CYTOTOXIC CONSTITUENTS FROM THE STEMS OF DIOSPYROS-MARITIMA

One novel coumaric acid ester of lupeol, dioslupecin A (1), three naph thoquinones, 8'-hydroxyisodiospyrin (2), isodiospyrin (3), and plumbag in (4), three triterpenes, lupeol, lupenone and taraxerone, and four s terols, beta-sitosterol, stigmasterol, stigmast-4-en-3-one and ergosta -4,6,8(14),22-tetraen-3-one were isolated from the n-hexane extract of the stems of Diospyros maritima Blume. The structural determination o f 1 was based on 1D and 2D NMR spectra (including H-1-H-1 COSY, H-1-C- 13 COSY, and HMBC). All compounds were evaluated for in vitro cytotoxi city in 4 cancer cell lines. Compound 2 showed similar cytotoxicity ag ainst hepatoma (HEPA-3B, ED50 = 1.72 mu g/ml), nasopharynx carcinoma ( KB, ED50 = 1.85 mu g/ml), colon carcinoma (COLO-205, ED50 = 2.24 mu g/ ml) and cervical carcinoma (HELA, ED50 = 1.92 mu g/ml). Compounds 3 an d 4 exhibited strong cytotoxicity against HEPA-3B, KB, COLO-205 and HE LA (ED50 = 0.25, 1.81, 0.13 and 0.27 mu g/ml for 3; ED50 = 0.87, 3.27, 0.56 and 0.35 mu g/ml for 4, respectively.