C21, C22 pregnane glycosides and cytotoxic C27 spriostanol steroids from Asparagus cochinchinesis

A preliminary chemical investigation on 70% MeOH extract of the roots of Asparagus cochinchinensis resulted in the isolation of nine steroids. These isolates comprised of four new C-21 (1-4) and one new pregnane (5) glycosides, and four known C-27 (6-9) spirostanol steroids. Their structures were identified via analysis of the spectroscopic data and the results of hydrolytic cleavage. The cytotoxic activities of the compounds were tested toward the human tumor cell line Hela (cervical cancer), and compounds 7 and 8 displayed moderate activity with IC50 values of 35.5 and 39.6 mu M, respectively.