Antidyslipidemic and antioxidant activity of an unusual amino acid (2-amino-5-hydroxyhexanoic acid) isolated from the seeds of Crotalaria juncea.

In continuation of our drug discovery programme on Indian medicinal plants, we isolated an unusual amino acid, i.e. 2-amino-5-hydroxyhexanoic acid (1) from the seeds of Crotalaria juncea. The 2-amino-5-hydroxyhexanoic acid (1) showed dose dependent lipid lowering activity in the in vivo experiments and also showed good in vitro antioxidant activity. The cyclized compound, 3-amino-6-methyltetrahydro-2H-pyran-2-one (2) showed better lipid lowering and antioxidant profile than the parent compound 1.