New cytotoxic flavonoids from aerial parts of Platycladus orientalis L.

Investigation of Platycladus orientalis yielded five flavonoids, including aglycone flavone 1 (apigenin), flavone glycoside 2 (apigenin 7-O-β-D-glucopyranoside), new gernaylated flavone glycoside 3 (apigenin 8-gernayl-4'-O-α-gluco pyranoside) and two new pernylated flavonoid glycosides 4 & 5 (apigenin 8-pernyl-4'-glucopyranosyl-7-O-α-glucopyranoside and apigenin 5-pernyl-7-glucopyranosyl-4'-O-β-D-glucopyranoside). Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic evidence. The cytotoxicity of compounds 1-5 were tested against Lung adenocarcinoma (A549), human hepatocellular liver carcinoma (HepG2), human breast carcinoma (MCF-7) cell lines and mouse fibroblast cell line NIH/3T3 as normal cells. This assay gave spot on structure activity relationship which, showed that cytotoxicity of compounds (1) and (2) against three cell lines was weak as IC₅₀ > 15. Compounds (4) and (5) had moderate cytotoxic and no toxic effect on normal cell. Compound (3) showed high cytotoxic activity against tested three cell lines with no toxic effect of normal cells. [Formula: see text].