New cycloartane triterpenoids from Dysoxylum malabaricum and their cytotoxic evaluation

The cytotoxic dichloromethane-methanol bark extract of Dysoxylum malabaricum was subjected to bioassay-guided fractionation, followed by systematic dereplication to focus on the identification of new compounds. From the bark of Dysoxylum malabaricum, two new cycloartane-type triterpenoids were isolated in addition to two previously known triterpenoids. The structures and absolute configurations of the isolated compounds were elucidated unambiguously via NMR, HRESIMS data, and electronic circular dichroism calculations. The isolated compounds were tested for their cytotoxic potential against the panel of breast, lung, and hypopharynx cancer cell lines and displayed notable cytotoxicity against breast cancer cell lines. Compound 3 exhibited the most potent cytotoxic effect with an IC₅₀ 14 µM against MCF-7 cell lines and induced cell cycle arrest. Through western blot and cell cycle analysis, it was revealed that compound 3 halts the G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle by inhibiting CDC20 and CDC25 enzymes.