Design and Synthesis of Scopoletin Sulfonate Derivatives as Potential Insecticidal Agents

(1) Background: Scopoletin and scoparone, two naturally occurring coumarins, have garnered considerable attention and have been introduced to the market in China due to their high insecticidal efficacy and low toxicity. To investigate the structure–activity relationship of these coumarins, a series...

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Main Authors: Congmin Liu, Panyuan Zheng, Hongmei Wang, Yan Wei, Chuanping Wang, Shuanghong Hao
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2023-01-01
Series:Molecules
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/28/2/530
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author Congmin Liu
Panyuan Zheng
Hongmei Wang
Yan Wei
Chuanping Wang
Shuanghong Hao
author_facet Congmin Liu
Panyuan Zheng
Hongmei Wang
Yan Wei
Chuanping Wang
Shuanghong Hao
author_sort Congmin Liu
collection DOAJ
description (1) Background: Scopoletin and scoparone, two naturally occurring coumarins, have garnered considerable attention and have been introduced to the market in China due to their high insecticidal efficacy and low toxicity. To investigate the structure–activity relationship of these coumarins, a series of scopoletin derivatives with aryl sulfate at C7 and different substitutes at C3 were designed and synthesized, and their insecticidal activity was studied. (2) Methods: A total of 28 new scopoletin derivatives were designed and synthesized. Most target compounds exhibited moderate insecticidal activity against the phytophagous mite <i>Tetranychus cinnabarinus</i> and the brine shrimp <i>Artemia salina</i>. (3) Results: Among these compounds, compounds <b>5a</b> and <b>5j</b> possessed the best insecticidal activities against <i>T. cinnabarinus,</i> with LC<sub>50</sub> values of 57.0 and 20.0 μg/mL, respectively, whereas that of the control drug was 15.0 μg/mL. Compound <b>4j</b> exhibited selective insecticidal activities against <i>A. salina</i>, with an LC<sub>50</sub> value of 9.36 μg/mL, whereas its LC<sub>50</sub> value against <i>T. cinnabarinus</i> was 93.0 μg/mL. The enzymatic inhibitory activity on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) showed a consistent tendency with the insecticidal activity. Further molecular docking analyses predicted the binding conformations of these compounds, which showed a good correlation between the insecticidal activity and the binding scores. (4) Conclusions: In general, a decreased electron cloud density of the Δ<sup>3,4</sup> olefinic bond is beneficial for improving the insecticidal activity against both <i>T. cinnabarinus</i> and <i>A. salina</i>. In addition, naphthyl or benzene groups with a sulfate ester at the C7 position could further improve the insecticidal activity against <i>A. salina</i>. AChE was implied to be a site of action for potential insecticidal activity. The results provide insight into the rational design of a new generation of effective coumarin insecticides.
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spelling doaj.art-5c54fbda543b4790aca0e567f6e612012023-11-30T23:41:09ZengMDPI AGMolecules1420-30492023-01-0128253010.3390/molecules28020530Design and Synthesis of Scopoletin Sulfonate Derivatives as Potential Insecticidal AgentsCongmin Liu0Panyuan Zheng1Hongmei Wang2Yan Wei3Chuanping Wang4Shuanghong Hao5College of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Research Center of Bio-Pesticides Engineering & Tech. of Shandong Province, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Research Center of Bio-Pesticides Engineering & Tech. of Shandong Province, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Research Center of Bio-Pesticides Engineering & Tech. of Shandong Province, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Research Center of Bio-Pesticides Engineering & Tech. of Shandong Province, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Research Center of Bio-Pesticides Engineering & Tech. of Shandong Province, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Research Center of Bio-Pesticides Engineering & Tech. of Shandong Province, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao 266109, China(1) Background: Scopoletin and scoparone, two naturally occurring coumarins, have garnered considerable attention and have been introduced to the market in China due to their high insecticidal efficacy and low toxicity. To investigate the structure–activity relationship of these coumarins, a series of scopoletin derivatives with aryl sulfate at C7 and different substitutes at C3 were designed and synthesized, and their insecticidal activity was studied. (2) Methods: A total of 28 new scopoletin derivatives were designed and synthesized. Most target compounds exhibited moderate insecticidal activity against the phytophagous mite <i>Tetranychus cinnabarinus</i> and the brine shrimp <i>Artemia salina</i>. (3) Results: Among these compounds, compounds <b>5a</b> and <b>5j</b> possessed the best insecticidal activities against <i>T. cinnabarinus,</i> with LC<sub>50</sub> values of 57.0 and 20.0 μg/mL, respectively, whereas that of the control drug was 15.0 μg/mL. Compound <b>4j</b> exhibited selective insecticidal activities against <i>A. salina</i>, with an LC<sub>50</sub> value of 9.36 μg/mL, whereas its LC<sub>50</sub> value against <i>T. cinnabarinus</i> was 93.0 μg/mL. The enzymatic inhibitory activity on acetylcholinesterase (AChE) showed a consistent tendency with the insecticidal activity. Further molecular docking analyses predicted the binding conformations of these compounds, which showed a good correlation between the insecticidal activity and the binding scores. (4) Conclusions: In general, a decreased electron cloud density of the Δ<sup>3,4</sup> olefinic bond is beneficial for improving the insecticidal activity against both <i>T. cinnabarinus</i> and <i>A. salina</i>. In addition, naphthyl or benzene groups with a sulfate ester at the C7 position could further improve the insecticidal activity against <i>A. salina</i>. AChE was implied to be a site of action for potential insecticidal activity. The results provide insight into the rational design of a new generation of effective coumarin insecticides.https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/28/2/530scopoletincoumarinacaricidalinsecticidalAChE
spellingShingle Congmin Liu
Panyuan Zheng
Hongmei Wang
Yan Wei
Chuanping Wang
Shuanghong Hao
Design and Synthesis of Scopoletin Sulfonate Derivatives as Potential Insecticidal Agents
Molecules
scopoletin
coumarin
acaricidal
insecticidal
AChE
title Design and Synthesis of Scopoletin Sulfonate Derivatives as Potential Insecticidal Agents
title_full Design and Synthesis of Scopoletin Sulfonate Derivatives as Potential Insecticidal Agents
title_fullStr Design and Synthesis of Scopoletin Sulfonate Derivatives as Potential Insecticidal Agents
title_full_unstemmed Design and Synthesis of Scopoletin Sulfonate Derivatives as Potential Insecticidal Agents
title_short Design and Synthesis of Scopoletin Sulfonate Derivatives as Potential Insecticidal Agents
title_sort design and synthesis of scopoletin sulfonate derivatives as potential insecticidal agents
topic scopoletin
coumarin
acaricidal
insecticidal
AChE
url https://www.mdpi.com/1420-3049/28/2/530
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