A piperidine alkaloid and limonoids from Arisaema decipiens, a traditional antitumor herb used by the Dong people.

A new piperidine alkaloid and three known tetranortriterpenoids were isolated from the methanol extracts of the rhizomes of Arisaema decipiens Schott (Araceae) and their chemical structures were identified as (-)-(2R*,3S*,6S*)-N,2-dimethyl-3-hydroxy-6-(9-phenylnonyl) piperidine (1), 6-deacetylnimbin (2), 28-deoxonimbolide (3) and nimbin (4). The N-methylated derivative (1a) of 1 was synthesized. Compound 1 exhibited weak inhibitory activity against the MCF-7 cell line, while compound 1a showed potential inhibitory activity against the MCF-7 cell line with an IC₅₀ value of 4.6 μM and weak inhibitory activity against K562 and SK-OV-3 cells. This plant in genus Arisaema is firstly reported as the source of limonoids that are considered a natural antitumor herbal medicine.