Chemical Constituents from the Colombian Medicinal Plant Maytenus laevis

The methanol extract of the bark of the Colombian medicinal plant Maytenus laevis gave six new compounds and 28 known compounds. The structures of the new and known compounds were elucidated on the basis of spectroscopic evidence. Several of these compounds were screened for cytokine-inducing activity on human PBMCs to investigate antitumor effects, and canophyllol (<BO>12</BO>) demonstrated the most effective induction of the cytokines.