Two new compounds from the dried tender stems of Cinnamomum cassia

Abstract

Two new compounds, cinnamic aldehyde cyclic d-galactitol 3′R,4′S-acetal (1) and cinnamomumolide (2), along with six known compounds, syringaresinol (3), lyoniresinol (4), 5,7,3′-trimethoxyl-( − )-epicatechin (5), 5,7-dimethoxyl-3′,4′-di-O-methylene-( ± )-epicatechin (6), 2-methoxyl-4-hydroxy cinnamyl aldehyde (7), and glucosyringic acid (8), have been isolated from the dried tender stems of Cinnamomum cassia. Their structures were elucidated based on spectroscopic data. Compound 2 was elucidated as 8-methoxyl-9-hydroxy-3′,4′-methylenedioxy-3S,4R-diphenyl butyrolactone, named cinnamomumolide, which exhibited activity in protecting against the injury caused by hydrogen peroxide oxidation on human umbilical vein endothelial cells, with an EC₅₀ value of 10.7 μM. Compounds 3–8 were isolated from the title plant for the first time.

Keywords:

• dried tender stems
• Cinnamomum cassia
• cinnamic aldehyde cyclic d-galactitol 3′R,4′S-acetal
• cinnamomumolide

Acknowledgements

This research project was sponsored by Amore Pacific Corporation, Korea.