Isolation of stigmasterol, a-amyrin acetate and lupeol acetate from Tabernaemontan stapfian britten

Abstract

Kenya has four species of Tabernaemontana; T. elegans Stapf, T. pachysichon Stapf, T. stapfiana Britten and T. ventricosa A.DC. These plants are found in the central, western and coastal parts of Kenya (Beentje, Adamson and Bhanderi, 1994). The main constituents the Tabernaemontana species are indole alka- loids, a class of compounds with wide range of pharmacologi- cal activities (Pelletier, 1999). Besides the alkaloids, pentacyclic triterpenoids and steroids have also been isolated from the species (Nielsen, Hazell, Hazell, Ghia and Torssell, 1994, Pereira, França, Oliveira, Breves, Pereira, Sampaio, Nomizo and Dias, 2008).