Inhibitory effects of resveratrol derivatives from dipterocarpaceae plants on tyrosinase activity

Stilbene derivatives, which are resveratrol (3,4',5-tri-hydroxy-trans-stilbene) oligomers ranging from monomer to tetramer, isolated from Dipterocarpaceae plants were tested for their inhibitory effects against murine tyrosinase activity. The structure-activity relationships obtained in this study suggest that the double bond in the stilbene skeleton is critical for the inhibition, and also that molecular size is important for inhibitory potency.