Cacospongia scalaris

Thereafter, several compounds closely related to ircinins and variabilin have been isolated [5,6]. Fusetani and co-workers [34] reported the isolation of two compounds, dehydroderivative of ircinin (8) and an isomer of variabilin (9) from the Japanese sponge Cacospongia scalaris. Both compounds inhibited the cell division of fertilised starfish eggs at a concentration of 1.0 pg/ml. This assay is a variation on the test with sea urchin embryos, which can detect DNA and RNA synthesis inhibitors, microtubule assembly and protein synthesis inhibitors, the common leads... 

Sesterterpenes rarely occur in higher plants. 3,7,11,15,19-Pentamethylicosa-2,6-dien-l-ol as an example is found in the leaves of potatoes Solanum tuberosum (So-lanaceae). About 30 sesterterpenes bridged by furan rings, however, are reported to occur in various marine sponges these include (-)-ircinm I from Ircinia oros which acts as an antibacterial, and (+)-8,9-dehydroircinin I from Cacospongia scalaris which inhibits the division of fertilized starfish egg cells. 

Fusetani, N., Y. Kato, S. Matsunaga, and K. Hashimoto Bioactive Marine Metabolites. V. Two New Furanosesterterpenes, Inhibitors of Cell Division of the Fertilized Starfish Eggs, from the Marine Sponge Cacospongia scalaris. Tetrahedron Lett. 25, 4941 (1984). 

Yasuda, F., and H. Tada Desacetylscalaradial, a Cytotoxic Metabolite from the Sponge Cacospongia scalaris. Experientia 37, 110 (1981). 

Fattorusso, E., Magno, S., Santacroce, C., and Sica, D. (1972) Scalarin, a new pentacyclic C-25 terpenoid from the sponge Cacospongia scalaris. Tetrahedron, 28, 5993-5997. 

Guella, G., Amade, P., and Pietra, F. (1986b) Cacospongione A, cacospongienone A, B, new C21 difuran terpenoids from the marine sponge Cacospongia scalaris Schmidt of the Cote d Azur. Helv. Chim. Acta, 69, 726-753. 

Tsoukatou, M., Siapi, H., Vagias, C., and Roussis, V. (2003) New sesterterpenes metabolites from the Mediterranean sponge Cacospongia scalaris. J. Nat. Prod., 66, 444—446. 

Chromodoris sedna Scalarin Cacospongia scalaris Hochlowski eto/., 1983b... 

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