lp(a) levels ≥30 mg/dL and ≥50 mg/dL were 16.75% and 7.10%, respectively. The median Lp(a) level was higher in females individuals in northern China, and increased with age. Spearman's analysis revealed weak correlations between the Lp(a) concentration as a continuous variable and other lipid profiles. The multiple logistic regression analysis showed that participants with Lp(a) levels ≥50 mg/dL had an increased risk of cIMT ≥1.0 mm (OR = 1.138, 95% CI, 1.071–1.208) and carotid plaque (OR = 1.296, 95% CI, 1.219–1.377) compared with those with Lp(a) levels <50 mg/dL. This is the first study of the Lp(a) distribution in a large population in China. Our findings revealed a positive association between elevated Lp(a) levels (≥50 mg/dL) and increased prevalence of carotid atherosclerosis, which implies an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in the future. [Display omitted] • Lp(a) distribution is evaluated for the first time in large-scale Chinese adults. • Lp(a) ≥ 50 mg/dL is associated with carotid arteriopathy in a health check-up population. • The association between Lp(a) and arteriopathy is independent of LDL-C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common type of treated heart arrhythmia contributing to adverse cardiovascular events. The association between short-term air pollution exposure and AF episodes has been recognized. But the evidence of the association between long-term air pollution exposure and AF was limited, especially in developing countries. We performed a nationwide cross-sectional study among 1,374,423 individuals aged ≥35 years from 13 health check-up centers. Using logistic regression models, we assessed the association between long-term exposure to single air pollution and AF prevalence, including particulate matter (PM 2.5 and PM 10), ozone (O 3) and PM 2.5 compositions, which were estimated by high-resolution and high-quality spatiotemporal datasets of ground-level air pollutants for China. The quantile g-computation model was used to explore the joint effect of all exposures to air pollution and the contribution of an individual component to the mixture. In single-pollutant models, an increase of 10 μg/m3 in PM 2.5 (OR 1.031[95%CI 1.010,1.053]) and PM 10 (OR = 1.021 [95%CI 1.009,1.033]) was positively associated with AF prevalence. The stratified analyses revealed that these associations were significantly stronger in females, people <65 years old, and those with hypertension and diabetes. In the further exploration of the joint effect of PM 2.5 compositions (OR 1.060 [95%CI 1.022,1.101]) per quintile increase in all five PM 2.5 components), we found that PM 2.5 sulfate contributed the most. These findings provide important evidence for the positive relationship between long-term exposure to air pollution and AF prevalence in China and identify sulfate particles of PM 2.5 as having the highest contribution to the overall mixture effects among all PM2.5 chemical constituents. • Long-term exposure to PM 2.5 and PM 10 was associated with an increased risk for AF prevalence. • The risk of AF prevalence was higher with PM5 exposure than with PM10. • The associations were stronger in females, people <65 years old, and those with hypertension and diabetes. • PM2.5 sulfate contributed the most to the overall mixture effects among PM2.5 constituents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: To date, PM 2.5 -associated vascular damage in metabolic abnormalities has remained controversial. We knew little about the vascular damage of PM 2.5 constituents. Thus, this study aimed to investigate the relationship between long-term exposure to PM 2.5 and its constituents and vascular damage in metabolic abnormalities., Methods: A total of 124,387 participants with metabolic abnormalities (defined as at least one metabolic disorder, such as obesity, elevated blood pressure, elevated triglyceride level, elevated fasting glucose level, or low HDL cholesterol level) were recruited in this study from 11 representative centers in China between January 2011 and December 2017. PM 2.5 and its constituents (black carbon [BC], organic matter [OM], sulfate [SO 4 2- ], nitrate [NO 3 - ], and ammonium salts [NH 4 ＋ ]) were extracted. Elevated brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) (≥ 1,400 cm/s) and declined ankle-brachial index (ABI) (＜0.9) indicated vascular damage. Multivariable logistic regression and Quantile g-Computation models were utilized to explore the impact on outcomes., Results: Of the 124,387 participants (median age, 49 years), 87,870 (70.64%) were men. One-year lag exposure to PM 2.5 and its constituents was significantly associated with vascular damage in single pollutant models. The adjusted odds ratios (OR) for each 1-µg/m 3 increase in PM 2.5 was 1.013 (95% CI, 1.012-1.015) and 1.031 (95% CI, 1.025-1.037) for elevated baPWV and decreased ABI, respectively. PM 2.5 constituents were also associated with vascular damage in multi-pollutant models. Among the PM 2.5 constituents, BC (47.17%), SO 4 2- (33.59%), and NH 4 ＋ (19.23%) have the highest contribution to elevated baPWV and NO 3 - (47.89%) and BC (23.50%) to declined ABI., Conclusion: Chronic exposure to PM 2.5 and PM 2.5 constituents was related to vascular damage in the abnormal metabolic population in China. The heterogeneous contribution of different PM 2.5 constituents to vessel bed damage is worthy of attention when developing targeted strategies.

