Two new triterpenoids from Gelsemium elegans and Aglaia odorata.

Eleganoside A (1) and odoratanone A (15), a triterpenoid trisaccharide glycoside and a nortriterpenoid, together with twelve known compounds (2-13) and a mixture of cerebrosides (14) were isolated from Gelsemium elegans and Aglaia odorata. Their structures were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic and spectrometric analysis. Eleganoside A (1) features a 3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl (1-->4)-beta-D-glucopyranosyl (1-->4)-beta-D-glucopyranoside of a peculiar 3,16-dihydroxyl-lanosta-8,24-dien-26-oic acid triterpenoid skeleton, and odoratanone A (15) is a 29-norcycloartane-type triterpenoid bearing an unusual five-membered methyl acetal ring. Anti-acetylcholinesterase/butyrylcholinesterase (AChE/BChE) assay indicated that at 50 microM, ethyl caffeate (5) was promising as a dual inhibitor of AChE and BChE, and paeonol (3) and 24-hydroperoxy-24-vinylcholesterol (9) exhibited BChE-selective inhibition.