Separation and identification of steroidal compounds with cytotoxic activity against human gastric cancer cell lines in vitro from the rhizomes of Paris polyphylla var. chinensis

A novel steroidal saponin, along with 12 known steroidal compounds, was isolated from the rhizomes of Paris polyphylla var. chinensis. Spectral data, including two-dimensional NMR, showed that the structure of the novel saponin was 3 beta,21-dihydroxypregnane-5-en-20S-(22,16)-lactone-1-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl(1 -> 2)-[beta-D-xylopyranosyl(1 -> 3)]-beta-D-glucopyranoside. The isolated steroidal compounds were evaluated for their cytotoxic activity on human gastric cancer cell line HepG(2), SGC7901, BxPC3. Diosgenin-3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl(1 -> 2)[alpha-L-rabinofuranosyl(1 -> 4)]-beta-D-glucopyranoside exhibited the most potent cytotoxic activity among the isolated steroids.