Isolation and biological potential of unique compounds from the leaf of Abies koreana

An increasing number of studies in recent years have revealed various biological activities - such as memory-enhancing effects as well as anti-bacterial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and cytotoxic functions - of bioactive compounds in the Abies species. While most of those studies described potential applications in medicinal areas using extracts, research on the impact of compounds on biological activities is scant. In order to determine the compositional differences in Abies koreana showing high mortality rates and Abies koreana showing low mortality rates, the ethyl acetate extract of the leaves of Abies koreana from Mount Halla in Korea was subjected to preparative high-performance liquid chromatography. The major compound (1) was isolated from the preparation of the ethyl acetate extract from the Abies koreana. The structure of 1 was confirmed as maltol by electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance. In addition, varying concentrations of 1 at two different locations on Mount Halla that have shown high and low mortality rates of Abies koreana were determined.