
Neoflavonoids are a class of polyphenolic compounds.
While
flavonoid
Flavonoids (or bioflavonoids; from the Latin word ''flavus'', meaning yellow, their color in nature) are a class of polyphenolic secondary metabolites found in plants, and thus commonly consumed in the diets of humans.
Chemically, flavonoids ...
s (in the narrow sense) have the 2-phenylchromen-4-one backbone, neoflavonoids have the 4-phenylchromen backbone with no hydroxyl group substitution at position 2.
Types

Neoflavonoids include 4-arylcoumarins (neoflavones), 4-arylchromanes, dalbergiones and dalbergiquinols.
* Neoflavones
[ are derived from the 4-phenylcoumarin (or 4-aryl-]coumarin
Coumarin () or 2''H''-chromen-2-one is an aromatic organic chemical compound with formula . Its molecule can be described as a benzene molecule with two adjacent hydrogen atoms replaced by an unsaturated lactone ring , forming a second six-me ...
) backbone (C15H12O2). The first neoflavone isolated from natural sources was calophyllolide from ''Calophyllum inophyllum
''Calophyllum inophyllum'' is a large evergreen plant, commonly called tamanu, oil-nut, mastwood, beach calophyllum or beautyleaf. It is native to the Old World Tropics, from Africa through Asia to Australia and Polynesia. Due to its importance a ...
'' seeds (1951). It is also found in the bark and timber of the plant ''Mesua thwaitesii
''Mesua thwaitesii'', is a plant species in the family Calophyllaceae. It is native to Sri Lanka and southwestern India.[Dalbergichromene
Dalbergichromene is a neoflavene, a type of neoflavonoid (a polyphenolic compound). Dalbergichromene can be extracted from the stem-bark and heartwood of '' Dalbergia sissoo''. It has also been synthesized from vanillin.
References
Neofl ...]
, extracted from the stem-bark and heartwood of ''Dalbergia sissoo
''Dalbergia sissoo'', known commonly as North Indian rosewood or shisham, is a fast-growing, hardy, deciduous rosewood tree native to the Indian subcontinent and southern Iran. ''D. sissoo'' is a large, crooked tree with long, leathery leaves a ...
'', is an example of such compounds
Other examples
* Coutareagenin (5-hydroxy-7-methoxy-4-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-2H-benzo-1-pyran-2-on) found in ''Hintonia latiflora
''Hintonia latiflora'' is a plant species in the genus ''Hintonia (plant), Hintonia''.
''Hintonia latiflora'' contains the neoflavonoid coutareagenin (5-hydroxy-7-methoxy-4-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-2H-benzo-1-pyran-2-ol), an antidiabetic active sub ...
''
* Dalbergin
* Nivetin isolated from '' Echinops niveus''
See Also
* 3-Phenylcoumarin
References
External links
{{Flavonoids