We investigated the aerial part of Aconitum leucostomum Worosch collected in the Altai Mountains of XinjiangUyghur Autonomous Region of the PRC. Extraction by CHCl 3 of the aerial part of the plant (2.9 kg) afforded total bases (13.26 g, 0.45%). Part of the total alkaloids (6.7 g, pH 6) was chromatographed over a column of Al 2 O 3 with elution by hexane:acetone (5:1, 1:1), CHCl 3 , and CHCl 3 :MeOH (5:1, 1:1). The first hexane:acetone effluents afforded lappaconitine (2.09 g) and N-deacetyllappaconitine (0.13 g). Part of the total bases (6.36 g, pH 10) was chromatographed over a column of Al 2 O 3 with elution by hexane:acetone (5:1, 1:1), acetone, and acetone:MeOH (10:1, 5:1, 1:1). The hexane:acetone effluents afforded lappaconitine (1.16 g) and ranaconitine (0.06 g). Base 1 (0.04 g), mp 234°C, was isolated from the acetone fractions.In continuation of the investigation of the alkaloid composition of A. septentrionale (Ranunculaceae) roots collected in the Russian Federation in the Republic of Bashkortostan, we chromatographed the mother liquor of lappaconitine (64 g) over a column of silica gel (290 g) [1]. The column was eluted with CHCl 3 and CHCl 3 :MeOH (100:1, 50:1, 25:1) A total of 460 100-mL fractions was collected. Work up of the initial CHCl 3 effluents (fractions 1-5) with acetone separated lappaconitine (2.66 g), mp 216-218°C; of subsequent fractions (6-35), N-deacetyllappaconitine (0.18 g), mp 208-211°C. The CHCl 3 :MeOH effluents (100:1) (fractions 131-151) were worked up with acetone:EtOH to afford sepaconitine (0.06 g), mp 253-255°C. The CHCl 3 :MeOH effluents (50:1) (fractions 190-206) were rechromatographed over a column of silica gel. Elution by CHCl 3 and CHCl 3 :MeOH (50:1) isolated songorine (0.02 g), mp 201-203°C. Then, CHCl 3 :MeOH (25:1) gave fractions 385-425 that were rechromatographed over a column of silica gel with elution by CHCl 3 :MeOH (50:1 and 25:1). Fractions of 10 mL were collected. Fractions that were identical with respect to R f were combined and worked up with EtOH to isolate 1, C 22 H 33 NO 2 , mp 236°C (EtOH). Base 1 was insoluble in acetone, MeOH, and EtOH; slightly soluble in CHCl 3 and Py; and soluble in DMSO. Its IR spectrum (mineral oil) exhibited absorption bands at 3375 (OH), 3066, 1651, 893 (=CH 2 ), 2910 and 1678 cm -1 (CHO). The mass spectrum (EI-MS) showed peaks for ions with m/z 343 (72%) [M] + , 342 (100) [M -1] + , 328 (12.8) [M -CH 3 ] + , 314 (6.4) [M -CHO] + , 300 (12.8) [M -COCH 3 ] + , 257 (The mass spectral fragmentation of 1 was identical to that of chellespontine [2]with the exception of the intensity of several peaks. Because a sample of chellespontine was not available for direct comparison with 1, we used its spectral data (PMR, 13 C NMR, HSQC, HMBC) (Table 1). According to the data, 1 did not contain resonances for methoxyls and acetoxyls characteristic of norditerpenoid alkaloids. The data indicated that 1 was a C 20 atisane-type diterpenoid alkaloid [2]. The 13 C NMR spectrum exhibited resonances for 22 C atoms. Of these, three were quaterna...