Abstract: Abstract:Objective To investigate the chemical constituents of the ethanol extract of Daphne altaica Pall (DA-Et), to determine total phenolic content in DA-Et and to study the effect of DA-Et on cell apoptosis in Eca-109 cells. Meth⁃ ods Different chemical assays were performed to detect chemical constituents of DA-Et. The content of total phenolics， ex⁃ pressed as gallic acid equivalents， was measured by Folin - Ciocalteu assay; Cell apoptosis induced by DA-Et was detected by AnnexinV-FITC/PI flow cytometry. Results Flavonoids，coumarins，sugars，alkaloids and phenolics in DA-Et. The contents of total phenolics in DA- Et was quantified as 159.78 mg/g. Average recovery rate of this method ranged from 99.4% to 108.3% and the precision relative standard deviation was 2.04%. Apoptosis rate of Esophageal cancer cell line Eca-109 induced by DA-Et was detected as 29.633%±1.779% (n=3). Conclusion Our study provide guidance for the im⁃ provement of DA-Et quality, its appropriate application and further research of its activity.

Key words: Daphne altaica Pall., chemical constituents, TLC, total phenolics, Eca-109 cells, cell apoptosis