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A new lignan glycoside, named juniperigiside (1) was isolated from the CHCl(3) soluble fraction of the MeOH extract of stems and leaves of Juniperus rigida S.et Z. Compound 1 was identified by 1D- and 2D-NMR spectroscopy as well as CD analysis as (2R,3S)-2,3-dihydro-7-methoxy-2-(4'-hydroxy-3'-methoxyphenyl)-3-hydroxymethyl-5-benzofuranpropanol 4'-O-(3-O-methyl)-α-L-rhamnopyranoside. Five known lignans, icariside E4 (2), desoxypodophyllotoxin (3), savinin (4), thujastandin (5), and (-)-nortrachelogenin (6) in addition to five known labdane diterpenes including trans-communic acid (7), 13-epi-torulosal (8), 13-epi-cupressic acid (9), imbricatoric acid (10), and isocupressic acid (11) were also isolated and their structures were characterized by comparing their spectroscopic data with those in the literature. All compounds were isolated for the first time from this plant, and 5 and 6 were first reported from the genus Juniperus. The isolated compounds were tested for cytotoxicity against four human tumor cell lines in vitro using a Sulforhodamin B bioassay. Compounds 3, 4, 7, and 8 showed considerable cytotoxicity against four human cancer cell lines in vitro.

Achillea alpina is widely distributed in Korea and is often used as a folk medicine for stomach disorders. Although a previous study isolated antioxidant compounds (flavonoid O‐glucoside, sesquiterpene) from this plant, no systematic study of its chemical constituents had been reported. The present study aimed to identify the phytochemicals present in a methanol extract of A. alpina, assess their potential antioxidant activities in vitro, and determine their effects on melanogenesis in B16F10 melanoma cells. Column chromatographic separation of aqueous fractions of A. alpina led to the isolation of 17 compounds. The chemical structures of these compounds were determined using spectroscopic data from electrospray ionization‐mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance. To the best of our knowledge, the present study is the first to identify compounds 2–10 and 12–17 in A. alpina. Furthermore, compound 6 possessed powerful antioxidant activity, while compound 15 suppressed intracellular tyrosinase activity and thus reduced melanogenesis in B16F10 cells. Therefore, our research suggested that these naturally occurring compounds have the potential to reduce oxidative stress and promote skin whitening. Further investigations will be required to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the antioxidant and antityrosinase activities of these compounds.

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This study was designed to find some potential natural products and/or constituents inhibiting proinflammatory cytokine generation in lung inflammation, since cytokines such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) are pivotal for provoking airway inflammation. In our preliminary screening procedure, the 70% ethanol extract of the leaves of Perilla frutescens (PFE) was found to clearly inhibit TNF-α production in the lung at 100 mg/kg, after intranasal lipopolysaccharide treatment of mice. Based on this result, ten constituents including phenylpropanoids (allyltetramethoxybenzene, caffeic acid, dillapiole, elemicin, myristicin, nothoapiole, rosmarinic acid methyl ester, rosmarinic acid) and monoterpenes (perilla aldehyde and perilla ketone) were successfully isolated from the extract. Among them, elemicin and myristicin were found for the first time to concentration-dependently inhibit IL-1β-treated IL-6 production from lung alveolar epithelial cells (A549) at concentrations of 10-100 μM. These findings suggest that the phenylpropanoids including elemicin and myristicin have the potential to be new inhibitory agents against lung inflammation and they may contribute, at least in part, to the inhibitory activity of PFE on the lung inflammatory response.

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