PM 2.5 is a well-known airborne hazard to cause various diseases. Evidence suggests that air pollution exposure contributes to the occurrence of pulmonary nodules. Pulmonary nodules detected on the computed tomography scans can be malignant or progress to malignant during follow-up. But the evidence of the association between PM 2.5 exposure and pulmonary nodules was limited. To examine potential associations of exposures to PM 2.5 and its major chemical constituents with the prevalence of pulmonary nodules. A total of 16 865 participants were investigated from eight physical examination centers in China from 2014 to 2017. The daily concentrations of PM 2.5 and its five components were estimated by high-resolution and high-quality spatiotemporal datasets of ground-level air pollutants in China. The logistic regression and the quantile-based g-computation models were used to assess the single and mixture impact of air pollutant PM 2.5 and its components on the risk of pulmonary nodules, respectively. Each 1 mg m -3 increase in PM 2.5 (OR 1.011 (95% CI: 1.007-1.014)) was positively associated with pulmonary nodules. Among five PM 2.5 components, in single-pollutant effect models, every 1 μ g m -3 increase in organic matter (OM), black carbon (BC), and NO 3 - elevated the risk of pulmonary nodule prevalence by 1.040 (95% CI: 1.025-1.055), 1.314 (95% CI: 1.209-1.407) and 1.021 (95% CI: 1.007-1.035) fold, respectively. In mixture-pollutant effect models, the joint effect of every quintile increase in PM 2.5 components was 1.076 (95% CI: 1.023-1.133) fold. Notably, NO 3 - BC and OM contributed higher risks of pulmonary nodules than other PM 2.5 components. And the NO 3 and pulmonary nodules in China and identify that NO - particles were identified to have the highest contribution. The impacts of PM 2.5 components on pulmonary nodules were consistent across gender and age.These findings provide important evidence for the positive correlation between exposure to PM 2.5 and pulmonary nodules in China and identify that NO 3 - particles have the highest contribution to the risk., (© 2023 IOP Publishing Ltd.)

Background and Aims: Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) was proposed to substitute NAFLD in 2020. This new term highlights the systematic metabolic disturbances that accompany fatty liver. We evaluated the correlations between MAFLD and subclinical carotid atherosclerosis (SCA) based on a nationwide health examination population in China., Methods: We performed a nationwide cross-sectional population and a Beijing retrospective cohort from 2009 to 2017. SCA was defined as elevated carotid intima-media thickness. The multivariable logistic and Cox models were used to analyze the association between MAFLD and SCA., Results: 153,482 participants were included in the cross-sectional study. MAFLD was significantly associated with SCA in fully adjusted models, with an odds ratio of 1.66; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.62-1.70. This association was consistent in the cohort, with a hazard ratio (HR) of 1.31. The association between baseline MAFLD and incident SCA increased with hepatic steatosis severity. Subgroup analysis showed an interaction between age and MAFLD, with a higher risk in younger groups (HR:1.67, 95% CI: 1.17-2.40)., Conclusion: In this large cross-section and cohort study, MAFLD was significantly associated with the presence and development of SCA. Further, the risk was higher among MAFLD individuals with high hepatic steatosis index and young adults., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Lei, Wang, Wang, Huang, Liu, Qin, Zhang, Ji, She, Cai, Li, Zhang and Li.)

