CHEMICAL COMPOSITION AND BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITIES OF EXTRACTS AND ISOLATED COMPOUNDS FROM THE ROOTS OF Bowdichia virgilioides (Fabaceae)

Abstract

This study describes the chemical composition and biological activities of extracts and compounds obtained from the roots of Bowdichia virgilioides (Fabaceae). A mixture of very long-chain free fatty acids (VLFAs) and pure compounds, namely isocordoin, cordoin, lupeol, lupenone, β-sitosterol, stigmasterol, and sitostenone, were isolated from the soluble fraction of the methanol extract by using sequential column chromatography procedures. The molecular structures of the compounds were determined using infrared (IR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and mass spectrometry (MS) techniques. Notably, this is the first report of the occurrence of both chalcones within this plant genus. Besides, the VLFAs were identified by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESIMS) and the presence of these compounds in roots is suggested to be an adaptive response to environmental stress, which exhibited moderate antioxidant properties when tested against the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical and in the β-carotene/linolenic acid auto-oxidation assay. However, the MeOH soluble fraction demonstrated significant toxicity in the brine shrimp lethality assay.