Triterpenoid saponins from the leaves and stems of Pericampylus glaucus and their insulin mimetic activities

[Display omitted] •Thirteen new triterpenoid saponins (1–13) were isolated from the leaves and stems from Pericampylus glaucus.•All isolated compounds were evaluated their anti-diabetic effect by the glucose uptake of 2-NBDG in 3T3-L1 adipocytes.•Compounds 4, 7, 11, and 12 exhibited stimulatory effects on glucose uptake. During an attempt to discover insulin mimetics, thirteen new triterpenoid saponins (1–13), including three phytolaccagenic acids (1, 2, and 12) and ten serjanic acids (3–11 and 13), as aglycones were isolated from a 70% ethanol extract of leaves and stems from Pericampylus glaucus. The chemical structures of compounds 1–13 were determined through spectroscopic data analysis, including NMR, IR, and HRESIMS. All isolated compounds (1–13) were evaluated using 2-deoxy-2-[(7-nitro-2,1,3-benzoxadiazol-4-yl)amino]-d-glucose (2-NBDG) as a fluorescent-tagged glucose probe to determine their stimulatory effects on glucose uptake in differentiated 3 T3-L1 adipocyte cells. Consequently, four compounds (4, 7, 11, and 12) exhibited stimulatory effects on glucose uptake.