Pentanol derivatives from basidiomycete Catathelasma imperiale and their 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases inhibitory activity.

Five new secondary metabolites derived from pentanol, namely catathelasmols A-E (1-5), were isolated from the fruiting bodies of the basidiomycete Catathelasma imperiale. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis, and the absolute configurations were determined by computational chemistry. Compounds 3, 4 and 5 showed inhibitory activities against two isozymes of 11-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (11-HSD1 and 11-HSD2), with IC(50) values of 28.7-62.3 microg ml(-1) (human 11-HSD1), 30.4-149.2 microg ml(-1) (mouse 11-HSD1), 5.1-177 microg ml(-1) (human 11-HSD2) and 32.3-129.1 microg ml(-1) (mouse 11-HSD2), which catalyze the interconversion of cortisol and cortisone.