Chemical constituents of Morus alba L. and their inhibitory effect on 3T3-L1 preadipocyte proliferation and differentiation

Mulberry leaf, an important traditional Chinese medicine, possesses many biological activities, including effects of anti-obesity. However, which constituents of mulberry leaf are responsible for its anti-adipogenic action is unclear. This study primarily investigated the chemical constituents from mulberry leaf and their bioactivity on the proliferation and differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. A new flavane derivative, (2S)-4′-hydroxy-7-methoxy-8-prenylflavan (1), together with twelve known compounds including three flavanes (2–4), three chalcones (5–7), two flavones (8–9), two benzofurans (10–11) and two coumarin (12–13) was isolated from mulberry leaf. The structure of the new compound was elucidated by various spectroscopic methods including UV, HR-ESI-MS, 1H and 13C NMR and CD. The results of activity screening showed that compound 2, 6 and 7 inhibited the proliferation and differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes.

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