SCORPION VENOM BENZOQUINONE DERIVATIVES AND USES THEREOF

Provided are colored 1,4-benzoquinone compounds obtained by oxidation of precursor molecules from the venom of the scorpion Diplocentrus melici (Diplocentridae family). Schemes for the chemical synthesis of these compounds using reagents commercially available are also provided. Biological assays show that the red compound (3,5-dimethoxy-2-(methylthio)cyclohexa-2,5-diene-1,4-dione) is very effective at killing Staphylococcus aureus and that the blue compound (5-methoxy-2,3-bis(methylthio)cyclohexa-2,5-diene-1,4-dione) has remarkable activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The blue compound is effective against multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) and is not detrimental to lung epithelium. Both compounds were found to be cytotoxic to human neoplastic cell lines and to mononuclearcells (PBMCs). 提供了有色1,4-苯醌化合物，其是通过氧化来自Diplocentrus melici蝎(Diplocentridae科)的毒液的前体分子而获得的。还提供了使用市售试剂来化学合成这些化合物的方案。生物测定表明，红色化合物(3,5-二甲氧基-2-(甲硫基)环己-2,5-二烯-1,4-二酮)对杀死金黄色葡萄球菌非常有效，而蓝色化合物(5-甲氧基-2,3-双(甲硫基)环己-2,5-二烯-1,4-二酮)对结核分枝杆菌具有显著