Glycosides from Breynia fruticosa and Breynia rostrata

Flavonoids and alkaloids from the rhizomes of Zephyranthes ajax Hort. and their cytotoxicity

A new flavanol derivative, (2R,3R)-3-acetoxy-7-hydroxy-3′,4′-methylenedioxyflavan (1), was co-isolated from the rhizomes of Zephyranthes ajax Hort. with the following seven known compounds: 7-hydroxyflavan (2), 7,4′-dihydroxyflavan (3), 7,4′-dihydroxy-8-methylflavan (4), 7,3′-dihydroxy-4′-methoxyflavan (5), 5,4′-dihydroxy-7-methoxy-6-methylflavan (6), 7-hydroxy-3′,4′-methylenedioxyflavanone (7) and haemanthamine (8). Their structures were elucidated by combining 1D-/2D-NMR, CD, UV and HRESIMS data, and comparisons with reported data in literature were made. Among these known compounds, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 7 were isolated from the genus Zephyranthes for the first time. In addition, the cytotoxicity assay indicated that compound 8 has potent cytotoxic activity against human hepatocellular carcinoma (the HepG2 cell line), human lung carcinoma (the SK-LU-1 cell line), human carcinoma in the mouth (the KB cell line), human colon carcinoma (the SW480 cell line) and human stomach gastric adenocarcinoma (the AGS cell line), with IC₅₀ values ranging from 4.4 to 11.3 µM. This is the first study reporting the cytotoxicity of compound 8 against the SK-LU-1 cancer cell lines.

Characterization of the complete plastid genome sequence of Breynia fruticosa (L.) Müll.Arg. (Phyllanthaceae), a traditional Chinese medicine plant

Breynia fruticosa (L.) Müll.Arg. is a well-known folk medicinal plant and found abundantly in South China. The complete chloroplast genome of B. fruticosa reported firstly here was 155,630 bp in length, including a large single-copy region with 85,065 bp (LSC), a small single-copy region with 19,441 bp (SSC) and a pair of inverted repeats with 25, 562 bp (IRa and IRb). The plastome was comprised of 112 distinct genes, with 78 protein coding genes, four ribosomal RNA genes and 30 transfer RNA genes. The overall GC content of B. fruticose chloroplast genome was 36.7%. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that B. fruticosa was closely related to Glochidion fruticosa.

The identification and isolation of anti-inflammatory ingredients of ethno medicine Breynia fruticosa

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Breynia fruticosa is a folk medicine in China, traditionally used to treat gastroenteritis, sore throat, eczema and arthritis. However, the bioactive ingredients are unknown.

AIM OF THE STUDY

To identify and isolate the anti-inflammatory ingredients of B. fruticosa.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

B. fruticosa extracts were fractioned by Amberchrom CG161M and Toyopearl HW40C resins. Acetic acid-induced capillary permeability mice model was used to evaluate the anti-inflammation activities of fractions. The anti-inflammatory ingredients were identified by high performance liquid chromatography/mass spectroscopy (HPLC-MS). On-line two dimensional liquid chromatography system was constructed to remove the tannins and enrich the breynins. The breynins were purified by preparative HPLC and evaluated for their anti-arthritis activities using complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) induced arthritis rats model.

RESULTS

The anti-inflammatory ingredients of B. fruticosa are sulfur containing sesquiterpenoids (breynins). The on-line two dimensional preparative liquid chromatography system can effectively remove the tannins and enrich the bioactive ingredients in large scale within 1 h. Four major breynins were purified, and their structures were elucidated by analysis of MS and NMR data. Breynins can significantly prevent the rats' arthritis deterioration, with inhibition ratio 50% at dose 0.2 mg kg^-1, comparable with that of indomethacin at dose 2 mg kg^-1.

CONCLUSION

The breynins have strong anti-arthritis activities, which is responsible to the anti-inflammatory effects of B. fruticosa. However, breynins are also toxic components of B. fruticosa.

Isolation of antioxidant phenolics from Schinopsis brasiliensis based on a preliminary LC-MS profiling

The phenolic content of the ethanol extract of the stem bark of the Brazilian plant Schinopsis brasiliensis Engl. (Anacardiaceae) has been evaluated together with the antioxidant activity. The good antioxidant activity exhibited in the Trolox Equivalent Antioxidant Capacity (TEAC) assay (TEAC value = 3.04 mg/mL) encouraged us to investigate its constituents. An analytical approach based on LC-ESIMSⁿ was applied to rapidly obtain a metabolite profile of the ethanol extract of the stem bark of S. brasiliensis. Sixteen phenolic compounds, among which five galloyl derivatives, never reported before, have been isolated and their structures have been unambiguously elucidated by extensive spectroscopic methods, including 1D (¹H, ¹³C, TOCSY) and 2D (DQF-COSY, HMBC, and HSQC) NMR experiments. Moreover, the antioxidant activity of all the isolated compounds was evaluated, along with the cytotoxicity against the cancer cell lines A549 (human alveolar basal carcinoma) and Hela (human epitheloid cervix carcinoma). The previously undescribed compounds exhibited a high free-radical-scavenging activity, in the range of 1.10-1.86 mM. None of the tested compounds, in a range of concentrations between 12.5 and 100 μM, caused a significant reduction of the cell number.

