Chemical constituents of Silene montbretiana

A new steroidal glycoside, 3-O-beta-d-glucopyranosyl-3 beta,25-dihydroxy-5 beta-cholest-7-en-6-one 25-O-beta-d-glucopyranoside (1), together with six known steroidal derivatives (2-7), one cerebroside (8) and one flavonoid (9) were isolated from Silene montbretiana Boiss (Caryophyllaceae), a perennial herb growing mainly in the Middle and East Anatolia, Azerbaijan, Iran, and Turkey. Their structures were established by the extensive use of 1D and 2D NMR experiments along with ESI-MS analyses. The cytotoxicity against the cancer A549 (human alveolar basal carcinoma) and Hela (human epitheloid cervix carcinoma) cell lines has been evaluated. None of the tested compounds, in a range of concentrations between 12.5 and 100 mu M, caused a significant reduction of the cell number.