Furanoditerpenes from Pterodon pubescens benth with selective in vitro anticancer activity for prostate cell line

Activity guided fractionation of Pterodon pubescens Benth. methylene chloride-soluble fraction afforded novel 6α-acetoxi 7β-hydroxy-vouacapan 1 and four known diterpene furans 2, 3, 4, 5. The compounds were evaluated for in vitro cytotoxic activities against human normal cells and tumour cell lines UACC-62 (melanoma), MCF-7 (breast), NCI-H460 (lung, non-small cells), OVCAR-03 (ovarian), PC-3 (prostate), HT-29 (colon), 786-0 (renal), K562 (leukemia) and NCI-ADR/RES (ovarian expressing phenotype multiple drugs resistance). Results were expressed by three concentration dependent parameters GI50 (concentration that produces 50% growth inhibition), TGI (concentration that produces total growth inhibition or cytostatic effect) and LC50 (concentration that produces -50% growth, a cytotoxicity parameter). Also, in vitro cytotoxicity was evaluated against 3T3 cell line (mouse embryonic fibroblasts). Antiproliferative properties of compounds 1, 4 and 5 are herein reported for the first time. These compounds showed selectivity in a concentration-dependent way against human PC-3. Compound 1 demonstrated selectivity 26 fold more potent than the positive control, doxorubicin, for PC-3 (prostrate) cell line based on GI50 values, causing cytostatic effect (TGI value) at a concentration fifteen times less than positive control. Moreover comparison of 50% lethal concentration (LC50 value) with positive control (doxorubicin) suggested that compound 1 was less toxic

Furanoditerpenes from Pterodon pubescens benth with selective in vitro anticancer activity for prostate cell line

Activity guided fractionation of Pterodon pubescens Benth. methylene chloride-soluble fraction afforded novel 6α-acetoxi 7β-hydroxy-vouacapan 1 and four known diterpene furans 2, 3, 4, 5. The compounds were evaluated for in vitro cytotoxic activities against human normal cells and tumour cell lines UACC-62 (melanoma), MCF-7 (breast), NCI-H460 (lung, non-small cells), OVCAR-03 (ovarian), PC-3 (prostate), HT-29 (colon), 786-0 (renal), K562 (leukemia) and NCI-ADR/RES (ovarian expressing phenotype multiple drugs resistance). Results were expressed by three concentration dependent parameters GI50 (concentration that produces 50% growth inhibition), TGI (concentration that produces total growth inhibition or cytostatic effect) and LC50 (concentration that produces -50% growth, a cytotoxicity parameter). Also, in vitro cytotoxicity was evaluated against 3T3 cell line (mouse embryonic fibroblasts). Antiproliferative properties of compounds 1, 4 and 5 are herein reported for the first time. These compounds showed selectivity in a concentration-dependent way against human PC-3. Compound 1 demonstrated selectivity 26 fold more potent than the positive control, doxorubicin, for PC-3 (prostrate) cell line based on GI50 values, causing cytostatic effect (TGI value) at a concentration fifteen times less than positive control. Moreover comparison of 50% lethal concentration (LC50 value) with positive control (doxorubicin) suggested that compound 1 was less toxic.O fracionamento biomonitorado do extrato diclorometânico das sementes de Pterodon pubescens Benth forneceu o 6α-acetóxi-7β-hidróxi-vouacapano 1 (inédito), além de quatro diterpenos furânicos (2, 3, 4 e 5). A atividade antiproliferativa dos compostos foi avaliada in vitro contra as linhagens de células tumorais humanas UACC-62 (melanoma), MCF-7 (mama), NCI-H460 (pulmão), OVCAR-03 (ovário), PC-3 (próstata), HT-29 (colon), 786-0 (rim), K562 (leucemia) e NCI-ADR/RES (ovário com fenótipo de resistência a múltiplos fármacos). Os resultados foram expressos em três concentrações efetivas GI50 (concentração para que ocorra 50% de inibição de crescimento), TGI (concentração que resulta em inibição total de crescimento) e LC50 (concentração que resulta em 50% de morte celular). A citotoxicidade in vitro foi avaliada também frente a uma linhagem de célula murina normal (3T3). Este é o primeiro relato de atividade anticâncer para os compostos 1, 4 e 5, que apresentaram grande seletividade, dependente da concentração, para PC-3. O composto 1 foi 26 vezes mais potente para inibir 50% do crescimento (GI50) de PC-3, 15 vezes mais citostático (TGI) e 6 vezes menos tóxico (LC50) quando comparado com Doxorrubicina (controle).569575Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES

