Periplanetols A-F, phenolic compounds from Periplaneta americana with potent COX-2 inhibitory activity

Six new compounds, periplanetols A - F (1-4, 6 and 7), a compound isolated from natural origin for the first time (5), and nine known ones (8-16) were isolated from the 70% ethanol extract of the whole bodies of Periplaneta americana. Their structures including absolute configurations were unambiguously identified by comprehensive spectroscopic analyses and computational methods. Biological evaluation toward COX-2 inhibition revealed that compounds 1, 2, and 10 could inhibit COX-2 activity with the IC₅₀ values of 768.0 nM, 617.7 nM, and 599.5 nM respectively, indicating their potential in developping novel agents against inflammation related disorders.