A new quinolone and other constituents from the fruits of Tetradium ruticarpum: effects on neutrophil pro-inflammatory responses.

The fruit of Tetradium ruticarpum is widely used in healthcare products for the improvement of blood circulation, headache, abdominal pain, amenorrhea, chill limbs, migraine, and nausea. A new quinolone, 2-[(6Z,9Z)-pentadeca-6,9-dienyl]quinolin-4(1H)-one (1), has been isolated from the fruits of T. ruticarpum, together with eleven known compounds. The structure of the new compound was determined by NMR and MS analyses. Rutaecarpine (4), evodiamine (5), and skimmianine (7) exhibited inhibition (IC(50) < or = 20.9 microM) of O2(.-) generation by human neutrophils in response to N-formyl-L-methionyl-L-leucyl-L-phenylalanine/cytochalasin B (fMLP/CB). In addition, 1, evocarpine (2), 4, 7, and evodol (8) inhibited fMLP/CB-induced elastase release with IC(50) values < or =14.4 microM.