Open AccessPyrrole Alkaloids with Potential Cancer Chemopreventive Activity Isolated from a Goji Berry-Contaminated Commercial Sample of African Mango
Author(s) -
Jie Li,
Pan Li,
C. Benjamin Naman,
Yulin Deng,
Heebyung Chai,
William J. Keller,
A. Douglas Kinghorn
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
journal of agricultural and food chemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.203
H-Index - 297
eISSN - 1520-5118
pISSN - 0021-8561
DOI - 10.1021/jf500802x
Subject(s) - traditional medicine , berry , biology , botany , toxicology , food science , medicine
Bioassay-guided fractionation of a commercial sample of African mango (Irvingia gabonensis) that was later shown to be contaminated with goji berry (Lycium sp.) led to the isolation of a new pyrrole alkaloid, methyl 2-[2-formyl-5-(hydroxymethyl)-1H-pyrrol-1-yl]propanoate, 1, along with seven known compounds, 2-8. The structures of the isolated compounds were established by analysis of their spectroscopic data. The new compound 1g showed hydroxyl radical-scavenging activity with an ED50 value of 16.7 μM, whereas 4-[formyl-5-(methoxymethyl)-1H-pyrrol-1-yl]butanoic acid (2) was active in both the hydroxyl radical-scavenging (ED50 11.9 μM) and quinone reductase-induction [CD (concentration required to double QR activity) 2.4 μM)] assays used. The isolated compounds were shown to be absent in a taxonomically authenticated African mango sample but present in three separate authentic samples of goji berry (Lycium barbarum) using LC-MS and (1)H NMR fingerprinting analysis, including one sample that previously showed inhibitory activity in vivo in a rat esophageal cancer model induced with N-nitrosomethylbenzylamine. Additionally, microscopic features characteristic of goji berry were observed in the commercial African mango sample.