Antibacterial and cytotoxic metabolites produced by Streptomyces tanashiensis BYF-112 isolated from Odontotermes formosanus

Chemical investigations of the termite-associated Streptomyces tanashiensis BYF-112 resulted in the discovery of four novel alkaloid derivatives: vegfrecines A and B (1 and 2), exfoliazone A (3), and venezueline H (7), in addition to nine known metabolites (4−6, 8−13). The structures of these compounds were elucidated through comprehensive spectroscopic analysis and comparison with existing literature data. Antibacterial assays revealed that viridomycin A (11) exhibited potent antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, with a zone of inhibition (ZOI) of 12.67 mm, in comparison to a ZOI of 17.67 mm for the positive control gentamicin sulfate. Viridomycin A (11) showed moderate activity against Micrococcus tetragenus and Pseudomonas syringae pv. actinidae, with ZOI values of 15.50 and 14.33 mm, respectively, which were inferior to those of gentamicin sulfate (34.67 and 24.00 mm). Viridomycin F (12) also exhibited moderate antibacterial effects against S. aureus, M. tetragenus, and P. syringae pv. actinidae, with ZOI values of 8.33, 16.50, and 10.83 mm, respectively. Cytotoxicity assays demonstrated that viridobruunine A (5), exfoliazone (6), viridomycin A (11), and X-14881E (13) exhibited significant cytotoxicity against human malignant melanoma (A375), ovarian cancer (SKOV-3), and gastric cancer (MGC-803) cell lines, with IC₅₀ values ranging from 4.61 to 19.28 μmol·L⁻¹. Furthermore, bioinformatic analysis of the complete genome of S. tanashiensis suggested a putative biosynthetic gene cluster (BGC) responsible for the production of compounds 1−12. These findings indicate that the secondary metabolites of insect-associated S. tanashiensis BYF-112 hold promise as potential sources of novel antibacterial and anticancer agents.