A new sesquiterpene, 1-carbonyl-2,8-dihydroxy-11-oxabicyclo [4,4,1] germacra- 2(3),4(5),6(7),8(9)-tetraene (1) and four known compounds (3E, 23E)-3-caffeoyl-23-coumaroylhederagenin (2), (3E, 23E)-dicoumaroylhederagenin (3), morettinone (4), 24-ehylcholesta-3,6-dione (5) were isolated from the ethyl acetate layer of the fibrous root of Alangium chinense (Lour.) Harms. The structure of compound 1 was characterized by its 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, DEPT, HMBC, HSQC spectrums, and the structures of the known compounds were determined by comparison of their spectroscopic data with those reported by the literatures. The obtained compounds were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory against cyclooxygenase (COX-2). Compound 1 has a good inhibitory effect against COX-2 with IC50 20.43 ± 4.72 μM. The compounds 2-5 have inhibitory effect against COX-2 with IC50 49.19 ± 0.76, 23.29 ± 0.99, 47.78 ± 1.33, and 44.44 ± 0.12 μM, respectively.
Keywords: Alangium chinese (Lour.) Harms; COX-2; anti-inflammatory activity; sesquiterpene.