Matrine is a quinolizidine alkaloid isolated from the roots of Sophora flavescens (Kushen), Sophora tonkinensis, and Sophora alopecuroides (Kudouzi). Matrine and its derivatives have displayed a broad scope of biological properties such as anticancer activity, anti-inflammatory activity, antiviral activity, analgesic effect, anti-fibrotic activity, insecticidal activity, antimicrobial activity, etc. The present review has summarized the biological activities and structural modifications of matrine and its derivatives focused on their N-1 position and lactam ring from 2010 to 2015. In addition, the mechanism of action and structure-activity relationships of matrine and its derivatives are discussed.

Compounds 4i and 4k exhibited more potent insecticidal activities than matrine against Plutella xylostella and Mythimna separata. These matrine derivatives may be considered as promising insecticidal candidates.

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As a continuation of our efforts to discover and develop natural-product-based insecticidal agents, three novel and unusual 7-membered lactam derivatives of podophyllotoxin were prepared by thionyl chloride-mediated ring-expanded Beckmann rearrangement. The steric configurations of 3a–c were unambiguously identified by X-ray crystallography. It demonstrated that the configuration of the picropodophyllotoxin C4-oximes could also be confirmed by the corresponding C-ring expansion products via Beckmann rearrangement. Moreover, it was obviously further testified that when picropodophyllones reacted with hydroxylamine hydrochloride, only E configuration of picropodophyllotoxin C4-oximes was selectively produced. Compounds 3b and 3c showed more potent pesticidal activity than toosendanin against oriental armyworm, Mythimna separata (Walker).