Isolation and antioxidant activity of galloyl flavonol glycosides from the seashore plant, Pemphis acidula.

Four kinds of galloyl flavonol glycosides were found in the leaf extract of Pemphis acidula, a plant growing on the subtropical seashore. Their chemical structures were elucidated to be quercetin or kaempferol 6"-O-galloyl-beta-D-glycosides by using spectroscopic and chemical analyses. One of the flavonols, kaempferol-3-O-(6-O-galloyl-beta-D-galactopyranoside), was newly isolated from natural sources and its structure was completely determined in this investigation. The antioxidant-related activities of the galloyl flavonoids were examined by the DPPH antiradical activity, inhibition of methyl linoleate oxidation, and inhibition of oxidative cell death. These results were compared with those of the corresponding non-galloylated flavonol glycosides and their aglycones. The galloyl flavonoids showed more efficient activity than that of the corresponding flavonol glycosides, but not more than that of the corresponding aglycones in the three assays applied.