Steroidal constituents from Solanum nigrum.

Area of Science:

• Natural Product Chemistry
• Medicinal Chemistry
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Solanum nigrum L. is a plant with a history of traditional medicinal use.
• Steroidal constituents are known for diverse biological activities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To isolate and characterize steroidal compounds from Solanum nigrum.
• To evaluate the cytotoxic potential of isolated compounds against cancer cell lines.

Main Methods:

• Isolation via 80% alcohol extraction.
• Structure elucidation using extensive spectroscopic data (NMR, COSY, HSQC, HMBC, NOESY).
• Absolute configuration determination using electronic circular dichroism (ECD) and time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) calculations.
• Cytotoxicity assessment using MTT assay.

Main Results:

• Three new steroidal compounds (two sterols, one steroidal glycoside) were identified, alongside nineteen known compounds.
• Compounds 1-4, 6-12, 18, and 22 demonstrated significant cytotoxicity against SW480 cells.
• Compounds 1-4, 6-14, and 16-22 exhibited significant cytotoxicity against Hep3B cells.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully identified novel steroidal constituents from Solanum nigrum.
• Several isolated steroidal compounds possess significant cytotoxic activities, warranting further investigation for potential anticancer drug development.