In addition to the antiflatulent, emollient, antifungal, antihemorrhoidal, antioxidant, anthelmintic effects, Prangos species have been used to stop bleeding and for the treatment of wounds and scars in central Asia and Turkey. In the present study, the compounds were isolated using chromatographic methods, and their structures were identified by 1H NMR and direct comparison with the reference compounds where available. Fifteen known coumarins were isolated from the dichloromethane extract as osthol, murraol, auraptenol, peroxyauraptenol, 4'-senecioiloxyosthol, meranzin hydrate, scopoletin, umbelliferone, isoimperatorin, oxypeucedanin, oxypeucedanin hydrate, oxypeucedanin methanolate, gosferol, psoralen, and marmesin. The cytotoxic activities of all isolated compounds from dichloromethane extract of P. turcica roots were evaluated using MTT assay on human adenocarcinoma (prostate PC-3) cells. 4'-senecioiloxyosthol, oxypeucedanin methanolate, gosferol, psoralen, peroxyauraptenol and marmesin were tested for the first time on the PC-3 cell line. Osthol and peroxyauraptenol showed the highest cytotoxic activity with IC50 values of 65 and 72 µg/mL, respectively. Additionally, auraptenol, scopoletin, gosferol, psoralen, 4'-senecioiloxyosthol and dichloromethane extract of root part (Pt/R/DCM) demonstrated moderate to low cytotoxic activity. Consequently, the most potent compounds, osthol and peroxyauraptenol, may be used as a lead compound to develop effective drug substances to treat prostate cancer.

Ferula turcica and Ferula latialata are two novel endemic species discovered in the Konya and Kırşehir provinces of the central Anatolian region of Türkiye. These two new species are described by morphological, ecological, carpological, and phytochemical characteristics and phylogenetic analysis. F. turcica and F. latialata are morphologically distinct from F. szowitsiana by their habit, the stalk of the terminal umbella, and the mericarp size, as well as by the profile of their secondary metabolite markers and phylogenetic placement. The phylogenetic analyses of sequences of the internal transcribed spacer in ribosomal DNA belonging to both new taxa were conducted to reveal the evolutionary relationships of the new species. Their relationships with the other related species and proposed conservation status were reviewed. The morphological, molecular, and phytochemical evidence supported the hypothesis that Ferula turcica and Ferula latialata are two new distinct species.