8-[(3,3-Dimethyl­oxiran-2-yl)methoxy­meth­yl]-11-hydr­oxy-2-isopropenyl-5-methyl-12-oxo-1,2,3,12-tetra­hydro­pyrano[3,2-a]xanthen-1-yl acetate

The title compound, commonly known as 14-methoxy­tajixanthone-25-acetate, C28H30O8, was isolated from Emericella variecolor. The central xanthone core is approximately planar (r.m.s. deviation = 0.084 Å). The dihydro­pyran ring adopts a distorted half-chair conformation. The oxirane plane is oriented at an angle of 63.3 (2)° with respect to the phenol group. An intra­molecular O—H⋯O hydrogen bond forms an S(6) ring. In the crystal, mol­ecules are linked into a two-dimensional network parallel to the ab plane by weak inter­molecular C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds

(4S,5S,6S)-4-Hy­droxy-3-meth­oxy-5-methyl-5,6-ep­oxy­cyclo­hex-2-en-1-one

The title compound, C8H10O4, was isolated from culture extracts of the endophytic fungus Xylaria sp. (PB-30). The cyclo­hexenone ring exhibits a flattened boat conformation. In the crystal structure, mol­ecules related by translation along the b axis are linked into chains through O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds. Weak non-classical C—H⋯O contacts are also observed in the structure

Dietary Sargassum fusiforme improves memory and reduces amyloid plaque load in an Alzheimer's disease mouse model

Activation of liver X receptors (LXRs) by synthetic agonists was found to improve cognition in Alzheimer's disease (AD) mice. However, these LXR agonists induce hypertriglyceridemia and hepatic steatosis, hampering their use in the clinic. We hypothesized that phytosterols as LXR agonists enhance cognition in AD without affecting plasma and hepatic triglycerides. Phytosterols previously reported to activate LXRs were tested in a luciferase-based LXR reporter assay. Using this assay, we found that phytosterols commonly present in a Western type diet in physiological concentrations do not activate LXRs. However, a lipid extract of the 24(S)-Saringosterol-containing seaweed Sargassum fusiforme did potently activate LXR beta. Dietary supplementation of crude Sargassum fusiforme or a Sargassum fusiforme-derived lipid extract to AD mice significantly improved short-term memory and reduced hippocampal A beta plaque load by 81%. Notably, none of the side effects typically induced by full synthetic LXR agonists were observed. In contrast, administration of the synthetic LXRa activator, AZ876, did not improve cognition and resulted in the accumulation of lipid droplets in the liver. Administration of Sargassum fusiforme-derived 24(S)-Saringosterol to cultured neurons reduced the secretion of A beta 42. Moreover, conditioned medium from 24(S)-Saringosterol-treated astrocytes added to microglia increased phagocytosis of A beta. Our data show that Sargassum fusiforme improves cognition and alleviates AD pathology. This may be explained at least partly by 24(S)-Saringosterol-mediated LXR beta activation.</p