Effects of marine sponge extracts on mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK/ERK(1,2)) activity in SW-13 human adrenal carcinoma cells

Marine Sponges and Bacteria as Challenging Sources of Enzyme Inhibitors for Pharmacological Applications

Enzymes play key roles in different cellular processes, for example, in signal transduction, cell differentiation and proliferation, metabolic processes, DNA damage repair, apoptosis, and response to stress. A deregulation of enzymes has been considered one of the first causes of several diseases, including cancers. In the last several years, enzyme inhibitors, being good candidates as drugs in the pathogenic processes, have received an increasing amount of attention for their potential application in pharmacology. The marine environment is considered a challenging source of enzyme inhibitors for pharmacological applications. In this review, we report on secondary metabolites with enzyme inhibitory activity, focusing our attention on marine sponges and bacteria as promising sources. In the case of sponges, we only reported the kinase inhibitors, because this class was the most representative isolated so far from these marine organisms.

The Role of Spongia sp. in the Discovery of Marine Lead Compounds

A comprehensive review on the chemistry of Spongia sp. is here presented, together with the biological activity of the isolated compounds. The compounds are grouped in sesquiterpene quinones, diterpenes, C21 and other linear furanoterpenes, sesterterpenes, sterols (including secosterols), macrolides and miscellaneous compounds. Among other reports we include studies on the intraspecific diversity of a Mediterranean species, compounds isolated from associated sponge and nudibranch and compounds isolated from S. zimocca and the red seaweed Laurentia microcladia. Under biological activity a table of the reported biological activities of the various compounds and the biological screening of extracts are described. The present review covers the literature from 1971 to 2015.

Kinase inhibitors from marine sponges

Protein kinases play a critical role in cell regulation and their deregulation is a contributing factor in an increasing list of diseases including cancer. Marine sponges have yielded over 70 novel compounds to date that exhibit significant inhibitory activity towards a range of protein kinases. These compounds, which belong to diverse structural classes, are reviewed herein, and ordered based upon the kinase that they inhibit. Relevant synthetic studies on the marine natural product kinase inhibitors have also been included.

Marine pharmacology in 2001-2: antitumour and cytotoxic compounds

During 2001 and 2002, marine antitumour pharmacology research aimed at the discovery of novel antitumour agents was published in 175 peer-reviewed articles. The purpose of this paper is to present a structured Review of the antitumour and cytotoxic properties of 97 marine natural products, many of them novel compounds that belong to diverse structural classes, including polyketides, terpenes, steroids, and peptides. The organisms yielding these bioactive compounds comprise a taxonomically diverse group of marine invertebrate animals, algae, fungi and bacteria. Antitumour pharmacological studies were conducted with 30 structurally characterised natural marine products in a number of experimental and clinical models which further defined their mechanisms of action. Particularly potent in vitro cytotoxicity data generated with murine and human tumour cell lines was reported for 67 novel marine chemicals with as yet undetermined mechanisms of action. Noteworthy, is the fact that marine anticancer research was sustained by a collaborative effort, involving researchers from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, The Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, Turkey, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, and the United States. Finally, this 2001-2 overview of the marine pharmacology literature highlights the fact that the discovery of novel marine antitumour agents has continued at the same pace as during 1998, 1999 and 2000.

Extracts from two marine sponges lower cyclin B1 levels, cause a G2/M cell cycle block and trigger apoptosis in SW-13 human adrenal carcinoma cells

Marine sponges have been shown to produce metabolites with cell growth- and endocrine-altering activities. We tested extracts from two species: the 'brown variable sponge' (Anthosigmella varians) and the 'West Indian bath sponge' (Spongia barbara), for effects on the cell cycle regulatory protein, cyclin B1; cell cycle growth-phase (sub-G1/apoptosis, G1, S, and G2/M); and cell survival in SW-13 human adrenal carcinoma cultures. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis studies indicated a 70-90% reduction in cyclin B1 levels by treatment with these agents. Microscopic examination of cultures with DAPI staining showed dense and fragmented DNA fluorescence, characteristic of apoptosis, in both sponge extract-treated cultures but not in controls. Flow cytometry analysis showed a 16-fold increase in the percentage of cells entering apoptosis (sub-G1 phase of cell cycle) by treatment with Anthosigmella varians extract (p <0.01) and a 10-fold increase using Spongia barbara extract (p <0.01) During this same time, the percentage of cells in G2/M was increased 1.6-fold by Anthosigmella varians extract (p <0.01) and 2.0-fold by Spongia barbara extract (p <0.01) Cell growth/survival studies also indicated a time-dependent decline in the percentage confluence of cell cultures exposed to Anthosigmella varians or Spongia barbara extracts. These experiments demonstrate that some species of marine sponges have metabolites which are capable of interfering with the mammalian cell cycle and with the survival of human adrenal carcinoma cells in culture.