Leonurus heterophyllus SW. (family: Lamiaceae, syn. Labiatae) is used in Vietnamese traditional medicine for the treatment of menstruation and child delivery in gynaecology, high blood pressure, blood stasis, heart disorders, and dysentery.1) The rich distribution of bis-spirolabdane-type diterpenoids with variations of functionalities in the plants of the genus Leonurus was reported in the previous studies on chemical composition of L. persicus, 2-5) L. cardiaca, 6,7) and L. sibiricus. 8,9) Similarly, two prefuranic labdane-type diterpenoids were isolated from L. heterophyllus collected in Guangdong Province, China.10,11) However, a systematic chemical investigation on L. heterophyllus is necessary for reasons of chemotaxonomic interest. It is noteworthy that bis-spirocyclic labdane-type compounds are not confined to the Leonurus species, and so far have been found in the genera of Leonotis (Lamiaceae), 12) Marrubium (Lamiaceae),
12)Otostegia (Lamiaceae), 13) and Vitex (Verbenaceae). 14,15) In our present study, systematic extraction and isolation afforded twelve natural bis-spirolabdane-type diterpenoids (1-12), eight of which are new (3, 6-12), together with hispanone (13) and galeopsin (14). The known diterpenoids, leopersin B (1), 15-epileopersin B (2), leopersin C (4), 15-epileopersin C (5), 13 and 14 are identified on the basis of physical ([a] D ), and 1 H-and 13 C-NMR data. 2,3,16,17) Air-dried aerial parts of L. heterophyllus were extracted with MeOH by percolation at room temperature. Concentration under reduced pressure yielded an extract, which was divided into n-hexane-, ethyl acetate-and 1-BuOH-soluble parts by sequential solvent partitioning with H 2 O. Bis-spirocyclic compounds 1-12, and compounds 13 and 14 were obtained by systematic fractionation of n-hexane-soluble fraction first over silica gel, then over reversed-phase octadecyl silica (ODS) gel, followed by preparative HPLC. While compounds 3, 8, 13 and 14 were obtained in pure form, the other compounds were isolated as epimeric pairs 1/2, 4/5, 6/7, 9/10 and 11/12 at C-15 position. This phenomenon of the co-occurrence of C-15 oxygenated epimeric pairs has been frequently seen in many examples of bis-spirolabdanetype diterpenoids of the genus Leonurus. [2][3][4][5][6][7]9) Although the absolute configurations of 1-12 were not individually confirmed herein, they are probably of the same normal labdane-type diterpenoids on the basis of the co-occurrence with 13 and 14, since the formation of bis-spirotetrahydrofuranes involves only C-9 side chain. Additionally, compounds 1/2 and 4/5 were previously isolated from the same extraction fractions together with 4-b-hydroxymethylpregaleopsin, the absolute assignments of p-bromobenzoate derivative of which have been unambiguously determined by single-crystal X-ray crystallographic analysis.2) Therefore, the stereochemistry of 1-12 is suggested to be presented as in the normal series of labdane-type diterpenoids.Leoheteronone A (3) , including eight new, named leoheteronones A-E (3, 6, 8, 9, 11), 15-...