NEW MONOTERPENOID BY BIOTRANSFORMATION OF THYMOQUINONE USING ASPERGILLUS NIGER

Mohammad Yasin Mohammad, M. Iqbal Choudhary and Atta-ur-Rahman

Department of Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Middle East University, Amman-11831, Jordan

Abstract

Microbial transformation of thymoquinone [1], by suspended cell-cultures of the plant pathogenic fungus Aspergillus niger, resulted in the production of three metabolites. These metabolites were identified as 5-isopropyl-2-methyl-2,4-cyclohexenone lactone [2], hydroxythymoquinone [3] and 4-hydroxy-2-isopropyl-5-methylphenol [4], by different spectroscopic methods. Metabolite 2 was found to be new. Compound 4 showed potent antioxidant activity.

Keywords: Thymoquinone, Aspergillus niger, fungal transformation, oxidation, reduction, antioxidant activity.