Citrofulvicin, an Antiosteoporotic Polyketide from Penicillium velutinum.

Citrofulvicin (1), along with its early shunt product fulvionol (2), was characterized as a skeletally unprecedented antiosteoporotic agent from a human sputum-derived fungus Penicillium velutinum. The unique citrofulvicin framework is likely formed by a nonenzymatic intermolecular Diels-Alder cycloaddition between heptaketide-based intermediates. Citrofulvicin and fulvionol were demonstrated to be osteogenic at 0.1 μM in the prednisolone-induced osteoporotic zebrafish.