Background and Aims: The epidemiological characteristics of MAFLD and its relationship with atrial fibrillation (AF) are limited in China. Therefore, we explored the epidemiological characteristics of MAFLD from adults along with the association of MAFLD and 12-ECG diagnosed AF in a nationwide population from health check-up centers., Methods: This observational study used cross-sectional and longitudinal studies with 2,083,984 subjects from 2009 to 2017. Age-, sex-, and regional-standardized prevalence of MAFLD was estimated. Latent class analysis (LCA) was used to identify subclusters of MAFLD. Multivariable logistic regression and mixed-effects Cox regression models were used to analyze the relationship between MAFLD and AF., Results: The prevalence of MAFLD increased from 22.75% to 35.58% during the study period, with higher rates in males and populations with high BMI or resided in northern regions. The MAFLD population was clustered into three classes with different metabolic features by LCA. Notably, a high proportion of MAFLD patients in all clusters had overweight and prediabetes or diabetes. The MAFLD was significantly associated with a higher risk of AF in the cross-sectional study and in the longitudinal study. In addition, the coexistence of prediabetes or diabetes had the largest impact on subsequent AF., Conclusion: Our findings suggested a high prevalence of MAFLD and a high prevalence of other metabolic diseases in the MAFLD population, particularly overweight and glucose dysregulation. Moreover, MAFLD was associated with a significantly higher risk for existing and subsequent subclinical AF in the Chinese population., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Lei, Qin, Song, Liu, Chen, Sun, Huang, Deng, Zuo, Yao, Xu, Lu, Wang, Liu, Chen, Luo, Xia, Wang, Yang, Zhang, Ji, Zhang, She, Zeng, Li and Cai.)

Background: To develop a sensitive and clinically applicable risk assessment tool identifying coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients with a high risk of mortality at hospital admission. This model would assist frontline clinicians in optimizing medical treatment with limited resources., Methods: 6415 patients from seven hospitals in Wuhan city were assigned to the training and testing cohorts. A total of 6351 patients from another three hospitals in Wuhan, 2169 patients from outside of Wuhan, and 553 patients from Milan, Italy were assigned to three independent validation cohorts. A total of 64 candidate clinical variables at hospital admission were analyzed by random forest and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) analyses., Results: Eight factors, namely, O xygen saturation, blood U rea nitrogen, R espiratory rate, admission before the date the national M aximum number of daily new cases was reached, A ge, P rocalcitonin, C -reactive protein (CRP), and absolute N eutrophil counts, were identified as having significant associations with mortality in COVID-19 patients. A composite score based on these eight risk factors, termed the OURMAPCN-score, predicted the risk of mortality among the COVID-19 patients, with a C-statistic of 0.92 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.90-0.93). The hazard ratio for all-cause mortality between patients with OURMAPCN-score >11 compared with those with scores ≤ 11 was 18.18 (95% CI 13.93-23.71; p  < .0001). The predictive performance, specificity, and sensitivity of the score were validated in three independent cohorts., Conclusions: The OURMAPCN score is a risk assessment tool to determine the mortality rate in COVID-19 patients based on a limited number of baseline parameters. This tool can assist physicians in optimizing the clinical management of COVID-19 patients with limited hospital resources.

Objective This study aimed to determine the association of hyperlipidemia with clinical endpoints among hospitalized patients with COVID-19, especially those with pre-existing cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and diabetes. Methods This multicenter retrospective cohort study included all patients who were hospitalized due to COVID-19 from 21 hospitals in Hubei province, China between December 31, 2019 and April 21, 2020. Patients who were aged < 18 or ≥ 85 years old, in pregnancy, with acute lethal organ injury (e.g., acute myocardial infarction, severe acute pancreatitis, acute stroke), hypothyroidism, malignant diseases, severe malnutrition, and those with normal lipid profile under lipid-lowering medicines (e.g., statin, niacin, fenofibrate, gemfibrozil, and ezetimibe) were excluded. Propensity score matching (PSM) analysis at 1:1 ratio was performed to minimize baseline differences between patient groups of hyperlipidemia and non-hyperlipidemia. PSM analyses with the same strategies were further conducted for the parameters of hyperlipidemia in patients with increased triglyceride (TG), increased low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), and decreased high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C). Mixed-effect Cox model analysis was performed to investigate the associations of the 28-days all-cause deaths of COVID-19 patients with hyperlipidemia and the abnormalities of lipid parameters. The results were verified in male, female patients, and in patients with pre-existing CVDs and type 2 diabetes. Results Of 10 945 inpatients confirmed as COVID-19, there were 9822 inpatients included in the study, comprising 3513 (35.8%) cases without hyperlipidemia and 6309 (64.2%) cases with hyperlipidemia. Based on a mixed-effect Cox model after PSM at 1:1 ratio, hyperlipidemia was not associated with increased or decreased 28-day all-cause death [adjusted hazard ratio ( HR ), 1.17 (95% CI , 0.95-1.44), P =0.151]. We found that the parameters of hyperlipidemia were not associated with the risk of 28-day all-cause mortality [adjusted HR , 1.23 (95% CI , 0.98-1.55), P = 0.075 in TG increase group; 0.78 (95% CI , 0.57-1.07), P = 0.123 in LDL-C increase group; and 1.12 (95% CI , 0.9-1.39), P = 0.299 in HDL-C decrease group, respectively]. Hyperlipidemia was also not significantly associated with the increased mortality of COVID-19 in patients accompanied with CVDs or type 2 diabetes, and in both male and female cohorts. Conclusion Our study support that the imbalanced lipid profile is not significantly associated with the 28-day all-cause mortality of COVID-19 patients, even in those accompanied with CVDs or diabetes. Similar results were also obtained in subgroup analyses of abnormal lipid parameters. Therefore, hyperlipidemia might be not a major causative factor for poor outcome of COVID-19, which provides guidance for the intervention of inpatients during the epidemic of COVID-19.

