Planta Med 1999; 65(1): 056-059
DOI: 10.1055/s-1999-13963
Original Paper

Georg Thieme Verlag Stuttgart · New York

A New Flavanone Isolated from Rhizoma Smilacis Glabrae and the Structural Requirements of its Derivatives for Preventing Immunological Hepatocyte Damage

Ting Chen1,3 , Jianxin Li3 , Jingsong Cao2 , Qiang Xu2 , Katsuko Komatsu3 , Tsuneo Namba3
  • 1Department of Chinese Medicinal Prescription, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China
  • 2Department of Pharmacology for Chinese Materia Medica, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, People's Republic of China
  • 3Research Institute for Wakan-yaku, Toyama Medical and Pharmaceutical University, Toyama, Japan
Further Information

Publication History

April 1, 1998

August 2, 1998

Publication Date:
31 December 1999 (online)

Abstract:

From the rhizome of Smilax glabra Roxb., a new flavanone was isolated and named as smitilbin (1), together with 6 known compounds, engeletin (2), astilbin (3), dihydroquercetin (4), eurryphin (5), resveratrol (6), and 5-O-caffeoylshikimic acid (7). These compounds were applied to the assay of liver nonparenchymal cells (NPC) against hepatocytes (HC) isolated from mice with an immunological liver injury. Against the NPC-caused elevation of ALT (alanine transaminase) in culture supernatant from HC, the pretreatment of NPC with flavanoids (1 - 3 ) dose-dependently blocked the ALT release while 4 , the aglycone of 3, did not. The chromone 5 showed a much stronger inhibition. Compound 6 also showed the activity. However, 1 - 7 did not show any suppression of NPC or CCl4-induced ALT release when they were used to pretreat HC. These results suggest that compounds 1 - 3, 5, and 6 could protect the hepatocyte damage from NPC through selectively producing the dysfunction of NPC with an essential requirement of rhamnose, and the chromone part in their structures may be critical for exhibiting the activity rather than through protecting the hepatocyte membranes.