Nitric Oxide Inhibitory Activity and Absolute Configurations of Arylalkenyl α,β-Unsaturated δ/γ-Lactones from Cryptocarya concinna.

During an ongoing exploration of potential anti-inflammatory agents from medicinal plants, eight new arylalkenyl α,β-unsaturated δ-lactones, cryptoconcatones A-H (1-8), and two unusual arylalkenyl α,β-unsaturated γ-lactones, cryptoconcatones I and J (9 and 10), were identified from the leaves and twigs of Cryptocarya concinna. The structures of these compounds were established based on spectroscopic data (MS, 1D/2D NMR), and their absolute configurations were determined with Riguera's method, the modified Mosher's method, chemical derivatization, and the Snatzke chirality rule. Compounds 4-6 and 8-10 showed inhibitory activity toward nitric oxide (NO) production in lipopolysaccharide-induced RAW 264.7 macrophages, particularly compounds 4 and 8-10, with IC50 values of 3.2, 4.2, 3.4, and 7.5 μM, respectively.