A new sesquiterpene ester inhibiting no production from the fruits of Celastrus orbiculatus

Abstract

A new β-dihydroagarofuran sesquiterpene ester, 1β,2β,6α, 13-tetraacetoxy-9α-cinnamoyloxy-β-dihydroagarofuran (1), and the known compound 1β,6α,13-triacetoxy-9α-benzoyloxy-β-dihydroagarofuran (2), have been isolated from the fruits of Celastrus orbiculatus Thunb. Their structures have been elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic methods. Compound 1 shows moderate activity of inhibiting LPS-induced nitric oxide production in murine macrophage RAW264.7 cells, with an IC₅₀ of 55.4 μM.

Keywords:

• 1β,2β,6α,13-Tetraacetoxy-9α-cinnamoyloxy-β-dihydroagarofuran
• Sesquiterpene ester
• Celastrus orbiculatus

Acknowledgements

Special thanks are due to the Analytical Center, Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, for recording UV, MS and NMR spectra. We are also thankful to Professor Yunzheng Guo for plant identification (Shenyang Pharmaceutical University, China).