Cytotoxic triterpenoids from the roots of Bupleurum scorzonerifolium

As a part of our ongoing studies on cytotoxic triterpenoids from the genus Bupleurum, a 70 % ethanol extract of Bupleurum scorzonerifolium Willd. was systematically separated by silica gel column chromatography, HP-20 macroporous resin column chromatography, ODS column chromatography and HPLC, 15 triterpenoids were obtained, of which two were new compounds. Their structures were elucidated by 1D and 2D NMR, HR-ESI-MS, and other spectroscopic methods. Additionally, these compounds were evaluated for their cytotoxic activities against four selected cancer cell lines using the MTT assay. Some of the isolated compounds exhibited appreciable cytotoxic activities against these four human cancer cell lines.