Phenolics and sesquiterpenes from litchi pericarp

• Six phenolics and two sesquiterpenes were isolated from litchi pericarp.
• Their structures were identified by spectroscopic methods.
• Five compounds were new and the others were reported from litchi for the first time.
• Five phenolics showed antioxidant activity in FRAP and DPPH assays.

The pericarp of Litchi chinensis was reported to be a rich source of antioxidants. This study aimed to identify the chemical structures present in litchi pericarp with antioxidant activity. Four lignans, (+)-isolariciresinol 9-O-α-l-arabinopyranoside (1), burselignan 9-O-α-l-arabinopyranoside (2), (−)-secoisolariciresinol 9-O-α-l-arabinopyranoside (3), and sisymbrifolin (4), a chromane, 2α-methoxychroman-3α,5,7-triol (5), a benzophenone, garcimangosone D (6), and two sesquiterpenes, β-d-glucopyranosyldihydrophaseate (7) and citroside A (8) were isolated. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods. Compounds 1–3, 5, and 7 were new metabolites and the others were reported from this species for the first time. Among them, compounds 1–5 showed moderate antioxidant activity in ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging assays.