Structure of cerradão and transition between cerradão and swamp forest, in a fragment of International Paper of Brasil Ltda., in Brotas, SP

The cerrado biodiversity is being seriously threatened by deforestation, since many of its species present restrict geographic distribution. Because of its central position in South American continent, the cerrado has extensive borders with other vegetation types, including swamp forests. We aimed at: 1) knowing the flora and describing the community of shrubs and trees of a cerradão (savanna woodland) and its transition to a swamp forest in Brotas municipality, SE Brazil; 2) investigating the floristic similarity among other cerrado areas in São Paulo State. We found 125 species of 91 genera and 49 families in the fragment surveyed. Myrtaceae and Leguminosae had the highest species richness, a pattern frequently found in other areas of cerrado in São Paulo State. However, only in Brotas, Lauraceae and Euphorbiaceae had a high species richness. We sampled a total of 3,787 individuals (DSH > 3 cm) in one hectare and estimated H' = 3,378 nats.individual¹ . The species with highest Importance Value Indices were Xylopia aromatica, Vochysia tucanorum, Ocotea pulchella, Gochnatia polymorpha, and Myrcia albo-tomentosa. There was no significant correlation between the floristic similarity and the geographical distance among the 10 cerrado areas compared, due the high proportion of common species. The high proportion of common species among cerrado areas in São Paulo State corroborates the results of other authors, who found that it is located on a center of diversity, whose floristic composition is different from the other Cerrado's diversity centers in Brazil.A biodiversidade existente no cerrado está seriamente ameaçada pela devastação, pois muitas das espécies que aí ocorrem possuem distribuição geográfica restrita. Pela posição central do cerrado no continente sul-americano, ocorrem associações entre a vegetação do cerrado e outras formações, dentre estas a floresta paludícola. Os objetivos deste trabalho foram conhecer a flora e descrever a comunidade arbustivo-arbórea de um cerradão e da transição entre esse cerradão e uma floresta paludícola em Brotas, e investigar as similaridades e diferenças florísticas entre levantamentos realizados em fisionomias similares no estado de São Paulo. No fragmento ocorreram 125 espécies de 91 gêneros e 49 famílias. Myrtaceae e Leguminosae foram as famílias mais ricas em espécies, um padrão consistente com o encontrado em outros levantamentos nos cerrados paulistas. Somente em Brotas, Lauraceae e Euphorbiaceae apresentaram alta riqueza específica. No levantamento fitossociológico, em 1,0 ha, foram amostrados 3.787 indivíduos com DAS > 3 cm (H' = 3,378 nats.indivíduo-1). As espécies de maior importância sociológica foram Xylopia aromatica, Vochysia tucanorum, Ocotea pulchella, Gochnatia polymorpha e Myrcia albo-tomentosa. Não foi encontrada correlação significativa entre a similaridade florística e a distância geográfica entre as 10 áreas de cerrado analisadas, devido à grande proporção de espécies comuns. Essa grande proporção de espécies comuns corrobora resultados de outros autores, de que o estado de São Paulo se localiza num centro de diversidade do cerrado, cuja composição florística é diferente de outros centros de diversidade no Brasil.249262Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES

Foliage-dwelling ants in a neotropical savanna: effects of plant and insect exudates on ant communities

