Pregnane alkaloids from Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna

Fourteen pregnane-type steroidal alkaloids were isolated from the ethanolic extracts of whole Sarcococca hookeriana var. digyna plants. Their structures were elucidated on the basis of spectral data. Three of them were identified as new steroidal alkaloids: (S)-20-(N,N-dimethylamino)-16 alpha,17 alpha-epoxy-3 beta-methoxy-pregn-5-ene (1), (20S)-20-(N,N-dimethylamino)-3 beta-tigloylamino-5 alpha-pregn-11 beta-ol (2), and (20S)-2 alpha-4 beta-bis(acetoxy)-20-(N,N-dimethylamino)-3 beta-tigloylamino-5 alpha-pregnane (3). Some of the isolated compounds showed estrogen biosynthesis-promoting effects in human ovarian granulosa-like KGN cells. The EC50 values for the most effective compounds, vagnine B (6) and funtumafrine C (12), were 71 mu M and 67 mu M, respectively