Kmeriol and other aromatic constituents of Kmeria duperreana.

The CHCl3-soluble fraction of a crude extract of Kmeria duperreana exhibited cytotoxic activity when tested in both KB and P388 tumor-cell cultures. Bioassay-directed fractionation led to the isolation of a cytotoxic alkaloid, liriodenine (1). Other constituents obtained from the extract included scopoletin (2), (-)-3,4,5-trimethoxyphenyl beta-D-glucopyranoside (3), (+)-syringaresinol beta-D-glucopyranoside (4), and a new phenylpropanol, kmeriol (5), whose chemical structure was established through spectroscopic analysis.