Isolation of new sulfur-containing constituents from Salvadora persica leaves

The facultative halophyte Salvadora persica L. (Salvadoraceae) is extensively used in traditional medicine of its African, Asian and Middle Eastern countries of origin, with applications related to oral health being most prominent for all plant parts. Flavonoids, phenylpropanoids, and volatile oil have been identified as the main classes of constituents occurring in S. persica leaves, while the main sulfur-containing compounds described so far were the glucosinolate glucotropaeolin and its myrosinase-reaction product benzylisothiocyanate [ 1 ]. In a recently performed metabolite profiling study, we were able to annotate a wide range of sulfur-containing constituents in S. persica leaf extracts [ 2 ]. The aim of this study was to isolate and elucidate the structure of major yet unknown sulfur-containing constituents of S. persica leaves. A methanolic S. persica leaf extract was subjected to liquid-liquid extraction followed by fractionation of the n-butanol subextract by vacuum liquid chromatography on silica gel and RP-18 material, anion exchange chromatography, preparative HPLC and preparative TLC. Overall we were able to isolate and structurally elucidate five new megastigmane glycosylsulfates, among them 3’-O-sulforhododendroside and 9-epiblumenol C-9-(3’-O-sulfo)glucoside, together with 7,8-dihydro-β-ionone-3-(3’-O-sulfo)glucoside known from our previous study [ 2 ]. Furthermore, three new aromatic compounds were isolated, namely, 1-O-benzyl-3-O-sulfoglucose, an isomer of the already known compound salvadoside [ 3 ], and 3’- and 4’-sulfoprunasin, two isomeric sulfated cyanogenic glycosides. Our study allows to add new, hitherto overlooked compound classes to the chemistry of S. persica . The pharmacological relevance of the newly identified compounds, in particular with regards to oral health- related effects, needs to be investigated in future studies. Publication History Article published online: 05 March 2026 © 2026. Thieme. All rights reserved. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Oswald-Hesse-Straße 50, 70469 Stuttgart, Germany