Studies on cytotoxic constituents in pericarps of Mallotus japonicus, Part I

Two new phloroglucinol derivatives, named mallotophenone and mallotochromene, were isolated from the pericarps of Mallotus japonicus together with two known compounds, 3-(3,3-dimethylallyl)-5-(3-acetyl-2,4-dihydroxy-5-methyl-6- methoxybenzyl)-phloracetophenone and 2,6-dihydroxy-3-methyl-4-methoxyacetophenone. The new derivatives were confirmed to be 5-methylene-bis-2,6-dihydroxy-3-methyl-4-methoxyacetophenone and 8-acetyl-5,7-dihydroxy-6-(3-acetyl-2,4-dihydroxy-5-methyl-6- methoxybenzyl)2,2-dimethylchromene by their respective chemical and spectral data. Several of the phloroglucinol derivatives isolated from this tree were cytotoxic against the KB system and L-5178Y in Cell Culture.