Purification of phenylethanoids from Brandisia hancei and the antiproliferative effects on aortic smooth muscle

The present study describes the isolation and purification of acteoside, 2′-acetylacteoside, poliumoside and brandioside, four phenylethanoid glycosides from Brandisia hancei. We examined their effects on the proliferation of cultured A7r5 rat aortic smooth muscle cells. The proliferative response was measured from the [³H]-thymidine incorporation into DNA. All four glycosides suppressed the proliferative response in the presence of 2% or 5% fetal bovine serum in a concentration-dependent manner. The rank order of effectiveness for inhibition of cell proliferation was: brandioside ≥ poliumoside > 2′-acetylacteoside ≥ acteoside. The acetyl group at position 2′ of glucose does not seem necessary for the anti-proliferative effects of acteoside and 2′-acetylacteoside, while the hydroxy groups of the aromatic rings appear to play a role. Inhibition of smooth muscle cell proliferation by phenylethanoids indicates that these compounds may have preventative effects on arteriosclerosis.