Benzylisoquinoline alkaloids from the tubers of Corydalis ternata and their cytotoxicity

Chemical investigation of the tubers of Corydalis ternata resulted in the isolation and characterization of four new benzylisoquinoline Alkaloids, epi-coryximine (1) and coryternatines A-C (2-4), along with 10 known Alkaloids (5-14). Their structures were established on the basis of extensive spectroscopic data analyses and comparison with spectroscopic data reported. In addition, the cytotoxicities of the Alkaloids (1-14) were evaluated by determining their inhibitory effects on several human tumor cell lines (A549, SK-OV-3, SK-MEL-2, and HCT-15) using the SRB assay. Compound 8 showed significant cytotoxicity against A549, SK-OV-3, SK-MEL-2, and HCT-15 cell lines (IC(50)=8.34, 5.14, 7.87, and 2.86 microM, respectively). The four new compounds (1-4) exhibited selective cytotoxicity against the HCT-15 cell line.