Five chemical constituents of the ethyl acetate fraction from ethanol extract of semen litchi

Five chemical constituents were isolated from the ethyl acetate portion from ethanol extract of semen litchi (Seed of Litchi chinensis) by column chromatography on silica gel and Sephadex LH-20 coupled with preparative silica gel thin layer chromatography (TLC). The chemical structures were elucidated on the basis of physicochemical properties and spectroscopic data as stigmasterol (1), P-hydroxy-benzaldehyde (2), protocatechuic acid (3), daucosterol (4) and kaempferol-3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside (5). Compounds 2 and 5 were obtained from seed of L. chinensis for the first time.   Key words: Litchi chinensis, semen litchi, seed of Litchi chinensis, P-hydroxy-benzaldehyde, kaempferol-3-O-β-D-glucopyranoside.