Cytotoxicity of cardenolides and cardenolide glycosides from Asclepias curassavica

Bioorg Med Chem Lett. 2009 Apr 1;19(7):1956-9. doi: 10.1016/j.bmcl.2009.02.045. Epub 2009 Feb 14.

Abstract

A new cardenolide, 12beta,14beta-dihydroxy-3beta,19-epoxy-3alpha-methoxy-5alpha-card-20(22)-enolide (6), and a new doubly linked cardenolide glycoside, 12beta-hydroxycalotropin (13), together with eleven known compounds, coroglaucigenin (1), 12beta-hydroxycoroglaucigenin (2), calotropagenin (3), desglucouzarin (4), 6'-O-feruloyl-desglucouzarin (5), calotropin (7), uscharidin (8), asclepin (9), 16alpha-hydroxyasclepin (10), 16alpha-acetoxycalotropin (11), and 16alpha-acetoxyasclepin (12), were isolated from the aerial part of ornamental milkweed, Asclepias curassavica and chemically elucidated through spectral analyses. All the isolates were evaluated for their cytotoxic activity against HepG2 and Raji cell lines. The results showed that asclepin (9) had the strongest cytotoxic activity with an IC(50) value of 0.02 microM against the two cancer cell lines and the new compound 13 had significant cytotoxic activity with IC(50) values of 0.69 and 1.46 microM, respectively.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Asclepias / chemistry*
  • Cardenolides / chemistry*
  • Cardenolides / isolation & purification
  • Cardenolides / toxicity
  • Cell Line
  • Glycosides / chemistry*
  • Glycosides / isolation & purification
  • Glycosides / toxicity
  • Humans

Substances

  • 12,14-dihydroxy-3,19-epoxy-3-methoxy-5-card-20(22)-enolide
  • 12-hydroxycalotropin
  • Cardenolides
  • Glycosides