Leucolusine, a tetracyclic alkaloid with a novel ring system incorporating an oxindole moiety and fused piperidine-tetrahydrofuran rings

A tetracyclic ring-opened oxindole alkaloid, possessing an unprecedented ring system incorporating fused piperidine-tetrahydrofuran rings, has been isolated from the Malayan species, Leuconotis griffithii. The structure was established by analysis of the spectroscopic data and a possible biogenetic pathway from an Aspidosperma precursor is presented.