A new 3,4-seco-cycloartane from the leaves of Hopea odorata Roxb

Disclosing the composition of unknown historical drug formulations: an emblematic case from the Spezieria of St. Maria della Scala in Rome

This paper reports a pioneering study of an unknown historical drug formulation preserved in the Spezieria of Santa Maria della Scala in Rome, founded at the end of the seventeenth century by the Discalced Carmelites. Due to limited literature related to pharmaceutical remedies and drugs of the Early Modern Era (between the XV and XVIII centuries) and the complexity in their formulations, the study of these drugs represents a great challenge. The untargeted nature of the selected drug required a multi-analytical approach with complementary techniques to formulate a compositional hypothesis: FT-IR spectroscopy, gas chromatography-associated/mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) were successfully employed to identify different organic compounds. Systematic archaeobotanical research was performed as well, allowing us to acquire data related to the possible genus of plants from which these natural compounds derive and their geographical origin. The unknown drug formulation turned out to be a complex mixture used as an ointment with an anti-inflammatory purpose. It mainly contains a mixture of Venetian turpentine; a Pine resin (colophony) from the Pinaceae family; an exudate of a plant from South America, whose identified components are triterpenic compounds such as alpha- and beta-amyrins, betulin and lupeol; and saturated fatty acids which act as carriers and/or to reduce the viscosity of abovementioned exudates and resins. The study of historical drugs is important not only in order to know the practices handed down by the speziali in the past but also to reconstruct historical recipes, which can inspire new dermatological, cosmetic, hygienic and current healing products.Graphical abstract.

Triterpenoids

This review covers newly isolated triterpenoids that have been reported during 2015.

In vivo analgesic effect of different extracts of Hopea odorata leaves in mice and in silico molecular docking and ADME/T property analysis of some isolated compounds from this plant

Background The current study evaluates the analgesic effect of different extracts of Hopea odorata leaves in mice followed by molecular docking and absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion, and toxicity (ADME/T) analysis of isolated compounds derived from the plant with the COX-1 enzyme. Methods In the present study, the dried leaves of H. odorata were subjected to extraction using methanol, ethanol, and water. In vivo analgesic activity was evaluated by using the acetic acid-induced writhing test and formalin-induced paw licking test, and in silico molecular docking and ADME/T study were performed using Schrödinger Maestro (version 11.1) and online-based tools, respectively, on eight isolated compounds. Results The results showed that the methanolic extract of leaves has highest significant dose-dependent analgesic activity at both 200 and 400 mg/kg followed by ethanolic extract of leaves. Among all the compounds, ampelopsin showed the best docking score of -7.055, ensuring strong binding affinity between the ligand and the receptor, and ADME/T analysis using Web-based tools ensures the compound has not violated Lipinski's rule of five indicating its safety consumption. Conclusions The result confirms the analgesic activity of H. odorata leaves in both in vivo and in silico assays. The data support ampelopsin to be a potent analgesic compound worthy of future clinical trials and its "drug-likeliness".

Effects of an Endophytic Fungus Umbelopsis dimorpha on the Secondary Metabolites of Host-Plant Kadsura angustifolia

Fungal endophytes live widely inside plant tissues and some have been revealed to provide benefits to their host and ecological environment. Considering the fact that endophytes are engaged in remarkably stable long-term interactions with the host for their whole life cycle, it's conceivable that both partners have substantial influence on each other's metabolic processes. Here, we investigated the fermented products of an endophytic fungus Umbelopsis dimorpha SWUKD3.1410 grown on host-plant Kadsura angustifolia and wheat bran, respectively, to assess the impact of SWUKD3.1410 on the secondary metabolites of K. angustifolia. Twenty compounds (1-20) were isolated and identified as 11 schitriterpenoids (1-9, 17-18), two lignans (10, 20), two sesquiterpenoids (11-12), one trinorsesquiterpenoid (13), one monoterpene (14), one sterol (19), and two simple aromatic compounds (15-16) by the extensive 1D-, 2D-NMR and HR-ESI-MS data analysis. Except for nigranoic acid (1), compounds 2-19 have been firstly found from K. angustifolia. Of them, metabolites 2, 11, and 14 were identified to be new. Obtained results indicated that U. dimorpha SWUKD3.1410 could not only produce the same/similar components as its host does, and modify the host-plant components, but also enhance the production of these highly oxygenated schitriterpenoids/schinortriterpenoids in plants. This study suggested an interesting prospective for setting up alternative processing techniques to improve the quality of crude drugs derived from K. angustifolia and increase their values.

Metabolites from the co-culture of nigranoic acid and Umbelopsis dimorpha SWUKD3.1410, an endophytic fungus from Kadsura angustifolia

The ability of the endophytic fungus Umbelopsis dimorpha SWUKD3.1410 to transform the triterpene nigranoic acid (3, 4-secocycloarta-4(28), 24-(Z)-diene-3, 26-dioic acid; 1) was investigated. Co-culture of nigranoic acid with U. dimorpha SWUKD3.1410 yielded six major products, including a new triterpene (2) and 5 known compounds (3-7). Their structures were identified by the extensive 1D, 2D NMR and HR-ESI-MS Data analysis, and by comparison with those reported data. Among them, 2-4 were transformed from nigranoic acid (1), while 5-7 were derived from the culture medium stimulated by the substrate. On the basis of the structures of 2-4, it was proposed that the transformative process probably involved isomerase and hydroxylase, in which the former was rare in fungi. Additionally, all the compounds (1-7) were evaluated for their cytotoxic activity. As a result, compounds 1, 3-5 exhibited weak cytotoxicity against the tested cell lines, while others showed no cytotoxicity.

A new cycloartane triterpene glycoside from Souliea vaginata

A new cycloartane-type triterpene glycoside, namely soulieoside M (1), and one known compound, beesioside I (2), were isolated from the ethanolic extract of the rhizomes of Souliea vaginata. Their structures were determined spectroscopically and compared with previously reported spectral data. Compounds 1 and 2 were evaluated for their cytotoxic activities against three human cancer cell lines.