Cytotoxic Geranyl Stilbenes from Macaranga schweinfurthii

Three novel geranyl stilbenes, schweinfurthins A, B, and C (1, 2, and 3), were isolated from the Cameroonian plant Macaranga schweinfurthii (Euphorbiaceae) and their structures determined by NMR and mass spectral methods. The cytotoxicity profile of the schweinfurthins tested in the NCI 60-cell screen was similar to that of the stelletins and cephalostatins, suggesting that these structurally diverse natural products may share similar mechanisms of cytotoxicity.