Records of Natural Products

Nerium oleander L. is part of the Apocynaceae family and Nerium genus. Primarily found in subtropical areas, this plant is indigenous to the Mediterranean coast. It is also widely cultivated in China. To date, more than 146 compounds have been obtained from the plant, chiefly including cardiac glycosides, triterpenoids, phytosterols and other chemical constituents, of which cardiac glycosides are the main type of compounds with good pharmacological activity. Pharmacological studies have shown that N. oleander has anti-tumor, anti-diabetic, cardiotonic, hepatoprotective, anti-inflammatory, anti-viral, and other activities. This article provides important insights for future research, development, and use of this plant by summarizing the chemical contents, pharmacological properties, toxicity, and structure-activity connections of N. oleander over the previous 50 years.

Fusarinene A (1), a previously undescribed trichothecene sesquiterpene, and three known compounds, 4β-hydroxytrichotheca-9,12-diene (2), trichodermol (3), and trichodermin (4), were isolated from the extract of Fusarium sp. XPW68. Their structures and relative configurations were identified by detailed analysis of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HRESIMS) data. In the cytotoxic assay, compounds 1-4 exhibited selective or potent inhibition against five human osteosarcoma cell lines including 143B, MG-63, SaOS-2, SW1353, and U2OS, with IC50 values ranging from 0.8 to 48.2 μM.