Four New Sesquiterpenoids from the Roots of Incarvillea arguta and Their Inhibitory Activities against Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Nitric Oxide Production

• Published in: Chemical & Pharmaceutical Bulletin Vol. 58; no. 9; pp. 1263 - 1266
• Main Authors: Jian-Jun FUa, b, Jiang-Jiang QINa, Qi ZENGa, Ying HUANGa, Hui Zi JINa, Wei-Dong ZHANGa, c
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Japanese
• Published: Pharmaceutical Society of Japan 2010
• ISSN: 0009-2363; 1347-5223

Four new sesquiterpenoids, argutosines A-D (1-4), together with two known ones (5, 6), were isolated from the roots of Incarvillea arguta. Their chemical structures were elucidated on the basis of MS, NMR spectroscopic analysis. All the sesquiterpenoids were tested for inhibitory activities against lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced nitric oxide (NO) production in RAW264.7 macrophages. Argutosines A, B and C (1-3) showed potent inhibitory activities with IC50 values of 2.05, 0.55, and 9.87 μM, respectively. The genus Incarvillea is notable for being a temperate and herbaceous genus of the primarily tropical and woody family Bignoniaceae. It is composed of 16 species, which mainly occurred in the Himalayas and southwest China1,2). As a folk herbal medicine, Incarvillea arguta has been widely used for treating hepatitis and diarrhea among the Yi nationality in Yunnan province of China3). Previous chemical investigation of I.arguta has led to the isolation of monoterpene alkaloids, ceramides, triterpenes, and flavones4-7). Recently, we have reported the isolation and structure elucidation of two monoterpene alkaloid dimers and two biphenyls from the roots of I.arguta8,9).