Two new iridoids from selected Penstemon species--antimicrobial activity.

Eighteen secondary metabolites, belonging to three different chemical groups, were isolated from the methanolic extracts of the aerial parts of selected penstemon plants [Penstemon fruticosus (Pursh) Greene var. fruticosus, Penstemon palmeri Gray and Penstemon venustus Doug. ex Lindl.], and their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectral evidence. Six iridoid glucosides (1-6), three phenylpropanoid glucosides (13-15) and two acetophenone derivatives (16,17), obtained from P. fruticosus, five iridoids (2, 7-10), one phenylpropanoid glucoside (15) and two acetophenones (16, 18), isolated from P. palmeri while three iridoids (2, 11, 12) and three phenylpropanoids (13-15) were identified in P. venustus. Two of the iridoid glucosides (4, 5) from P. fruticosus are new natural products named accordingly as cis- and trans- forms of 10-O-p-methoxycinnamoylaucubin. All isolated compounds, as well as crude methanolic extracts, were evaluated for their antimicrobial activities against six Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and three human pathogenic fungi.