Steroidal saponins from Smilacina japonica

Three new steroidal saponins, japonicoside A (1), japonicoside B (2) and japonicoside C (3) were isolated from the dried rhizomes and roots of Smilacina japonica A. Gray. Their structures were elucidated as (25S)-5α-spirostan- 9(11)-en-3β-ol 3-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-[β-d- xylopyranosyl-(1 → 3)]-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-galactopyranoside (1), (25S)-5α-spirostan-9(11)-en-3β, 17α-diol 3-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-[β-d-xylopyranosyl- (1 → 3)]-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-galactopyranoside (2) and (25S)-5α-spirostan-9(11)-en-3β,17α,24α-triol 3-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 2)-[β-d-xylopyranosyl-(1 → 3)]-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 4)-β-d-galactopyranoside (3) on the basis of chemical methods and detailed spectroscopic analysis, including 1D, 2D NMR and HR-ESI-MS. The cytotoxicity of isolated compounds was evaluated in vitro for cytotoxic properties against human hepatocellular carcinoma cells (SMMC-7221) and human colorectal adenocarcinoma cells (DLD-1), respectively.