A new triterpene From Uncaria macrophylla and its antitumor activity

On our ongoing investigation, a new oleanolic triterpene, 3β,6β,19α-trihydroxy-12-oleanen-28-oic acid (1) was obtained from the chloroform-soluble portion of the 90% alcohol-water extract of the stem bark of Uncaria macrophylla. Its structure was elucidated by extensive spectroscopic methods, including 1D and 2D ((1)H-(1)H COSY, HSQC and HMBC) NMR and HR-ESI-MS. The cytotoxicities of the compound was evaluated against two cancer cell lines of MCF-7 and HepG2 by the MTT method, and the compound exhibited weak activities with the IC(50) values of 78.2 µg/mL and 73.9 µg/mL.