Thesis (M.Sc.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Pharmacy - Department of Pharmacognosy

Ulmus pumila L., a member of family Ulmaceae, is successfully grown in Egypt. Genus Ulmus is renowned for its cytotoxic terpenoids. The current study aimed to investigate the locally cultivated plant as a potential source of cytotoxic constituents that could be employed in the pharmaceutical industries. Reports on either the phytoconstituents of the aforementioned species or its evidence-based biological activities were rare or completely lacking, thus granting a great interest in its intensive phytochemical and biological investigation. The methanol extracts of the stem bark and leafy branches of the investigated species were subjected to phytochemical screening, TLC investigation, and quantitative estimation of the major constituents. The composition of the lipoidal matter of both was examined via GC/MS analysis. The dichloromethane fraction of the methanol extract of the stem bark and the ethyl acetate fraction of the methanol extract of the leafy branches were selected for intensive phytochemical investigation based on available literature on genus Ulmus, TLC analysis of the various fractions, and total phenolic, flavonoid, and terpenoid/steroid contents of the total extracts. Repeated chromatographic fractionation of the dichloromethane fraction of the methanol extract of the stem bark yielded six isolates identified as Friedelin, 3Ý-acetoxyurs-11-en-13Ý,28-olide, 3Ý-O-acetyl ursolic acid contaminated with 3Ý-O-acetyl oleanolic acid, a mixture of Ý-Sitosterol and Stigmasterol, Betulinic acid, and a mixture of Methyl ursolate and Methyl oleanolate

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