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Magnolol and honokiol, biphenyl compounds, were isolated as anti-emetic principles from the methanolic extract of Magnolia obovata bark. [6]-, [8]-, and [10]-shogaols and [6]-, [8]-, and [10]-gingerols were isolated from the methanolic extract of Zingiber officinale rhizome as anti-emetic principles. Some phenyl-propanoids with allyl side-chains were found to show the same activity. They inhibited the emetic action induced by the oral administration of copper sulfate pentahydrate to leopard and ranid frogs.

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Cytotoxicities of twenty-seven fungal naphtho-gamma-pyrone derivatives to KB cells were examined. Chaetochromins A-D (1-4) and ustilaginoidins D (10) and E (11) exhibited strong effects and the structure-activity relationships are discussed. The antitumor effects in vivo of some of these compounds were examined but, due to their toxicity and to their marginal activity, development as antitumor agents was abandoned. Deoxyribonucleic acid, ribonucleic acid and protein synthesis in KB cells were equally inhibited by chaetochromin A (1), cephalochromin (5), and ustilaginoidin A (7) in parallel with the cytotoxicity of the drugs. Thus it was suggested that other still unknown mechanism(s) might induce cytotoxic lesion, resulting in the inhibition of the macromolecule syntheses.