Terrusnolides A-D, new butenolides with anti-inflammatory activities from an endophytic Aspergillus from Tripterygium wilfordii

Abstract Terrusnolides A−D ( 1 – 4 ), four butenolides were isolated from an endophytic Aspergillus from Tripterygium wilfordii. The structures of 1 – 4 were established by comprehensive spectroscopic analyses and electronic circular dichroism (ECD) calculation. It is interesting that 1 was a butenolide derived by a triple decarboxylation, while 2 – 4 were the metabolites with 4-benzyl-3-phenyl-5H-furan-2-one motif possessing an isopentene group fused to the benzene ring. In vitro anti-inflammatory effects of these isolates were evaluated in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophages. 1 – 4 exhibited excellent inhibitory effects on the production of interleukin-1β (IL-1β), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and nitric oxide (NO) in LPS-induced macrophages, comparable with the positive control (indomethacin). Those results indicated that, terrusnolides A−D might serve as new potential natural remedies for the treatment of inflammation.