Triterpenoids from Potentilla kleiniana and their cytotoxicity

Potentilla kleiniana belongs to the family Rosaceae, which distributes in Central Asia, East Asia and Southeast Asia. In China, this plant is mainly found in east, south and southwest provinces. P. kleiniana has been prescribed for the treatment of various diseases in the field of traditional Chinese medicine, such as cough, fever, tuberculosis, mastitis, rheumatoid arthritis. Our previous study found that P. kleiniana had a certain cytotoxicity on tumor cells, and 28 compounds were isolated and identified from P. kleiniana, some of which were cytotoxic to tumor cells. In order to further study the chemical constituents of P. kleiniana and their cytotoxicity, 60% ethanol extract of P. kleiniana were isolated by D-101 macroporous adsorptive resins, silica gel, ODS, Toyopearl HW-40, Sephadex LH-20 and other methods. Their chemical structures were elucidated on the basis of physicochemical properties and spectroscopic data. Meanwhile, all these compounds were evaluated for cytotoxic activities against human cervical cancer cell line Hela. The results were as follows:(1)Fifteen triterpenoids were isolated and identified as ursolic acid(1), 3β-O-acetyl pomolic acid(2), 2-oxopomolic acid(3), pomolic acid(4), fupenzic acid(5), euscaphic acid(6), tormentic acid(7), 2α-hydroxyursolic acid(8), rosamultin(9), asiaticoside A(10), hederagenin(11), maslinic acid(12), arjunic acid(13), glycyrrhetinic acid(14), glycyrrhizic acid(15). Among them, compounds 10, 11, 13-15 were isolated from genus Potentilla for the first time, and compounds 2-5, 9 and 12 were isolated from P. kleiniana for the first time.(2)Cytotoxicity activity studies showed that compounds 1, 2, 4, 6, 12 display certain inhibitory activities against Hela cells with half maximal inhibitory concentration(IC50)values of(34.14±1.04)、(86.43±2.01)、(14.05±0.91)、(34.45±1.67)、(28.76±2.18)μmol·L-1, respectively. Thus, the study enriches the chemical constituents of P. kleiniana, and provides experimental basis for the development of anti-cervical cancer drugs.