One new (1) and 11 reported ent-kaurane diterpenoids (2-12) were received from the ethanol extract of the air-dried aerial parts of Rabdosia rubescens collected in Jiyuan. Their structures were determined in accordance with high resolution electrospray ionization mass spectroscopy, one dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) NMR spectroscopy and the data published in the literature. The cytotoxic activity of these isolated compounds was assessed against SMMC-7721, A-549, H-1299 and SW-480 cancer cell lines. Compounds 2-6 revealed significant cytotoxic activity on lung cancer cell lines A549 with IC50 values from 6.2 to 28.1 μM. Analysis of structure-activity relationship of these tested compounds indicated the carbonyl at C-15 and hydroxy at C-1 together could be crucial groups for inhibiting lung cancer cell lines A549 proliferation.
Keywords: Rabdosia rubescens; cytotoxic activity; ent-kaurane diterpenoids.
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