Further achievements on the chemical composition and bioactivities of <i>Euphorbia tithymaloides</i>

Abstract In this work, all extracts of Euphorbia tithymaloides growing in Vietnam, including petroleum ether (PE), ethyl acetate (EA), methanol (Me), and aqueous (W), were evaluated for their intracellular ROS scavenging capacity. The W extract was revealed to be the most effective in ROS scavenging (S = 54.99 ± 1.66% at 200 µg mL −1 ). The extracts were also analyzed for their volatile and non‐thermostable contents via gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry with a headspace (H‐GC‐MS) method, the results of which were characteristic properties in their composition. From the PE extract, three compounds were isolated (methyl gallate (1) , 3,3′,4′‐tri‐ O ‐methylellagic acid (2) , and α ‐tocopheryl acetate (3) ), while fifteen compounds were obtained from the EA one, including p ‐anisidine (4) , vanillin (5) , gallic acid (6) , resveratrol (7) , rhapontigenin (8) , scopoletin (9) , scoparone (10) , novobiocin (11) , epigallocatechin‐3‐ O ‐gallate (12) , ursolic acid (13) , oleanolic acid (14) , 18 β ‐glycyrrhetic acid (15) , β ‐sitosterol (16) , diosgenin (17) , and pennogenin (18) . Their structure was elucidated using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and high‐resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. The isolation of novobiocin enriches the coumarin profile of E. tithymaloides . Some isolated compounds were taken to the cytotoxicity against normal and cancer cells, α ‐glucosidase inhibitory activity, and intracellular ROS scavenging capacity. With such achievements, the phytochemical profile of E. tithymaloides has been widened significantly, and its medicinal potential has been evidently reinforced.