It is well known that activated microglia produce nitric oxide (NO), which has an important role in the pathophysiology of several neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease. In the course of searching for novel therapeutic agents from medicinal plants against neuroinflammatory diseases, the methanolic extract of Tetrapanax papyriferus was found to have significant NO inhibitory activity in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated BV2 microglia cells. Nine oleanane-type triterpenes, including two new compounds, epipapyriogenin C-3-O-β-d-glucopyranoside (6) and 11-O-butylpapyrioside LIIc (9), were isolated from the leaves and stems of Tetrapanax papyriferus. The structures of these compounds were elucidated with 1D- and 2D-NMR and MS data. Among these Δ(11,13) oleanane-type triterpenes, compound 3 showed significant NO inhibitory activity in BV-2 cells, reducing the LPS-induced expression of COX-2 and pro-inflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α and IL-6. Compounds 7 and 9 also showed NO inhibitory activities among the Δ(12) oleanane-type triterpene saponins. These results show that oleanane-type triterpenes isolated from T. papyriferus could be a potential natural resource of NO inhibitors used in the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders.
Keywords: BV2 microglial cells; COX-2; NO; Tetrapanax papyriferus; triterpenes.