Objective To investigate the chemical constituents from the leaves of Musa × paradisiaca and their inhibitory activities on cell proliferation in vitro. Methods The compounds were isolated and purified using various chromatographic techniques, including silica gel, MCI gel CHP-20P, reversed-phase ODS, Sephadex LH-20 column chromatographies, and semi-preparative HPLC. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods such as NMR and MS. The inhibitory activities of all compounds on cell proliferation in vitro were evaluated using the CCK-8 assay. Results A total of 19 compounds were isolated from the leaves of Musa × paradisiaca and identified as di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (1), myristic acid (2), pentadecanoic acid (3), linoleic acid (4), dibutyl phthalate (5), ethyl 4-hydroxy-3-methoxybenzoate (6), dihydroactinidolide (7), MF-EA-705β (8), butyl 2-ethylhexyl phthalate (9), n-tetratriacont-20,23-dienoic acid (10), 3-hydroxystigmasta-5,22-dien-7-one (11), 3-hydroxystigmast-5-en-7-one (12), luffarin X (13), 6-hydroxystigmasta-4,22-dien-3-one (14), 6-hydroxystigmast-4-en-3-one(15), (3S,5R,6S,7E)-5,6-epoxy-3-hydroxy-7-megastigmen-9-one (16), ethyl p-hydroxybenzoate (17), p-diethoxybenzene (18), and methyl (9Z,12Z,15Z)-octadeca-9,12,15-trienoate (19). Among them, compounds2 , 5 ,7 ,11 ,13 ,15 , and17 exhibited certain anti-proliferative activities against human hepatocellular carcinoma HepG₂, cervical cancer Hela, breast cancer MCF-7, and malignant melanoma A375 cell lines, with median inhibition concentration (IC₅₀) values ranging from 40.26 to 97.75 μmol/L. Specifically, compounds7 and11 showed selective inhibitory activity against A375 cells (IC₅₀ = 43.0 and 50.0 μmol/L, respectively), which was slightly weaker than that of the positive control cisplatin (IC₅₀ = 40.13 μmol/L). In contrast, compounds2 and15 demonstrated stronger inhibitory effects against MCF-7 cells (IC₅₀ = 40.26 and 45.00 μmol/L, respectively) compared to cisplatin (IC₅₀ = 48.36 μmol/L). Conclusion Compounds1 and6 —19 were isolated from this genus for the first time, while compounds2 —5 were first identified from this specific plant. Furthermore, compounds2 ,7 ,11 , and15 exhibited selective inhibitory activities against specific tumor cell lines .

Musa L.  /  leaves of Musa × paradisiaca L.  /  anti-proliferative activity  /  di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate  /  dihydroactinidolide  /  3-hydroxystigmasta-5,22-dien-7-one  /  6-hydroxystigmast-4-en-3-one  /  methyl (9Z,12Z,15Z)-octadeca-9,12,15-trienoate