Major chemical constituents in the root of Randia siamensis (Craib.)

Abstract

Randia siamensis Craib, in Rubiaceae family, is widely distributed in Thailand and has been used as a folklore medicine for inducing abortion. In this course of study some major chemical constituents in the root of this particular species have been investigated. The methanolic extract of dried root was fractionated wi.th n-Hexane, chloroform and n-Butanol successively. Several compounds were isolated, purified and characterized as D-Mannitol, a mixture of β-Sitosterol and Campesterol, 3β-Acetyl oleanolic acid, 3-0-[α -L-arabinopyranosyl ] oleanolic acid and 3β, 29-dihydroxy- olean-12-ene-28-oic acid or Mesembryanthemoidigenic acid. The structural elucidation of these compounds was carried out by means of spectroscopic and chromatographic techniques as well as by comparisons with their respective authentic samples. This is the first report on the occurrence of these compounds in this particular species.