Selective herbicidal activity of an indole alkaloid isolated from Rhazya stricta Decne. growing in Saudi Arabia

摘要

The herbicidal activity of the alkaloidal constituents of Rhazya stricta Decne. growing in Saudi Arabia was studied on wild radish, Italian rye grass, alfalfa and wheat. The biological activity was determined after a series of bioassay-guided fractionations of a crude alkaloidal sample taken from the plant. The active compound was isolated in a pure form using medium pressure liquid chromatography (MPLC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). It was subjected to compound identification using mass spectroscopy. Fragment ions similar to those published on 1,2 dehydroaspidospermidine were identified. The results show that this compound has the ability to inhibit the growth of wild radish, a common weed, without affecting the early seedlinggrowth of major crops such as wheat and alfalfa.