Nepheliosyne B, a new polyacetylenic acid from the new caledonian marine sponge Niphates sp

Kinase-Based Screening of Marine Natural Extracts Leads to the Identification of a Cytotoxic High Molecular Weight Metabolite from the Mediterranean Sponge Crambe tailliezi

Regulated cell death (RCD) results from the activation of one or more signal transduction modules both in physiological or pathological conditions. It is now established that RCD is involved in numerous human diseases, including cancer. As regulated cell death processes can be modulated by pharmacological tools, the research reported here aims to characterize new marine compounds acting as RCD modulators. Protein kinases (PKs) are key signaling actors in various RCDs notably through the control of either mitosis (e.g., the PKs Aurora A and B) or necroptosis (e.g., RIPK1 and RIPK3). From the primary screening of 27 various extracts of marine organisms collected in the Mediterranean Sea, an extract and subsequently a purified high molecular weight compound dubbed P3, were isolated from the marine sponge Crambe tailliezi and characterized as a selective inhibitor of PKs Aurora A and B. Furthermore, P3 was shown to induce apoptosis and to decrease proliferation and mitotic index of human osteosarcoma U-2 OS cells.

Ethynylogation approach in antitumor lipid pharmacochemistry: from dialkynyl-carbinols to trialkynyl-carbinols

A recently proposed "ethynylogation" pharmacochemical approach, first envisaged in the series of anticancer lipidic dialkynylcarbinols (DACs) H–C≡C–CH(OH)–C≡C–R at the levels of the H–C⋮ and ⋮C–R bonds for R = n-C12H25, is completed here at the level of the (HO)C–H bond. The so-devised mono-lipidic trialkynylcarbinol (TAC) target (HC≡C)2C(OH)–C≡CR and its bis-lipidic counterpart HC≡C–C(OH)(C≡CR)2 were synthesized in 4 steps and with 33 % and 23 % overall yield, respectively. Their antitumor cytotoxicity has been evaluated towards HCT116 cells: while the latter TAC is totally inactive, the former DAC-ethynylogous TAC still exhibits a significant toxicity with an IC50 of 10 µM.

Marine Natural Products from New Caledonia--A Review

Marine micro- and macroorganisms are well known to produce metabolites with high biotechnological potential. Nearly 40 years of systematic prospecting all around the New Caledonia archipelago and several successive research programs have uncovered new chemical leads from benthic and planktonic organisms. After species identification, biological and/or pharmaceutical analyses are performed on marine organisms to assess their bioactivities. A total of 3582 genera, 1107 families and 9372 species have been surveyed and more than 350 novel molecular structures have been identified. Along with their bioactivities that hold promise for therapeutic applications, most of these molecules are also potentially useful for cosmetics and food biotechnology. This review highlights the tremendous marine diversity in New Caledonia, and offers an outline of the vast possibilities for natural products, especially in the interest of pursuing collaborative fundamental research programs and developing local biotechnology programs.

Marine natural products

This review covers the literature published in 2013 for marine natural products (MNPs), with 982 citations (644 for the period January to December 2013) referring to compounds isolated from marine microorganisms and phytoplankton, green, brown and red algae, sponges, cnidarians, bryozoans, molluscs, tunicates, echinoderms, mangroves and other intertidal plants and microorganisms. The emphasis is on new compounds (1163 for 2013), together with the relevant biological activities, source organisms and country of origin. Reviews, biosynthetic studies, first syntheses, and syntheses that lead to the revision of structures or stereochemistries, have been included.