Sesquiterpenoids and steroids from and their inhibitory effects on NO production.

Two heterodimers including a clovane-phenylpropanoid hybrid () and a clovane-menthane hybrid (), five linear sesquiterpenoids incorporating a tetrahydrofuran ring (- & ), and four steroids ( & -), were separated from the ethanolic extract of a well-known aromatic and medicinal herb . Their structures were characterised by detailed analyses of spectroscopic data and comparison with known analogues, with seven (-) of them being described for the first time. The hybrids and represent the first examples of clovane type sesquiterpenoids hybridising with other class of natural products, and compounds - and are first linear sesquiterpenyl constituents reported from the title species. All the isolates were evaluated for their inhibitory effect on the NO production induced by LPS in murine RAW264.7 macrophage cells, and , , and exhibited moderate activity with IC values in the range of 24.4-43.5 µM.