Allylmagnolol, a novel magnolol derivative as potent antioxidant

We reported the discovery of potent antioxidants based on magnolol, a naturally occurring biphenolic obtained from the bark of Magnolia officinalis. The allylmagnolols 3a,b were synthesized via O-alkylation of the biphenols followed by Claisen rearrangement. In-vitro using enhanced chemiluminescence (CL) and flow cytometric assays in whole cells revealed that both 3a and 3b displayed promising free radical scavenging effects in PMA- and LPS-stimulated models as compared with magnolol. Further DNA labeling analysis for cytotoxicity indicated that these analogues show no cytotoxic effects for the scavenging of the oxygen-derived free radicals under PMA-stimulated concentrations. The results from 3,3'-bisallylmagnotol (3b) suggested that the naturally occurring constituent was suitable to be a lead compound for the development of potential antioxidants for certain diseases. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.