Phytochemical investigation and hepatoprotective activity of Cupressus sempervirens L. leaves growing in Egypt.

Three phenolic compounds cosmosiin, caffeic acid, and p-coumaric acid were isolated for the first time from the leaves of Cupressus sempervirens L., together with cupressuflavone, amentoflavone, rutin, quercitrin, quercetin, myricitrin. The isolated compounds were identified using (1)H- and (13)C-NMR spectra. The hepatoprotective activity of the MeOH extract was carried out in liver homogenate of normal and CCl(4)-treated rats; a significant decrease in glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase, glutamate pyruvate transaminase, cholesterol level, and triglycerides, while a significant increase in the total protein level, was observed after the oral administration of MeOH extract. The free radical scavenging activity against stable 2,2-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH*) was measured for MeOH extract and some of the isolated phenolic compounds in comparison with alpha-tocopherol and butylated hydroxy toluene as standard antioxidants using ESR technique, showed high antioxidant activity for quercetin, rutin, caffeic acid, and p-coumaric acid.