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Australia's endemic desert shrubs are commonly aromatic, with chemically diverse terpenes and phenylpropanoids in their headspace profiles. Species from the genus Eremophila (Scrophulariaceae ex. Myoporaceae) are the most common, with 215 recognised taxa and many more that have not yet been described, widely spread across the arid parts of the Australian continent. Over the years, our research team has collected multiple specimens as part of a survey to investigate the chemical diversity of the genus and create leads for further scientific enquiry. In the current study, the diversity of volatile compounds is studied using hydrodistilled essential oils and leaf solvent extracts from 30 taxa. Several rare terpenes and iridoids were detected in chemical profiles widely across the genus, and three previously undescribed sesquiterpenes were isolated and are assigned by 2D NMR- E -11(12)-dehydroisodendrolasin, Z -11-hydroxyisodendrolasin and 10-hydroxydihydro-α-humulene acetate. Multiple sampling from Eremophila longifolia , Eremophila arbuscular , Eremophila latrobei , Eremophila deserti , Eremophila sturtii , Eremophila oppositifolia and Eremophila alternifolia coneys that species in Eremophila are highly chemovariable. However, taxa are generally grouped according to the expression of (1) furanosesquiterpenes, (2) iridoids or oxides, (3) mixtures of 1 and 2, (4) phenylpropanoids, (5) non-furanoid terpenes, (6) mixtures of 4 and 5, and less commonly (7) mixtures of 1 and 5. Furthermore, GC-MS analysis of solvent-extracted leaves taken from cultivated specimens conveys that many heavier 'volatiles' with lower vapour pressure are not detected in hydrodistilled essential oils and have therefore been neglected in past chemical studies. Hence, our data reiterate that chemical studies of the genus Eremophila will continue to describe new metabolites and that taxon determination has limited predictive value for the chemical composition.

In an age of growing antimicrobial resistance, new antibacterial agents are desperately needed. A rapid antibacterial and phytochemical survey was designed to screen for antibacterial leads in plants. The survey was applied to over 90 Australian native plants from the genus Eremophila, revealing Eremophila complanata and E. nivea×E. drummondii as active against Gram positive bacteria. Thin layer chromatography with bioautography, flash chromatography and nuclear magnetic resonance led to the isolation and identification of two diastereomeric serrulatic acids. A single stereoisomer of 7,8,16-trihydroxyserrulat-19-oic acid has been previously described as its methyl ester. This paper describes the NMR of both serrulatic acids epimeric at C15 and their methyl esters, and demonstrates their Gram positive antibacterial activity. It is the first time that stereoisomers of this serrulatic acid have been found together in some Eremophila species. Further characterization of E. complanata additionally found an abundance of α-selinene and β-selinene. The study validates a rapid survey approach to finding antibacterial phytochemicals., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Eremophila sturtii and E. mitchellii are found in the arid and temperate regions of Australia and, because of their similar appearances, are often confused. Previous phytochemical investigations have described mitchellene sesquiterpenes (1-5) reported from E. mitchellii but are here demonstrated to be from E. sturtii. A previous study that described serrulatic acids (16 and 17) from a species reported as E. sturtii actually used E. mitchellii. In addition, two new C-15 modified analogues, mitchellenes F (14) and G (15), were isolated from E. sturtii. The absolute configuration of 14 was determined with the first X-ray structure of a compound with the mitchellene skeleton.

Bacteria are becoming increasingly resistant to currently used antibiotics. At the same time, little progress has been made in discovering new antibacterial drugs to combat resistant organisms. History teaches us that 'high tech' target-based complex methods are not synonymous with success and a return to simple, systematic screening of natural products against bacteria from traditional and novel resources holds our greatest hope of success., (© FEMS 2016. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)