Comprehensive phenolic profiling of Cyclopia genistoides (L.) Vent. by LC-DAD-MS and -MS/MS reveals novel xanthone and benzophenone constituents

A high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method coupled with diode-array detection (DAD) was optimized for the qualitative analysis of aqueous extracts of Cyclopia genistoides. Comprehensive insight into the phenolic profile of unfermented and fermented sample extracts was achieved with the identification of ten compounds based on comparison with authentic reference standards and the tentative identification of 30 additional compounds by means of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) and tandem MS detection. Three iriflophenone-di-O,C-hexoside isomers, three xanthone-dihydrochalcone derivatives and one dihydrochalcone are herein tentatively identified for the first time in C. genistoides. Of special interest is one iriflophenone-di-O,C-hexoside present in large amounts. New compounds (tentatively) identified for the first time in this species, and also in the genus Cyclopia, include two aromatic amino acids, one flavone, an iriflophenone-di-C-hexoside, a maclurin-di-O,C-hexoside, two tetrahydroxyxanthone-C-hexoside isomers, a tetrahydroxyxanthone-di-O,C-hexoside, two symmetric tetrahydroxyxanthone-C-hexoside dimers, nine glycosylated flavanone derivatives and five glycosylated phenolic acid derivatives. The presence of new compound subclasses in Cyclopia, namely aromatic amino acids and glycosylated phenolic acids, was demonstrated. The HPLC-DAD method was successfully validated and applied to the quantitative analysis of the paired sample extracts. In-depth analysis of the chemical composition of C.genistoides hot water extracts gave a better understanding of the chemistry of this species that will guide further research into its medicinal properties and potential uses.

Heterocyclic terpenes: linear furano- and pyrroloterpenoids

This review of furano- and pyrroloterpenoids covers the literature, 180 articles in all, published from January 2006 to December 2013.

Natural products chemistry research 2010's progress in China

This article reviews the progresses made by Chinese scientists in the field of natural products chemistry in 2010. Selected compounds with unique structural features and/or promising bioactivities were described herein on the basis of structural types.

Xanthine oxidase inhibitory activity of constituents of Cinnamomum cassia twigs

A methanol extract of the twigs of Cinnamomum cassia was found to inhibit xanthine oxidase. Purification of the methanol extract afforded three new phenolic glycosides, cinnacasolide A-C (11-13), together with 10 known compounds (1-10). The structures of the three new compounds were determined by interpretation of spectroscopic data. Cinnamaldehyde derivatives 1-5 and 7 were significant inhibitors of xanthine oxidase, with IC(50) values ranging from 7.8 to 36.3 μg/mL. The results indicate that the acyl group of these cinnamaldehyde derivatives plays an important role in the inhibition of xanthine oxidase.

α,β-Unsaturated monoterpene acid glucose esters: structural diversity, bioactivities and functional roles

The glycosylation of lipophilic small molecules produces many important plant secondary metabolites. The majority of these are O-glycosides with relatively fewer occurring as glucose esters of aromatic or aliphatic acids. In particular, monoterpene acid glucose esters have much lower structural diversity and distribution compared to monoterpene glycosides. Nevertheless, there have been over 20 monoterpene acid glucose esters described from trees in the genus Eucalyptus (Myrtaceae) in recent years, all based on oleuropeic acid, menthiafolic acid or both. Here we review all of the glucose esters containing these monoterpenoids identified in plants to date. Many of the compounds contain phenolic aglycones and all contain at least one α,β-unsaturated carbonyl, affording a number of important potential therapeutic reactivities such as anti-tumor promotion, carcinogenesis suppression, and anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Additional properties such as cytotoxicity, bitterness, and repellency are suggestive of a role in plant defence, but we also discuss their localization to the exterior of foliar secretory cavity lumina, and suggest they may also protect secretory cells from toxic terpenes housed within these structures. Finally we discuss how the use of a recently developed protocol to isolate secretory cavities in a functional state could be used in conjunction with systems biology approaches to help characterize their biosynthesis and roles in plants.