Two new phenanthrenes, Hemecitones A and B, were isolated from Hemerocallis fulva (L.) L. Their structures were determined by UV, IR, HR-ESI-MS, 1D and 2D NMR analysis. The in vitro cytotoxic activities of compounds 1 and 2 were studied against breast carcinoma MDA-MB-231, hepatocellular carcinoma HepG2 and lung carcinoma A549 cell lines. And compounds 1 and 2 exhibited anti-proliferative effects against these least one of the three types of cell lines with IC50 ranging from 12.57 ± 2.34 to 31.22 ± 1.36 μM.[Formula: see text].
Keywords: Hemecitones A and B; Hemerocallis fulva (L.) L; cytotoxicity; phenanthrenes.