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As part of our systematic chemical investigation of some of the members of the Rutaceae which are used in folk medicine, we report the isolation of several natural compounds from Limonia alata W. & A. (1) and Evodia lunu-ankenda Merr. (1).The petroleum ether extract of the bark of L. alata furnished the pyranocoumarins, xanthyletin (2) and xanthoxyletin (2), and the triterpene lupeol (3). From the fruits of the same species the pyranocoumarin, seselin (4), was isolated.Examination of the basic fraction of the bark extract of E. lunu-ankenda afforded the furoquinoline alkaloids, dictamnine (5), evolitrine (5), kokusaginine (5), and a rare N-methyl-4-methoxy-2-quinolone ( 6), along with marmesin (7), a furocoumarin. EXPERIMENTALPlant material.-Bark and fruits of L. alata were collected in the month of June 1982, from the Maruthamalai hills near Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu, India), and the bark of E. lunu-ankenda was collected from the Naduvattam and Kodanadu of Nilgris (Tamil Nadu). The herbarium specimens are maintained in the Department of Chemistry, Bharathiar University. Extraction and separation.-Air-dried bark material of L. alata (250 g) was extracted with petroleum ether (60-80°) in a Soxhlet apparatus, and the extract was concentrated. Column chromatography of the residue over silica gel using petrol-CgHg (1:1) as eluent yielded the triterpene, lupeol (150 mg), followed by xanthoxyletin (250 mg) and traces of xanthyletin. The air-dried fruits of L. alata (250 g) on similar workup gave seselin (500 mg).The dried and powdered bark of E. lunu-ankenda (2.5 kg) was exhaustively extracted with CH2C12.The concentrated extract was acidified with 10% HC1 and left for three days. The filtered solution was neutralized with NH3 and extracted with CH2C12 (3 x 500 ml). The gummy residue obtained, after evaporation of the solvent, was placed over a column of basic alumina in petrol and eluted with petrol-C6H6 (1:1) when dictamnine (75 mg) and evolitrine (125 mg) were obtained. Further elution of the column with CgH6 afforded kokusaginine (45 mg), N-methyl-4-methoxy-2-quinolone (40 mg), and traces of marmesin (3 mg).Hplc assay.-The above constituents were neatly separated by hplc (Jobin-Yuon Prep-10 model):Lichroprep Si 60, 15 µg-25 µg column, Uv detector at 298 nm; using petroleum ether-CHCl3 (Gradient elution), at flow rate of 18 ml/mn.Full details of the isolation and identification of the compounds are available on request to the senior author.

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Uterine fibroids are commonest benign tumor of the uterus. Histologically this tumor is composed of smooth muscle and fibrous connective tissue, so named as uterine leiomyoma, myoma or fibroma. The cause for some of the most common gynecological problems among women presenting to gynecology emergency and outpatient departments. They are often asymptomatic but they can cause a multitude of symptoms such as abnormal uterine bleeding, a feeling of pelvic pressure, urinary incontinence or retention, or pain. Uterine fibroids are a major cause of morbidity in women of a reproductive age (and sometimes even after menopause). There are several factors that are attributed to underlie the development and incidence of these common tumors, but this further corroborates their relatively unknown etiology. The most likely presentation of fibroids is by their effect on the woman’s menstrual cycle and pelvic pressure symptom.