Abstract:
Six compounds were isolated from the roots of
Ephedra sinica Stapf using various chromatographic techniques such as silica gel column chromatography, thin layer chromatography and semi-preparative HPLC. Their chemical structures were identified by analysis of physicochemical properties and spectral data, and determined as (
Z)-docosanylferulate (
1), (
E)-docosanylferulate (
2),
bis (2-ethylheptyl) phythalate (
3), 2, 2′-oxybis (1, 4-di-
tert-butylbenzene) (
4), diisobutyl phthalate (
5),
bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (
6). Among them, compound
1 is a new compound, compounds
2-
4 were first isolated from
Ephedra. A corticosterone-induced PC-12 cell injury model was used for compound activity screening. The results showed that compounds
1 and
5 significantly improved corticosterone-induced PC-12 cell injury and significantly increased 5-HT
7 receptor protein expression in the cells, indicating potential antidepressant activity.