Chemical constituents from ethyl acetate extract of stems of Uvaria micrantha (A. DC.) Hook. f. et. Thoms.

Abstract

Ky huong, scientifically known as Uvaria micrantha (A. DC.) Hook. F. et. Thoms., belongs to the Annonaceae family, is utilized in traditional medicine, and is employed in herbal remedies for purposes such as relieving respiratory issues, aiding digestion, and alleviating pain. Studies on the chemical composition of U. micrantha have revealed the presence of compound groups such as benzoquinones, triterpenoids, chalcones, flavonoids, oxoaporphine alkaloids, hydroxycinnamic acid amides, and acetogenins. These compounds found in U. micrantha have been associated with anti-cancer properties, particularly against blood and breast cancer cells. Despite the medicinal potential of U. micrantha, there is a limited amount of research on this species both in Vietnam and globally. Therefore, a new study has been conducted to investigate the chemical components of the U. micrantha, contributing to the enrichment of its overall value. Through the use of silica gel column chromatography combined with thin-layer chromatography using various solvent systems, five pure compounds were obtained from the ethyl acetate extract. Based on 1D NMR and MS spectral data, along with comparison to reference materials, the chemical structures of these five compounds were identified as oleanoic acid (1), lup-20(29)-en-3-ol (2), stigmastane-3,6-dione (3), stigmast-4-en-3-one (4), and 1H-indole-3-carbaldehyde (5). All five compounds are reported here for the first time as isolated from the Ky huong.