Three new cytotoxic isomalabaricane triterpenes from the marine sponge Stelletta tenuis

Three new isomalabaricane-type triterpenes named stellettins N (1), O (2) and P (3), together with four known compounds (4–7), were isolated from the CCl4 extract of the marine sponge Stelletta tenuis Lindgren. Compound 4 was reported as a natural α-pyrone for the first time, which had been synthesized from gibepyrone B, while 5 was found in the genus Stelletta for the first time. The structures of the new compounds were established on the basis of extensive spectroscopic data analysis including IR, MS, 1D and 2D NMR. The inhibitory activities of compounds 1–3 against three human cancer cell lines (A549, AGS and U-251MG) were evaluated and all the tested compounds exhibited significant cytotoxicity to AGS cells, with IC50 values of 4.52, 9.61 and 7.44 μM, respectively.

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