Bioactive pentacyclic triterpenes from the root extract of Ampelopsis japonica (Thunb.) Makino

Abstract Two new Δ12 ursene-type pentacyclic triterpenes containing the trans-feruloyl moiety (1, 2), together with five known pentacyclic triterpenes (4, 5, 6, 7), were isolated from a Ampelopsis japonica (Thunb.) Makino root ethanol extract. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic techniques (IR, UV, MS, 1D, 2D NMR). The isolated compounds 2, 4–7 exhibited potent inhibitory activity on NO production in LPS-activated RAW 264.7 macrophage cells by using MTT assays, with inhibition rates of 33.53–56.37 %.