Anti-estrogenic activity of mansorins and mansonones from the heartwood of Mansonia gagei DRUMM

Through an anti-estrogenic bioassay-guided fractionation of the methanol extract of Mansonia gagei, three new coumarins, called mansorins I (1), II (2) and III (3) and a new naphthoquinone, mansonone I (4), were isolated. Their structures were determined based on their NMR data and CD spectroscopy. The anti-estrogenic activity of the fractions and the isolated compounds were investigated using a yeast two-hybrid assay method expressing estrogen receptors α (ERα) and β (ERβ). In addition, an ERα competitor screening system (ligand binding screen) was used to verify the binding affinities of the isolated compounds to the estrogen receptor. 1,2-Naphthoquinones (mansonones) showed more binding affinities to ER in both assay systems. All the tested compounds showed higher binding affinities to ERβ than to ERα in the yeast two-hybrid assay. Mansonones F and S showed the most potent estrogen binding and estrogen antagonistic effects.