Triterpenoids with α-glucosidase inhibitory and cytotoxic activities from the fruits of Schisandra chinensis.

An intensive phytochemical investigation into the fruits of Schisandra chinensis afforded 28 triterpenoids incorporating diverse backbones with methyl-migration, ring-expansion and ring-opening features. Among them, ten compounds (1-10) including three likely extracting artefacts (8-10) were described for the first time. Their structures were fully characterized by comprehensive spectroscopic analyses, with the absolute configurations established via electronic circular dichroism and Mosher's NMR techniques. Preliminary biological evaluations revealed that nine isolates showed inhibitory activity against the hyperglycemic target α-glycosidase and 12 compounds exerted cytotoxicity toward three female tumor cell lines (Hela (cervical), MDA-MB231 and MCF-7 (breast)). Compound 6 exhibited the most promising potency on all the three tested cancer cells, and further assessment demonstrated that it could induce significant cell apoptosis and cycle arrest, as well as suppress cell migration, by regulating relevant proteins in MDA-MB231 cells.

Highly Sensitive Fluorescence Probe Based on Functional SBA-15 for Selective Detection of Hg.

An inorganic-organic hybrid fluorescence chemosensor (DA/SBA-15) was prepared by covalent immobilization of a dansylamide derivative into the channels of mesoporous silica material SBA-15 via (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) groups. The primary hexagonally ordered mesoporous structure of SBA-15 was preserved after the grafting procedure. Fluorescence characterization shows that the obtained inorganic-organic hybrid composite is highly selective and sensitive to Hg(2+) detection, suggesting the possibility for real-time qualitative or quantitative detection of Hg(2+) and the convenience for potential application in toxicology and environmental science.