Biosynthesis of lycopodine from lysine and acetate. The pelletierine hypothesis

Abstract

The biosynthesis of lycopodine (5) was studied in intact plants and in excised shoots of the clubmoss Lycopodiumtristachyum Pursh. Specific incorporation of label from lysine and from acetate was demonstrated by partial degradation. The observed distribution of activity was incompatible with a polyketide origin of lycopodine. The incorporation pattern is consistent with the hypothesis that lycopodine is a modified dimer of pelletierine (4), which, in turn, is derivable from lysine and acetate.