Maesa lanceolata is a medicinal plant, growing in the tropics of Africa and Asia. It produces a mixture of triterpenoid saponins, some of which have medicinal properties that are of commercial interest. For instance, saponins isolated from Maesa lanceolata exert antiviral, haemolytic and antiangiogenic activities [1]. As conventional plant growth and production is not very well controlled, in v...

Phytochemical investigation of the n-BuOH extract of the rhizomes of Anemone rivularis var. flore-minore led to the isolation of five new oleanane-type triterpenoid saponins 1-5, together with five known saponins 6-10. Their structures were determined by the extensive use of 1D and 2D NMR experiments, along with ESIMS analyses and acid hydrolysis. The aglycone of 4 and 5 was determined as 21α-h...

Purification of the n-BuOH fraction of the aqueous alcoholic extract from the roots of Phytolacca americana resulted in the isolation of two triterpene saponins named esculentoside B (1), and esculentoside A (2). The structures of isolated compounds were characterized on the basis of extensive spectral data (1D and 2D NMR; and MS) and in comparison with their Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) an...

Bacopa monniera Linn. (Brahmi) is an annual creeper belonging to family Scrophulariaceae and growing all over the Indian sub-continent in marshy areas. It is a major Medhya Rasayana used in Ayurveda for treatment of memory disorders. Large number of saponins and glycosides has been isolated from the plant. Most of the experimental and clinical studies have been done with crude extracts or stand...

Natural Products, Saponins, Molecular W eight Determ ination, Sugar Sequence, Purity Control The application of field desorption and fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry for molecular weight determination and structural elucidation o f spirostanol and furostanol saponins isolated from Paris Polyphylla Sm. (Liliaceae) is reported. The capacity and limitations o f these methods for sugar seque...

INTRODUCTION Numerous herbal medicines have been recommended for the treatment of different diseases. Achyranthes aspera, Linn. (Family: Amaranthaceae), popularly known as Charchitta or Pitpapra, is commonly used by traditional healers for the treatment of fever, malaria, dysentery, asthma, arterial hypertension, pneumonia, and diabetes. The root extract is well reputed for its insect molting h...

Saponins, an important group of bioactive plant natural products, are glycosides of triterpenoid or steroidal aglycones (sapogenins). Saponins possess many biological activities, including conferring potential health benefits for humans. However, most of the steps specific for the biosynthesis of triterpene saponins remain uncharacterized at the molecular level. Here, we use comprehensive gene ...

In an in vitro cytopathic effect inhibition assay with the H3N2 influenza virus A/Hong Kong/68 (HK/68), the bark extract of Burkea africana was found to be a promising antiviral lead with an IC50 value of 5.5 μg/mL without noteworthy cytotoxicity in Madin Darby canine kidney cells. After several chromatographic steps, triterpene saponins of the lupane and oleanane types were identified as the b...

Inflammation and oxidative stress play crucial roles in the etiology of type 2 diabetes mellitus. In this study, we examined the anti-diabetic effects of triterpenoid saponins extracted from Stauntonia chinensis on stimulating glucose uptake by insulin-resistant human HepG2 cells. The results showed that saponin 6 significantly increased glucose uptake and glucose catabolism. Saponin 6 also enh...

Panax notoginseng (Sanqi), a traditional Chinese medical drug which has been applied to medical use for over four centuries, contains high content of dammarane-type tetracyclic triterpenoid saponins. A number of stereoisomeric dammarane-type saponins exist in this precious herb, and some are particularly regarded as "biomarkers" in processed notoginseng. Contemporary researches have indicated t...