International Journal of Science and Technology (IJST)

A Concise Review on Medicinally Important Phytochemical Class: Meroterpene

Meroterpenes are promising drug compounds isolated from microorganisms, marine invertebrates, and higher plants, having a partial terpenoid skeleton and obtained from both terpenoid and polyketide biogenesis. Among marine organisms that are a rich source of structurally diverse meroterpenes, marine fungi and brown algae are promising sources. Meroterpenes are complex molecules with unique molecular architectures derived from intra- and inter-molecular cyclisation or rearrangements and found to exert potent bioactivities in all the domains of life. Important compounds like ubiquinone-10, α-tocopherol, and austinol are included in the meroterpenoid class. Meroterpenoids exhibit anticancer, antibacterial, antifungal, antimalarial, and anti-inflammatory properties. A few compounds of the meroterpenoids category include antidepressant - hyperforin, psychoactive drug - tetrahydrocannabinol, and immunosuppressant - mycophenolic acid. This review aims to provide a detailed overview of meroterpenes along with their source, structures, detailed pharmacological potential, and biological synthesis that we hope will underpin future work on this class of secondary metabolites.