Triterpenoid alkaloids from Buxus bodinieri and their bioactivities

Abstract

Phytochemical investigation of a methanol extract of the twigs and leaves of Buxus bodinieri led to the isolation of four new triterpenoid alkaloids (1–4) and five known analogues (5–9). Their structures were determined by extensive analyses of their spectroscopic data and corroborated by the single-crystal X-ray diffraction. In LPS-induced RAW264.7 cells model, compounds 1 and 2 displayed the most potent anti-inflammatory effects, with IC₅₀ values of 7.5 and 6.1 μM, respectively. Compounds 2 and 6 also exhibited significant cytotoxic activity against HT-29 cell line (IC50 of 6.4 and 10.2 μM), representing 2.9-fold and 1.8-fold greater potency than the positive control cisplatin (IC₅₀ = 18.6 μM), respectively.