The safety and efficacy of anti-diabetic drugs are critical for maximizing the beneficial impacts of well-controlled blood glucose on the prognosis of individuals with COVID-19 and pre-existing type 2 diabetes (T2D). Metformin is the most commonly prescribed first-line medication for T2D, but its impact on the outcomes of individuals with COVID-19 and T2D remains to be clarified. Our current retrospective study in a cohort of 1,213 hospitalized individuals with COVID-19 and pre-existing T2D indicated that metformin use was significantly associated with a higher incidence of acidosis, particularly in cases with severe COVID-19, but not with 28-day COVID-19-related mortality. Furthermore, metformin use was significantly associated with reduced heart failure and inflammation. Our findings provide clinical evidence in support of continuing metformin treatment in individuals with COVID-19 and pre-existing T2D, but acidosis and kidney function should be carefully monitored in individuals with severe COVID-19., Competing Interests: Declaration of Interests We have no competing interests to declare., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The prognostic power of circulating cardiac biomarkers, their utility, and pattern of release in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients have not been clearly defined. In this multicentered retrospective study, we enrolled 3219 patients with diagnosed COVID-19 admitted to 9 hospitals from December 31, 2019 to March 4, 2020, to estimate the associations and prognostic power of circulating cardiac injury markers with the poor outcomes of COVID-19. In the mixed-effects Cox model, after adjusting for age, sex, and comorbidities, the adjusted hazard ratio of 28-day mortality for hs-cTnI (high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I) was 7.12 ([95% CI, 4.60-11.03] P <0.001), (NT-pro)BNP (N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide or brain natriuretic peptide) was 5.11 ([95% CI, 3.50-7.47] P <0.001), CK (creatine phosphokinase)-MB was 4.86 ([95% CI, 3.33-7.09] P <0.001), MYO (myoglobin) was 4.50 ([95% CI, 3.18-6.36] P <0.001), and CK was 3.56 ([95% CI, 2.53-5.02] P <0.001). The cutoffs of those cardiac biomarkers for effective prognosis of 28-day mortality of COVID-19 were found to be much lower than for regular heart disease at about 19%-50% of the currently recommended thresholds. Patients with elevated cardiac injury markers above the newly established cutoffs were associated with significantly increased risk of COVID-19 death. In conclusion, cardiac biomarker elevations are significantly associated with 28-day death in patients with COVID-19. The prognostic cutoff values of these biomarkers might be much lower than the current reference standards. These findings can assist in better management of COVID-19 patients to improve outcomes. Importantly, the newly established cutoff levels of COVID-19-associated cardiac biomarkers may serve as useful criteria for the future prospective studies and clinical trials.

