44 L. FOWDEN AND D. 0. GRAY 
isolated from the red alga, Chondria crassicaulis (KURIYAMA, TAKAGI AND MuRATA’). 
The latter acid is structurally similar to cycloalliin (IV, 5-methyl-1-1,4-thiazan-3- 
carboxylic acid 1-oxide) described earlier as a constituent of onion bulbs by VIRTANEN 
AND MATIKKALAS. 
HOOC-CH, 
> CH-S-CH,-CH(NH,)-COOH CH,-CH,-CH,-S-CH,-CH(NH,)-COOH 
CH, 
O 
I II 
O O 
PA Laas 
CH, CH, CH, CH, 
| | | | 
CEH CH-COOE CH. CE iCH- COOH 
NN NN 
H H 
III IV 
Additions have been made to the group of substituted amides occurring in plants. 
JADOT, CASIMIR AND RENARD® have isolated N°-p-hydroxyphenyl-L-glutamine (V) 
from the fungus, Agaricus hortensis. They have demonstrated also that N°®-ethyl-L- 
glutamine (VI, theanine), previously isolated from leaves of the tea plant (SAKATO’®), 
occurs In another fungus, Xerocomus badius (CASIMIR, JADOT AND RENARD"). Another 
new y-glutamyl derivative, /-N- (y-L-glutamyl)-4-hydroxymethylphenylhydrazine 
(VII, trivial name agaritine) has been isolated from Agaricus bisporus by LEVENBERG™ 
who has shown that soluble extracts of this mushroom contain a highly active enzyme 
that cleaves VII to yield 1-glutamic acid and 4-hydroxymethylphenylhydrazine. 
N4-Ethyl-r-asparagine (VIII) has been obtained from the squirting cucumber, 
Ecballium elaterium (GRAY AND FowDEN!’), whilst another member of the family 
Cucurbitaceae, Bryonia dioica (white bryony), contains both N4-ethyl-L-asparagine 
and N4-(2-hydroxyethyl)-L-asparagine (IX). 
HOS 'S NH-OC-CH,-CH,-CH (NH,)-COOH CH,-CH,-NH-OC-CH,-CH,-CH (NH,)-COOH 
V VI 
S 
HOCH, g ‘SNH-NH-OC-CH,"CH,"CH (NH,)-COOH 
aa VII 
CH,:CH,:NH-OC-CH,-CH(NH,)-COOH HO-CH,-CH,-NH-OC:CH,-CH(NH,)-COOH 
VII IDs 
Other new acids isolated include lysopine (X) (LiorET; BIEMANN et al.3), an 
N?-substituted derivative of lysine bearing a close structural analogy with octopine 
(derived from scallop and octopus muscle; KNoop AND Martius!*®; MorizAwa!), 
which is the corresponding derivative of arginine. a-(Methylenecyclopropyl)glycine 
(XIV, see p. 48) has been isolated from the seeds of Litchi chinensis; lathyrine 
References p. 53 
