Clavorubin (1,5,6,8-tetrahydroxy-3-methyl-9,10-dioxoanthracene-2-carboxylic
acid) (1), previously known only from the ascomycetious rye fungus
Claviceps purpurea (‘ergot’), has been
isolated from the fruit bodies of two Australasian basidiomycetes belonging to
the genus Cortinarius and characterized by spectroscopic
and chemical methods. A single-crystal X-ray structure analysis of the methyl
ester (4) of 6-O-methylclavorubin establishes
unequivocally, for the first time, the structure of the natural product.