Three new flavone C-glycosides from the aerial parts of Paraquilegia microphylla.

Three new flavone C-glycosides, paraquinins A-C, were isolated from the aerial parts of Paraquilegia microphylla (Royle) Dromm. et Hutch, a Tibetan medicine distributed in the Qinghai-Tibet plateau. On the basis of 1D and 2D NMR evidence, their structures were elucidated as acacetin-6-C-β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-β-D-glucopyranoside (1), acacetin-6-C-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-β-D-glucopyranoside (2), and acacetin-6-C-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-(6'''-O-E-feruloyl)-β-D-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-β-D-glucopyranoside (3).

Chemical constituents from Astilbe chinensis.

A new compound, 11-O-(3'-O-methylgalloyl)-bergenin (1), along with 11 known compounds (2-12), has been isolated from the rhizome of Astilbe chinensis. The chemical structure of compound 1 was determined by IR, MS, and NMR spectral data. All compounds were evaluated for the cytotoxic activity in vitro, and compound 4 showed a moderate cytotoxic activity against HepG2 cells.

A new dimeric iridal triterpenoid from Belamcanda chinensis with significant molluscicide activity.

An unprecedented dimeric triterpenoid, designated dibelamcandal A, with a six-membered ring linking two iridal type triterpenoid nuclei, was isolated from the rhizome of Belamcanda chinensis. Its structure was determined by extensive spectroscopic measurements, including IR, ESI-MS, HR-ESI-MS, and 1D and 2D NMR. It demonstrated significant molluscicide activity against Pomacea canaliculata.

Ligand fishing with functionalized magnetic nanoparticles coupled with mass spectrometry for herbal medicine analysis: ligand fishing for herbal medicine analysis.

The chemical composition of herbal medicines is very complex, and their therapeutic effects are determined by multi-components with sophisticated synergistic and/or suppressive actions. Therefore, quality control of herbal medicines has been a formidable challenge. In this work, we describe a fast analytical method that can be used for quality assessment of herbal medicines.

Rapid probe and isolation of bioactive compounds from Dioscorea panthaica using human serum albumin functionalized magnetic nano-particles (HSA-MNPs)-based ligand fishing coupled with electrospray ionization mass spectrometry.

The chemical diversity of secondary metabolites in medicinal plant makes it a huge challenge to isolate the bioactive compounds from herbal extracts, so quick recognition of the bioactive ones is of vital importance for improving the efficiency of isolation. In this study, a ligand fishing experiment based on human serum albumin functionalized magnetic nano-particles (HSA-MNPs) was performed to probe the bioactive components in a traditional Chinese medicinal plant, Dioscorea panthaica. The minor compounds fished out by HSA-MNPs were identified by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), and then separated from the extract of the whole plant by one or two steps of column chromatography under the guidance of ESI-MS.