Flavonoids with anti-inflammatory activities from Daphne giraldii

The stem and root barks of Daphne giraldii Nitsche, also known as Zushima, is a traditional Chinese medicine with a long history of treating a variety of diseases such as rheumatism arthralgia, quadriplegia, headache, stomachache, waistache, and bruises. Chromatographic fractionation of the EtOH extracts of Zushima has led to the isolation of 26 flavonoids, including ten flavonols (1, 2, and 4-11), one flavone (12), two dihydroflavones (13 and 14), a dihydroflavonol (15), six flavans (3 and 16-20), three chalcones (21-23), and three 1,3-diarylpropanes (24-26). Daphgiflavones A-C (1-3) were new flavonoids. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic analysis. All compounds were evaluated for anti-inflammatory properties by testing their inhibitory activities against nitric oxide (NO) production in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated murine RAW264.7 macrophages. Compounds 8, 11, 21, and 23 exhibited significant inhibition on NO production with IC50 values ranging from 2.26 to 6.88 mu M, being more active than the positive control quercetin (IC50: 14.16 mu M). (C) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of King Saud University.

Automated summary

The stem and root barks of Daphne giraldii Nitsche, also known as Zushima, contain 26 flavonoids, including some new flavonoids, which have shown significant anti-inflammatory properties. This traditional Chinese medicine has great potential for treating various diseases and could be a promising candidate for drug development.