A Potent Bioactive Substance Obtained from the Marine Sponge, Cribrochalina sp, Showing Some Biological Activities

Abstract

Extract of the marine sponge, Cribrochalina sp., was tested for antimicrobial and antimitotic activities. Results show that the extracts exhibited strong growth inhibitions against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, Saccharomyces cerevisciae and Aspergillus niger, but not against a polychaete embryo (Hydro ides ezoensis) having caused lysis at one - cell stage few minutes after fertilization. Extracts at a diluted concentration did not induce lysis, however, it has inhibited further embryonic development. Isolation and purification of the active component was done using chromatographic methods. Employing nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometry, a pure substance was chemically identified as halistanol sulfate, a steroid-derivative antimicrobial constituent previously isolated from an Okinawan sponge, Halichondria cf moorie Bergquist.