Chemical investigations of an Australian sponge, Clathria hirsuta, from the Great Barrier Reef, have resulted in the isolation of two known anthraquinones, rhodocomatulin 5,7-dimethyl ether (1) and rhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether (2). Additionally, four new anthraquinone metabolites, 6-methoxyrhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether, 3-bromo-6-methoxy-12-desethylrhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether, 3-bromo-6-methoxyrhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether, and 3-bromorhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether (3-6), were also isolated and characterized. This is the first report of the rhodocomatulin-type anthraquinones from a marine sponge, as 1 and 2 were previously isolated from the marine crinoid genus Comatula. An additional chemical investigation of the marine crinoid Comatula rotalaria enabled the isolation of further quantities of 1 and 2, as well as two additional new crinoid metabolites, 12-desethylrhodocomatulin 5,7-dimethyl ether and 12-desethylrhodocomatulin 7-methyl ether (7 and 8). An NMR spectroscopic analysis of compounds 7 and 8 provided further insight into the rhodocomatulin planar structure and, together with the successful implementation of DFT-NMR calculations, confirmed that the rhodocomatulin metabolites existed as para rather than ortho quinones.

Chemical investigations of two specimens of Trikentrion flabelliforme collected from Australian waters have resulted in the identification of four new indole alkaloids, trikentramides A-D (9-12). The planar chemical structures for 9-12 were established following analysis of 1D/2D NMR and MS data. The relative configurations for 9-12 were determined following the comparison of (1)H NMR data with data previously reported for related natural products. The application of a quantum mechanical modeling method, density functional theory, confirmed the relative configurations and also validated the downfield carbon chemical shift observed for one of the quaternary carbons (C-5a) in the cyclopenta[g]indole series. The indole-2,3-dione motif present in trikentramides A-C is rare in nature, and this is the first report of these oxidized indole derivatives from a marine sponge.

Bioassay-guided fractionation of an antimalarial extract derived from the fungus Ramaria subaurantiaca afforded the known polyamine alkaloid, pistillarin. Nine pistillarin analogues were synthesised via EDC-mediated chemistry and these compounds along with the previously reported natural product polyamines, ianthelliformisamines A-C and spermatinamine, were evaluated against Plasmodium falciparum (3D7) parasites and a normal human cell line to determine parasitespecific activity. Spermatinamine (IC 50 0.23 M) and pistillarin (IC 50 1.9 M) were the two most potent antimalarials identified during these studies.

Covering: 1877 to 2017The ancestors of present-day crinoids are thought to be some of the earliest echinoderms, with fossil records dating back to the early Paleozoic Era (Ordovician Period, 505-440 million years ago). Their bright colours have been noted for over 100 years, and are attributed to a series of polyketide-derived pigments. Some crinoid metabolites display a range of biological activities, including cytotoxicity and fish anti-feedant activity. This review is divided into two parts. Part 1 is encyclopedic in scope, collating information on the >50 known metabolites isolated from crinoids, including their taxonomic source, collection location, chemical structure and biological activities. During the compilation of this data, two distinct themes emerged. Firstly, there is little variation in the class of metabolites produced by crinoids, irrespective of their species or geographic origin. Secondly, the complete and unambiguous assignment of crinoid metabolite structures has been, in many cases, a difficult task. This has been due to a lack of spectroscopic technology available in the past, the presence of proton-poor chemical structures, or both. Thus, Part 2 provides a critical discussion of crinoid chemistry, including the biosynthetic origin of crinoid pigments, as well as the pitfalls and solutions experienced by ourselves and other chemists when elucidating the chemical structures of crinoid metabolites.

Mass-guided fractionation of the MeOH extract from a specimen of the Australian marine sponge Hyrtios sp. resulted in the isolation of two new tryptophan alkaloids, 6-oxofascaplysin (2), and secofascaplysic acid (3), in addition to the known metabolites fascaplysin (1) and reticulatate (4). The structures of all molecules were determined following NMR and MS data analysis. Structural ambiguities in 2 were addressed through comparison of experimental and DFT-generated theoretical NMR spectral values. Compounds 1-4 were evaluated for their cytotoxicity against a prostate cancer cell line (LNCaP) and were shown to display IC50 values ranging from 0.54 to 44.9 μM.