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Ant dominance in tropical ecosystems can be explained by a capacity to exploit liquid foods such as extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) and secretions from honeydew-producing hemipterans (HPHs). Such nutritious exudates may determine ant distribution in space and shape specialization in ant-plant interactions. We provide a first assessment of how EFNs and HPHs mediate the structure of ant assemblages, ant visitation intensity, and characteristics of ant-plant interaction networks across space in Brazilian "cerrado" savanna. We used arboreal pitfall traps to sample visiting ants in four cerrado localities and recorded the presence of lepidopteran larvae to determine their possible response to ant visitation. Ant species composition and richness did not differ regardless of the presence of liquid rewards on plants, and most network patterns did not show consistent differences. However, in two of the four sites, ant densities were higher on plants with HPHs or EFNs due to increased activity by Camponotus and Pseudomyrmex ants. At these two sites, plants with liquid food sources had a more specific ant assemblage (higher specialization d') than did plants without resources, and caterpillars were more frequently found on plants with fewer workers of Camponotus and Pseudomyrmex. Plants with HPHs had increased ant visitation and accumulated more ant species than did plants with EFNs or without liquid foods. Ant response to such food sources may thus depend on local conditions and identity of ant species, and may determine how ant assemblages are structured. Results highlight how different patterns of ant visitation to liquid resources can produce distinctive effects on herbivore infestation.Ant dominance in tropical ecosystems can be explained by a capacity to exploit liquid foods such as extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) and secretions from honeydew-producing hemipterans (HPHs). Such nutritious exudates may determine ant distribution in space an103183195FUNDAÇÃO DE AMPARO À PESQUISA DO ESTADO DE SÃO PAULO - FAPESPCONSELHO NACIONAL DE DESENVOLVIMENTO CIENTÍFICO E TECNOLÓGICO - CNPQFundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)07/59881-5; 12/23399-3; 11/18580-8; 12/23671-5; 14/23141-1306115/2013-1We thank B. Dalsgaard, L. Jorge, M. Pareja, P. I. Prado, and S. Ribeiro for comments on the manuscript. G. Bieber, M. Vidal, A. Moreira, H. Soares, L. Sendoya, M. Pareja, and L. Kaminski helped in the field. A. V. Freitas provided valuable logistic suppo

Frugivores at higher risk of extinction are the key elements of a mutualistic network

Most tree species rely on vertebrates for seed dispersal, and many vertebrates use fruits as food resources in tropical forests. Therefore, plant-frugivore interactions affect population dynamics and persistence in ecological communities. Plant-frugivore interactions often involve many species, forming networks of interacting plants and animals that play different roles in determining network organization. The network organization is the way interactions are structured in the community, which may have consequences for its ecological and evolutionary dynamics. Some species have greater influences on network organization and may be particularly important to species persistence. We identified the frugivores most important to the organization of networks of plants and frugivorous birds in three contiguous Atlantic forest sites in southeastern Brazil. We found that the species that contributed most to network organization were at higher risk of extinction. Among the main contributors to network organization were two cotingas and a toucan, large-bodied species that disperse seeds from many plants and are particularly vulnerable to habitat loss and hunting. As a consequence, ongoing extinctions may significantly affect the organization of plant-frugivore interactions in the studied system. We hypothesize that the crucial role of some threatened frugivores may occur in other seed dispersal systems in tropical communities, although the association between structural importance and degree of threat may be contingent on peculiarities of local communities and disturbances.Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES

Estrutura de um curso de taxonomia de campo: o modelo aplicado em Ubatuba, São Paulo Structure of taxonomy field course: the model applied at Ubatuba-São Paulo

As atividades de campo são essenciais à formação de um bom taxonomista. Os problemas mais usuais das atividades didáticas no campo são: a) grande número de alunos; b) formação heterogênea e desequilíbrio de conhecimento dos participantes; c) repetições e tendência de coletas direcionadas para as formas de vida mais evidentes. As causas e conseqüências destes problemas são discutidas. Como solução é proposta uma metodologia, fundamentada numa vivência de muitos anos de atividades didáticas no campo em cursos de graduação e pós-graduação. São abordados tópicos como o número ideal de participantes, área de abrangência, época de atividade, divisão de trabalho e material e equipamentos necessários. Dependendo do número de espécies coletadas na mesma localidade, esta metodologia pode gerar uma lista de espécies da região com indicações precisas de hábito, habitat, nomes vulgares, abundância, usos, fenologia e outras informações que sempre afloram em trabalhos desta natureza. Como exemplo são apresentados os resultados da aplicação dessa metodologia em um curso de campo realizado em Ubatuba-SP e região.<br>The field activities are essential for the education of a good taxonomist. The most common problems found in field activities are: a) large number of students, b) heterogeneous educational background and unlevelled knowledge of the participants, c) repetitions and tendency of collecting the more evidents life-forms. The causes and consequences of such problems are discussed herein. The proposed solution is a methodology, based on many years of experience in field courses for undergraduate and graduate courses. Topics about the ideal number of participants, area of coverage, period of activity, division of work and the necessary material and equipment are discussed. According to the number of species collected at the same place, this methodology may result in a list of local species with precise information about the life-forms, habitat, common names, frequency, uses, phenology and further information in this kind of work. The results of the aplication of this metodology in a field course held in the region of Ubatuba-SP are presented