Undescribed Cyclohexene and Benzofuran Alkenyl Derivatives from Choerospondias axillaris, a Potential Hypoglycemic Fruit

Abstract

The fruit of Choerospondias axillaris (Anacardiaceae), known as south wild jujube in China, has been consumed widely in several regions of the world to produce fruit pastille and leathers, juice, jam, and candy. A comprehensive chemical study on the fresh fruits led to the isolation and identification of 18 compounds, including 7 new (1–7) and 11 known (8–18) comprised of 5 alkenyl (cyclohexenols and cyclohexenones) derivatives (1–5), 3 benzofuran derivatives (6–8), 6 flavonoids (9–14) and 4 lignans (15–18). Their structures were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic analysis. The known lignans 15–18 were isolated from the genus Choerospondias for the first time. Most of the isolates exhibited significant inhibitory activity on α-glucosidase with IC50 values from 2.26 ± 0.06 to 43.9 ± 0.96 μM. Molecular docking experiments strongly supported the potent α-glucosidase inhibitory activity. The results indicated that C. axillaris fruits could be an excellent source of functional foods that acquire potential hypoglycemic bioactive components.