With dramatic changes in lifestyles over the last 20 years, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) has become the most prevalent liver disorder in China but has not received sufficient attention. NAFLD-related advanced liver disease and its mortality along with its overall disease burden are expected to increase substantially. There is thus an imperative need to clarify the epidemiological features of NAFLD to guide a holistic approach to management. We summarize eight epidemiological features of NAFLD in China over the past two decades using systematic review and meta-analysis methodology. Our data reveal a rapid growth in the NAFLD population, especially among younger individuals. Importantly, there is a strong ethnic difference in body mass index (BMI) and genetic risk of NAFLD compared with the US population. The etiology of advanced liver disease and its complications (e.g., hepatocellular carcinoma) has been altered because of a Westernized lifestyle and the implementation of effective vaccination strategies against viral hepatitis. Regional epidemiological patterns of NAFLD indicate that economics, environment, and lifestyle are critical factors in disease progression. The analysis also indicates that a large number of patients remain undiagnosed and untreated because of the inadequacy of diagnostic tools and the absence of effective pharmacologic therapies. Given the burden of NAFLD, future policy and research efforts need to address knowledge gaps to mitigate the risk burden., (© 2020 by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.)

With rapid lifestyle transitions, the increasing burden of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in China has emerged as a major public health issue. To obtain a comprehensive overview of the status of NAFLD over the past decade, we evaluated the epidemiology, risk factors, complications, and management of NAFLD in China through a systematic review and meta-analysis. Five English literature databases and three Chinese databases were searched for relevant topics from 2008 to 2018. A total of 392 studies with a population of 2,054,554 were included. National prevalence of NAFLD was 29.2%, with a heavier disease burden among the middle-aged, males, those in northwest China and Taiwan, regions with a gross domestic product per capita greater than 100,000 yuan, and Uygur and Hui ethnic groups. Currently, original studies on natural history and complications of NAFLD in China are scarce. Several studies revealed that NAFLD is positively correlated with the incidence of extrahepatic tumors, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. The Chinese population may have a higher hereditary risk of NAFLD due to more frequent nonsynonymous mutations in genes regulating lipid metabolism. Ultrasonography is the primary imaging tool in the detection of NAFLD in China. Serum tests and risk stratification algorithms for staging NAFLD remain under investigation. Specific pharmaceutical treatments for NAFLD are still undergoing clinical trials. It is noteworthy that the Chinese are underrepresented compared with their proportion of the NAFLD population in such trials. Conclusion: China experienced an unexpected rapid increase in the burden of NAFLD over a short period. Rising awareness and urgent actions need to be taken in order to control the NAFLD pandemic in China., (© 2019 by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.)

Nonfunctioning pituitary adenoma (NFPA) is one of the most common types of pituitary adenoma. The marine anthraquinone derivative SZ-685C has been isolated from the secondary metabolites of the mangrove endophytic fungus Halorosellinia sp. (No. 1403) which is found in the South China Sea. Recent research has shown that SZ-685C possesses anticancer and tumor suppressive effects. The tetrazolium-based colorimetric assay (MTT assay) to investigate the different effect of the marine compound SZ-685C on the proliferation of primary human NFPA cells, rat normal pituitary cells (RPCs) and rat prolactinoma MMQ cell lines. Hoechst 33342 dye/propidium iodide (PI) double staining and fluorescein isothiocyanate-conjugated Annexin V/PI (Annexin V-FITC/PI) apoptosis assays detected an enhanced rate of apoptosis in cells treated with SZ-685C. Enhanced expression levels of caspase 3 and phosphate and tensin homolog (PTEN) were determined by Western blotting. Notably, the protein expression levels of Akt were decreased when the primary human NFPA cells were treated with SZ-685C. Here, we show that SZ-685C induces apoptosis of human NFPA cells through inhibition of the Akt pathway in vitro. The understanding of apoptosis has provided the basis for novel targeted therapies that can induce death in cancer cells or sensitize them to established cytotoxic agents and radiation therapy.

Three new bianthraquinone derivatives, alterporriol K (1), L (2) and M (3), along with six known compounds were obtained from extracts of the endophytic fungus Alternaria sp. ZJ9-6B, isolated from the mangrove Aegiceras corniculatum collected in the South China Sea. Their structures were elucidated by one- and two-dimensional NMR spectroscopy, MS data analysis and circular dichroism measurements. Compounds 1, 2 and 3 were first isolated alterporriols with a C-2-C-2' linkage. The crystallographic data of tetrahydroaltersolanol B (7) was reported for the first time. In the primary bioassays, alterporriol K and L exhibited moderate cytotoxic activity towards MDA-MB-435 and MCF-7 cells with IC₅₀ values ranging from 13.1 to 29.1 μM.

