Withanolides from Physalis peruviana showing nitric oxide inhibitory effects and affinities with iNOS

Abstract

A phytochemical study to obtain new nitric oxide (NO) inhibitors resulted in the isolation of five new with-anolides from the whole plants of Physalis peruviana. The structures were determined on the basis of extensive NMR spectroscopic data analysis as well as the time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) electronic circular dichroism (ECD) calculations. The NO inhibitory effects were examined by inhibiting NO release in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated murine microglial BV-2 cells. Molecular docking studies showed the strong interactions of bioactive compounds with the inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) protein, revealing the potential mechanism of NO inhibition of bioactive compounds.