Targeted Isolation of Anti-inflammatory Lignans from <i>Justicia aequilabris</i> by Molecular Networking Approach
Joanda P. R. e Silva, Laiane C. O. Pereira, Lucas Silva Abreu, Francisca Sabrina Vieira Lins, Thalisson Amorim de Souza, Renan Fernandes do Espírito Santo, Renata Priscila Costa Barros, Cristiane Flora Villarreal, José Iranildo Miranda de Melo, Marcus Tullius Scotti, Vicente Carlos de Oliveira Costa, Lucas H. Martorano, Fernando Martins dos Santos, Raimundo Braz‐Filho, Marcelo Sobral da Silva, Josean Fechine Tavares
Abstract
Herein, the isolation of secondary metabolites from the aerial parts of Justicia aequilabris guided by HPLC-MSn and molecular networking analyses is reported. Twenty-two known compounds were dereplicated. Three new lignans (aequilabrines A–C (1–3)) and three known compounds (lariciresinol-4′-O-β-glucose (4), roseoside (5), and allantoin (6)) were obtained. The anti-inflammatory activity of compounds 1–3 was evaluated in vitro by inhibiting the nitric oxide production (NO) and pro-inflammatory activity on the cytokine IL-1β. Compounds 2 and 3 showed significant inhibitory activity against NO production, with IC50 values of 9.1 and 7.3 μM, respectively. The maximum inhibition of IL-1β production was 23.5% (1), 27.3% (2), and 32.5% (3).