EI/MS fragmentation of abieta-8,11,13-triene diterpenoid derivatives as a tool to identify swartziarboreols in Swartzia extracts

A systematic molecular fragmentation pathway (SMFP) was designed as an identifier to detect swartziarboreols (abieta‐8,11,13‐triene diterpenoid derivatives) in Swartzia extracts. The SMFP was rationalised through the interpretation of the EI/MS of swartziarboreols isolated from S. arborescens and S. langasdorffii and by analogy with the fragmentations observed for previously isolated compounds. Two pairs of swartziarboreol epimers were identified by GC‐MS in an extract of S. langsdorffii using SMFP. Acetylation and methylation of the dichloromethane extract furnished, respectively, 3 and 4, which suggested the occurrence of a new natural orthodiphenolic swartziarboreol. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.