New Ophiobolin Derivatives from the Marine Fungus Aspergillus flocculosus and Their Cytotoxicities against Cancer Cells

Abstract

Five new sesterterpenes, 14,15-dehydro-6-epi-ophiobolin K (1), 14,15-dehydro- ophiobolin K (2), 14,15-dehydro-6-epi-ophiobolin G (3), 14,15-dehydro-ophiobolin G (4) and 14,15-dehydro-(Z)-14-ophiobolin G (5), together with four known ophiobolins (6–9) were isolated from the marine fungus Aspergillus flocculosus derived from the seaweed Padina sp. collected in Vietnam. The five new ophiobolins were first isolated as ophiobolin derivatives consisting of a fully unsaturated side chain. Their structures were elucidated via spectroscopic methods including 1D, 2D NMR and HR-ESIMS. The absolute configurations were determined by the comparison of chemical shifts and optical rotation values with those of known ophiobolins. All compounds (1–9) were then evaluated for their cytotoxicity against six cancer cell lines, HCT-15, NUGC-3, NCI-H23, ACHN, PC-3 and MDA-MB-231. All the compounds showed potent cytotoxicity with GI50 values ranging from 0.14 to 2.01 μM.