Fungi from mangrove have attracted much attention for their unique living conditions of wave-energy tidal mudflats, high moisture level, high salt concentration and lack of oxygen.1) This fungal group has been widely recognized as rich source of active secondary metabolites.2,3) As part of our ongoing search for novel bioactive compounds from microorganisms isolated from unusual or specialized ecological niches, 4-6) the culture extract of a fungus strain (Aspergillus ustus), isolated from the rhizosphere soil of the mangrove Acrostichum aureurm grown in Guangxi Province of China, showed cytotoxic activity against P388 (mice lymphocytic leukemia) cell line. The chemical composition research on the EtOAc extract of the A. ustus fermentation led us to identify five new drimane sesquiterpenes (1-5) together with 14 known analogues (Fig. 1).1,7-12) Herein, we report the structural elucidations and cytotoxic activities of these metabolites against P388, HL-60 (human promyelocytic leukemia cells), K562 (human erythromyeloblastoid leukemia cells) and BEL-7402 (human hepatoma cells).Compound 1 was obtained as a white powder. The molecular formula was determined as C 16 H 28 O 3 on the basis of its high resolution-electrospray ionization-mass spectra (HR-ESI-MS) peak at m/z 291.1930 [MϩNa] ϩ (Calcd for C 16 C-NMR (distortionless enhancement by polarization transfer (DEPT)) spectrum (Table 2) displayed 16 carbon resonances, assignable to five methyls, four methylenes, three methines and four quaternary carbons. Apart from one degree of unsaturation occupied by a double bond, the remaining two degrees of unsaturation required 1 to contain a bicyclic core ring system. The aforementioned data implied that 1 was a drimane sesquiterpense.13) The NMR resonances were similar to those reported for albrassitriol (20), but replacing one of the OHs by a methoxyl group.13) The structure of 1 was further confirmed by 1 H-1 H correlation spectroscopy (COSY) and heteronuclear multiple bond connectivity (HMBC) correlations (Fig. 2). The connection of C-11 and C-9 was determined by the HMBC correlations from H-11 to C-8 and C-10, and the location of -OCH 3 at C-6 was deduced via a correlation between the methoxy protons and C-6.The relative configuration of 1 was determined by the nuclear Overhauser effect spectroscopy (NOESY) spectrum. Correlations between H-13 and H-1b (eq) and between H-5 and H-1a (ax) suggested a trans-fused decalin nucleus.1) The correlation between H-5 and 6-OCH 3 indicated the configu- Five new drimane sesquiterpenes (1-5) together with 14 known analogues (6-19) were isolated from laboratory cultures of a mangrove-derived fungus Aspergillus ustus. Their structures were established by spectroscopic methods and antitumor activities were evaluated by sulforhodamine B (SRB) and 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) methods.