Dysiherbols A-C and Dysideanone E, Cytotoxic and NF-κB Inhibitory Tetracyclic Meroterpenes from a Dysidea sp Marine Sponge

Four new tetracyclic meroterpnes, dysiherbols A-C (1-3) and dysideanone E (4), were isolated from a Dysidea sp. marine sponge collected from the South China Sea. Their complete structures and absolute configurations were unambiguously determined by a combination of NMR spectroscopic data, ECD calculations, and single crystal X-ray diffraction analysis. Within the sesquiterpene quinol structures, dysiherbols A-C possess an intriguing 6/6/5/6-fused tetracyclic carbon skeleton. The NF-kappa B inhibitory and cytotoxic activity evaluation disclosed that dysiherbol A (1) showed potent activity with respective IC50 values of 0.49 and 0.58 mu M, which were about 10-fold and 20-fold more potent than those of dysiherbols B (2) and C (3), which feature hydroxy and ketone carbonyl groups at the C-3 position.