Structural determination of two new steroidal saponins from Smilax china.

Two new steroidal saponins (1 and 2) were isolated from the BuOH fraction of the 70% EtOH extract of the tubes of Smilax china, together with four known analogues, 3-6. The structures of the new compounds were elucidated by means of chemical evidence and spectroscopic analyses, including HR-MS, IR, (1)H- and (13)C-NMR, and 2D experiments ((1)H-(1)H COSY, HSQC and HMBC). Copyright (c) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.