Penostatin derivatives, a novel kind of protein phosphatase 1b inhibitors isolated from solid cultures of the entomogenous fungus Isaria tenuipes.

Protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) is implicated as a negative regulator of insulin receptor (IR) signaling and a potential drug target for the treatment of type II diabetes and other associated metabolic syndromes. Therefore, small molecular inhibitors of PTP1B can be considered as an attractive approach for the design of new therapeutic agents of type II diabetes diseases. In a continuing search for new protein phosphatase inhibitors from fungi, we have isolated a new compound, named penostatin J (1), together with three known ones, penostatin C (2), penostatin A (3), and penostatin B (4), from cultures of the entomogenous fungus Isaria tenuipes. The structure of penostatin J (1) was elucidated by extensive spectroscopic analysis. We also demonstrate for the first time that penostatin derivatives exhibit the best PTP1B inhibitory action. These findings suggest that penostatin derivatives are a potential novel kind of PTP1B inhibitors.