Antitubercular chromones and flavonoids from Pisonia aculeata

Area of Science:

• Natural Product Chemistry
• Pharmacognosy
• Medicinal Chemistry

Background:

• Pisonia aculeata is a plant species with a history of traditional medicinal use.
• Natural products are a rich source of novel therapeutic agents.
• Tuberculosis remains a significant global health challenge, necessitating the search for new drugs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To isolate and characterize chemical constituents from Pisonia aculeata.
• To evaluate the antitubercular activity of the isolated compounds against Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Main Methods:

• Phytochemical investigation involving methanol extraction of Pisonia aculeata stem and root.
• Isolation and structural elucidation of compounds using spectroscopic techniques.
• In vitro antitubercular activity screening using Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv.

Main Results:

• Three new chromones (pisonins A, B, D), two new flavonoids (pisonivanone, pisonivanol), one new isoflavonoid (pisonianone), and five other new compounds were identified.
• Eighteen known compounds were also isolated.
• Compounds 2, 7, 14, 16, and 19 demonstrated significant antitubercular activity with minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) ≤ 50.0 μg/mL.

Conclusions:

• Pisonia aculeata is a source of diverse and novel chemical entities.
• Several isolated compounds, particularly pisonins, pisonivanone, and pisonivanol, exhibit promising in vitro antitubercular activity.
• Further investigation into these compounds may lead to the development of new anti-tuberculosis drugs.