Micromelum falcatum, a medicinal plant of the Rutaceae family, has been used in the Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) mainly against colds and rheumatoid arthritis. Despite its traditional use the association of its constituents with possible anti-inflammatory activity has not been explored. During this study, a rapid UPLC-ESI(+)-HRMS method was developed for the profiling of M. falcatum leave extracts and the targeted isolation of coumarin constituents. Based on chromatographic, spectroscopic and spectrometric features several 7-oxygenated coumarin derivatives were detected. After targeted isolation, eight coumarins, among them three new natural products, namely microfalcrin, microcoumaririn and micromelosidester, were purified using semi-preparative HPLC and unambiguously identified by 1 and 2D NMR. Furthermore, important spectrometric characteristics were revealed based on the HRMS and HRMS/MS spectra of the isolated 7-oxygenated coumarins facilitating their identification in complex mixtures. Finally, the anti-inflammatory properties of the extracts and representative compounds were evaluated
OPEN ACCESSMolecules 2014, 19 15043 by measuring the inhibition of the pro-inflammatory mediator NF-κB induction and nitric oxide (NO) production.
A significant portion of bioactive secondary metabolites are endowed with reactive functionalities that can engage in covalent interactions with their target. Sesquiterpene lactones in particular are rich in Michael acceptors that react with cysteines. Several polycyclic scaffolds derived from total synthesis or readily available polycyclic terpenes were used as the starting point in the synthesis of a library aiming to project mildly reactive functionalities (Michael acceptors or chloroacetates) with diverse geometries. Screening of the library for inhibition of the NF-κB pathway revealed several potent inhibitors that are chemically readily accessible.
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