Chemical constituents of two Ecuadorian medicinal plants, Tagetes terniflora Kunth and Croton rivinifolius Kunth

Phytochemical study of two medicinal plants from Ecuador, Tagetes terniflora Kunth, and Croton rivinifolius Kunth, led to the isolation and characterization of the major constituents present in the organic extracts obtained from these plants: 5-(4-acetoxy-1-butynil)-2,2’-bi-thiophene (1), 5-methyl-2,2’:5’,2”- terthiophene (2), patuletin (3) from Tagetes terniflora, and isocorydine (4), sweroside (5), tiliroside (6) from Croton rivinifolius. The structures of these compounds were established by spectroscopic analysis including two-dimensional NMR methods, MS, and comparison with published spectral data. They are recognized as secondary metabolites that represent the chemotaxonomy of Tagetes and Croton genera and could be responsible for the recognized medicinal properties attributed to these species. This paper deals with the first report that shows the presence of these compounds in these plants.