Cytotoxic and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Dihydroisocoumarin and Xanthone Derivatives from Garcinia picrorhiza

Garcinia picrorhiza, a woody plant native to Sulawesi and Maluku Islands, Indonesia, has been traditionally used as a wound healing ointment. In our continuous search for bioactive compounds from this plant, 15 phenolic compounds were isolated from its stem bark, including a previously undescribed dihydroisocoumarin, 2 '-hydroxyannulatomarin, and two undescribed furanoxanthones, gerontoxanthone C hydrate and 3 '-hydroxycalothorexanthone. The structures of the new metabolites were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic analysis, including 1D and 2D NMR and HRESIMS. Gerontoxanthone C hydrate possessed cytotoxicity against four cancer cells (KB, HeLa S3, MCF-7, and Hep G2) with IC50 values ranging from 5.6 to 7.5 mu M. Investigation on the anti-inflammatory activities showed that 3 '-hydroxycalothorexanthone inhibited NO production in RAW 264.7 and BV-2 cell lines with IC50 values of 16.4 and 13.8 mu M, respectively, whereas only (-)-annulatomarin possessed inhibition activity on COX-2 enzyme over 10% at 20 mu M. This work describes the presence of 3,4-dihydroisocoumarin structures with a phenyl ring substituent at C-3, which are reported the first time in genus Garcinia. These findings also suggest the potential of furanxanthone derivatives as cytotoxic and anti-inflammatory agents for further pharmacological studies.

Automated summary

Garcinia picrorhiza, a woody plant native to Indonesia, was found to contain 15 phenolic compounds in its stem bark, including newly discovered bioactive molecules with cytotoxic and anti-inflammatory properties. These findings suggest the potential for furanxanthone derivatives as cytotoxic and anti-inflammatory agents for further pharmacological studies.