New Sphingolipids from Abutilon pakistanicum

The genus Abutilon (Malvaceae) comprises about 150 species which are perennial herbs, shrubs and rarely small trees, distributed in sub-tropical regions of all over the world. Generally, Abutilon species contain considerable amounts of mucilage due to which they are used for the treatment of rheumatism and as demulcent and diuretic agents [1 – 3]. One of the species of the genus Abutilon is Abutilon pakistanicum which commonly grows in the southern parts of Pakistan. The literature survey revealed that steroids [4, 5], esters, flavonoid glycosides [6, 7], and iridoids [8] have so far been reported from this species. The ethnopharmacological and chemotaxonomic importance of the genus Abutilon led us to further investigate the chemical constituents of A. pakistanicum. We herein report the isolation and structural elucidation of two new sphingolipids named pakistamides A (1) and B (2).