Objective: To study the secondary metabolites of mangrove endophytic fungus BL321., Methods: The compounds were isolated by chromatographic technique. The structures were identified by comprehensive physico-chemical properties and spectral methods., Results: Five compounds were isolated and identified as 3,4a-dimethyl-2-oxo-2,4,4a,5,6,7-hexahydronaphtho[2,3-b]furan-5-carboxylic acid(1), cytochalasin C(2), cytochalasin D(3), 19,20-epoxycytochalasin C(4), ergosterol(5)., Conclusion: Compound 1 is isolated from nature for the first time. Further more, several kinds of strong bioactive compounds were islolate from this fungus indicate that it may develop to be medical source microorganism.

Three new phenolic bisabolane-type sesquiterpenoids: (+)-methyl sydowate (1), 7-deoxy-7,14-didehydrosydonic acid (2), and 7-deoxy-7,8-didehydrosydonic acid (3), together with two known fungal metabolites were isolated from the fermentation broth of a marine-derived fungus Aspergillus sp., which was isolated in turn from a gorgonian Dichotella gemmacea collected from the South China Sea. Their structures were elucidated by combined spectroscopic methods, and the structure of 1 was further confirmed by single-crystal X-ray data.

Objective: To study the secondary metabolites of mangrove endophytic fungus SK5., Methods: The compounds were isolated by chromatographic technique. Their structures were identified by comprehensive physico-chemical properties and spectroscopic methods., Results: Five compounds were isolated and identified as 2,8-dihydroxy-3,4-dihydronaphthalen-1(2H)-one(1), Sclerotinin A (2), dihydrocitrinone(3), 4-hydroxybenzaldehyde (4) and 3-hydroxy-2-methylbenzoic acid (5)., Conclusion: Compound 1 is isolated from nature for the first time.

Objective: The secondary metabolites of the fungus ZZF13 isolated from the leaves of the mangrove sample Kandelia candel in Zhanjiang and Guignardia sp. 4382 isolated from bark of Kandelia candel (endophyte) of Mai Po, Hong Kong were studied., Methods: The compounds were isolated by siliga gel, and their structures were identified by IR, MS and NMR., Results: Four compounds were isolated from the culture of this strain. Their structures were identified as Bacillpsporin C (1), 5-carboxymellein (2), 5-methylmellein (3) and 1-(2,6-dihydroxyphenyl) butanone (4)., Conclusion: The compounds 2 - 4 are isolated from the Guignardia sp. of Marine fungi for the first time.

One new compound 6-demethylvermistatin (1), together with two known compounds, the penicillide derivatives (2) and (3) were isolated from the mangrove fungus Guignardia sp. No. 4382 obtained from the South China Sea. Their structures were assigned using high-resolution electron ionization mass spectrometry(HREIMS), (1)H and (13)C NMR spectra, DEPT, and by 2D COSY, HMQC, and HMBC experiments. The absolute configuration of 1 was established by comparison of its CD with that of vermistatin., (Copyright (c) 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.)

The metabolites of a marine mangrove fungus (Penicillium sp. No. 2556) were studied in this paper and six compounds were isolated from the fermentation liquid. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopy methods as Sch54796 (1), Sch54794 (2), 4-hydroxybenzoic acid (3), urail (4), succinic acid (5), Vermopyrone (6). Among them, compounds 1, 2 and 6 were firstly isolated from Penicillium sp., Coumpounds 1 and 2 remarkably inhibited the growth of cancer cell lines hep2 and hepG2.

Four compounds, apicidin (1), N-methylharman (2), cylo (Phe-Tyr) (3) and indole-3-acetic acid (4) were isolated from the mangrove endophytic fungus ZZF42 from the South China Sea. Their structures were elucidated by spectral data. Compound 1 was first isolated from the marine fungus. Compound 2 was firstly isolated from marine microorganism. Compound 1 exhibited selective in vitro cytotoxicity towards KB ahd KBv200 with IC50 values of less than 0.78 microg/ml.

Twelve allenic aromatic ethers, some of them are natural products isolated from the mangrove fungus Xylaria sp. 2508 in the South China Sea, were synthesized. Their antitumor activities against KB and KBv200 cells were determined. All these compounds demonstrated cytotoxic potential, ranging from weak to strong activity. The analysis of structure-activity relationships suggested that the introduction of allenic moiety could generate or enhance cytotoxicity of these phenol compounds.