A novel diarylheptanoid-bearing sesquiterpene moiety from the rhizomes of Alpinia officinarum.

A new diarylheptanoid analogue-bearing sesquiterpene moiety, named Alpinisin A, was isolated from the rhizomes of Alpinia officinarum Hance. The new structure was determined by various spectroscopic techniques (1)H-nuclear magnetic resonance ((1)H NMR), (13)C-attached proton test ((13)C-APT), heteronuclear single quantum coherence (HSQC), heteronuclear multiple bond correlation (HMBC), (1)H-(1)H correlation spectroscopy ((1)H-(1)HCOSY), nuclear overhauser effect spectroscopy (NOESY) and high resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HR-ESI-MS). The compound was tested for cytotoxic activity in vitro against human tumour cell lines (gastric carcinoma cell -7901 (SGC-7901), Michigan Cancer Foundation-7 (MCF-7) and Caski), which showed significant inhibitory effects with IC50 levels of 11.42, 15.14 and 14.78 μM, respectively. The novel chemical structure characterised with a diarylheptanoid linked to a chain-like sesquiterpenoid should be highlighted.