Chojalactones A-C, cytotoxic butanolides isolated from Streptomyces sp. cultivated with mycolic acid containing bacterium.

The soil-derived bacterium, Streptomyces sp. CJ-5, was cocultured with the mycolic acid-containing bacterium Tsukamurella pulmonis TP-B0596. The combined culture method significantly enhanced the production of the secondary metabolites in Streptomyces sp. CJ-5, leading to the isolation of three novel butanolide chojalactones A-C (1-3), with unusual γ-butyrolactone scaffolds. The complete structures, including the absolute configurations of 1-3, were determined based on spectroscopic data and total syntheses. In methylthiazole tetrazolium (MTT) assays, 1 and 2 showed moderate cytotoxicity against P388 cells.