Chemical investigation of the 90% acetone extract of the branches and leaves of Sabina gaussenii led to the isolation of two new cinnamyl isovalerate derivatives (1-2) and eighteen known compounds (3-20). Their structures were determined mainly by means of MS, 1D- and 2D-NMR data, and this is the first time these compounds have been reported from this plant. The biological activity test results indicated that the 90% acetone extract showed cytotoxicity against the human lung adenocarcinoma (A549) cell line (IC50 = 0.98 ± 0.1 μg/mL), compound 6 showed cytotoxicities against human cervical carcinoma (HeLa) (IC50 = 0.4 ± 0.1 μM ) and human gastric carcinoma (BGC-823) (IC50 = 0.9 ± 0.2 μM) cancer cell lines, and compound 19 showed cytotoxicities against HeLa (IC50 = 1.5 ± 0.4 μM), BGC-823 (IC50 = 7.0 ± 0.8 μM ), and A549 (IC50 = 10.6 ± 1.5 μM ) cancer cell lines.
Keywords: Sabina gaussenii; cinnamyl isovalerate; cytotoxicity.