Terrusnolides A-D, new butenolides with anti-inflammatory activities from an endophytic Aspergillus from Tripterygium wilfordii

Terrusnolides A -D (1-4), four butenolides were isolated from an endophytic Aspergillus from Tripterygium wilfordii. The structures of 1-4 were established by comprehensive spectroscopic analyses and electronic circular dichroism (ECD) calculation. It is interesting that 1 was a butenolide derived by a triple decarboxylation, while 2-4 were the metabolites with 4-benzyl-3-phenyl-5H-furan-2-one motif possessing an isopentene group fused to the benzene ring. In vitro anti-inflammatory effects of these isolates were evaluated in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages. 1-4 exhibited excellent inhibitory effects on the production of interleukin-1 beta (IL-1 beta), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), and nitric oxide (NO) in LPS-induced macrophages, comparable with the positive control (indomethacin). Those results indicated that, terrusnolides A- D might serve as new potential natural remedies for the treatment of inflammation.