Repeated chromatography of an alkaloidal fraction of the ethanolic extract of Cephalotaxus fortunei afforded a new alkaloid, mp 135-137°, C₁₈H₂₁NO₅. The structure of this alkaloid was shown to be 4-hydroxycephalotaxine (7) by spectral analysis and comparison of the data with those of cephalotaxine (1a). Cephalotaxus fortunei Hook f. is an evergreen tree widely distributed in the southern part of China. The fruits of this plant have long been used in Chinese folk medicine for treatment of tumors. Since 1971, we have studied the alkaloids of this plant and isolated and characterized several alkaloids (1,2) such as cephalotaxine (1a), harringtonine (1b), homoharringtonine (1c), 11-hydroxycephalotaxine (2) , (+)-acetylcephalotaxine (3), 3-epiwilsonine (4), cephalofortuneine (5) and desmethylcephalotaxinone (6), (fig. 1). Harringtonine (1b) and homoharringtonine (1c), which have been previously reported by Powell et al. (3) , were shown to have antileukemic activity both in animals and in humans in clinical studies and are used in China for treatment of acute leukemia (4,5). For a review on cephalotaxine esters and their biological activity, see reference 6. Further investigation of the alkaloids of this species has resulted in the isolation of a new alkaloid designated as alkaloid CF-16, which was identified as 4-hydroxy-cephalotaxine.