A pharmacognostic study on some angelica species in Turkey

The dichloromethane extracts of the roots of Angelica sylvestris var. sylvestris and Angelica purpurascens (Syn. Xanthogalum purpurascens) collected from the Black Sea and the Central Anatolia region were researched in this study. 23 compounds isolated from those extracts were investigated in anticholinesterase and antidiabetic activities. From Angelica sylvestris var. sylvestris, 8 known compounds (oxypeucedanin, demethylsuberosin, ostruthol, osterivolone A, oxypeucedanin hydrate, isoimperatorin, bergapten, oxipeucedanin methanolate) were isolated. From Angelica purpurascens, 13 known compounds (bergapten, praeruptorin A, praeruptorin B, cnidicin, α-bisabolol, suberosin, selinidin, falcarindiol, phellopterin, hamaudol, osthenol, laserpitin, isolaserpitin) and 2 new compounds (demethylsesibiricin and (R, Z)-hexadeca-9-en-4,6-dyne-1,8-diol (angelidiol)) were isolated. Furonocoumarins and pyranocoumarins were dominant among them. Demethylsesibiricin was an intermediate product in the synthesis of sesibiricin with Claisen rearrangement. This new compound was obtained in the total synthesis using phloroglucinol dihydrate and ethyl propionate as starting materials. Selinidin, angelidiol, AP extract exerted a higher BChE inhibitory effect than galantamine and the BChE inhibitory effect of AS extract was similar to galantamine. Falcarindiol showed the highest effect as α-glucosidase inhibitor, which was followed by oxipeucedanin methanolate, demethylsuberosin, oxypeucedanin hydrate, AS extract and laserpitin. These compounds expressed a higher effect than acarbose. All substances demonstrated lower effects than galantamine as AChE inhibitors and no effects as α-amylase inhibitors. This study aims to enrich the medical usage of Turkish Angelica and contribute to the development of potential pharmaceutical ingredients through evaluation of Angelica species in the Eastern medicine, which has been used for traditional medical purposes over thousand years.