Cytotoxic anthraquinone derivatives from Picramnia antidesma.

Activity-guided investigation of crude extracts prepared from the root bark of Picramnia antidesma, a medicinal plant long used for the treatment of malaria in tropical areas of the Americas, when tested on KB cells led to the isolation of a new compound, 10-epi-uveoside, from a cytotoxic fraction containing a rich mixture of anthrone glycosides. The antiplasmodial activity proved to be a result of the high levels of cytotoxicity displayed by the anthraquinone derivatives and therefore infusions from this crude drug lack the selectivity index needed to be an effective antimalarial agent.