Compound
11 was isolated as a yellow powder. The
1H NMR data (
Figure S19) displayed a set of AA′BB′-type signals (
δH 8.06 (2H, d,
J = 9.0 Hz, H-2′, H-6′), 6.87 (2H, d,
J = 9.0 Hz, H-3′, H-5′)) in the B ring of kaempferol and a singlet signal at
δH 7.02 (2H, s, H-3′′′, H-7′′′) of a galloyl moiety in aromatic region, which is a characteristic signal of galloylated flavonol. An anomeric proton signal (
δH 5.78 (1H, d,
J = 8.0 Hz, H-1′′)) indicated that the glycosyl linkage was a
β-configuration. Furthermore, a downfield shifted proton signal (5.27 (1H, t,
J = 9.5 Hz, H-2′′)) suggested that the galloyl group was attached at the hydroxyl group of C-2′′ because this shift could be attributed to the anisotropic influence of the
O-galloyl moiety
[21]. The
13C NMR data (
Figure S20) exhibited 26 resonances, indicating galloylated flavonol glycoside. The carbon signals from C-2′′ to C-6′′ (
δC 71.1, 72.7, 68.2, 76.0, and 60.1) suggested the presence of a galactose moiety. Therefore, the structure of compound
11 was confirmed as kaempferol-3-
O-
β-2′′-galloylgalactoside. Although compound
11 was previously isolated from various sources, including
D. kaki [21][36], only the
1H NMR and MS data were previously reported. Thus, the
13C NMR data was reported for the first time in this study.
4. Discussion
Phytochemical investigations to identify biologically active compounds in persimmon leaves have been widely carried out. So far, a considerable number of triterpenoids and flavonoids, including kaempferol and quercetin derivatives, have been reported from
D. kaki [1]. In this study, we obtained 27 compounds, including sixteen flavonoids, one ionone, two coumarins, seven triterpenoids, and one acetophenone. Of these, compound
1 was found to be a new flavonoid and compound
2 was firstly isolated from
D. kaki. Additionally, kaempferol-3-
O-
β-2′′-feruloylglucoside (
3) was only reported as a hydrolyzed product of 3-
O-
β-(2-
O-feruloyl)-glucosyl-7,4′-di-
O-
β-glucosylkaempferol (
3), isolated from
Allium tuberosum [35]. Compound
3 was not only obtained directly from a natural source for the first time but has also not been reported in
D. kaki previously. Furthermore, kaempferol-3-
O-
β-2′′-galloylgalactoside (
11) has been previously reported in many sources, including
D. kaki, but only the
1H NMR and MS have been reported due to the lack of detailed research. Hence, the
13C NMR data was reported for the first time here.
Until now, there have been few studies that demonstrated the antioxidative abilities of extracts or fractions of persimmon leaves
[37][38]. Most studies used rapid assay methods such as DPPH or ABTS assays. In particular, in the previous paper, 200 μg/mL of flavonoid-rich fraction exhibited 68.73% inhibition of DPPH radical. Aside from this result, however, this fraction also showed superoxide anion radical scavenging, hydroxyl radical scavenging, and metal chelating activities
[38]. Although we did not evaluate these assays, bioassay-guided isolation was carried out because the ethanol extract and ethyl acetate fraction in the present study showed comparable DPPH radical scavenging activity. Additionally, despite previous results, only a few studies to identify biologically active compounds have been carried out. A few secoiridoids and lignans showed radical scavenging activities
[39]. In the case of flavonoids, there have been several reports that quercetin, kaempferol, and their glycosides have antioxidative properties
[40]. Antioxidative properties of galloylated kaempferol glycoside and galloylated quercetin glycoside obtained from other sources have been reported
[41]. As yet, there have been no reports that each of these compounds derived from the persimmon leaves has antioxidative effects, except that a mixture of these compounds exhibited an antioxidative effect
[21].
Additionally, so far, simultaneous determination of only a few triterpenoids or flavonoids has been carried out for the quantitative analysis of these compounds
[42][43]. However, the present study suggests a method for simultaneous determination of most components in the persimmon leaves.