Marine Natural Products of sea cucumbers and sea stars in Argentina: Bioactivity and Chemical Ecology

MUNIAIN, C.; CENTURIÓN, R.; CAREAGA, V.; ESPOZ, C.; MAIER, M.S.

Ischia, Italia

Congreso; 5th European Conference on Marine Natural Products; 2007

Istituto di Chimica Biomolecolare

The search for natural marine products in South America is at this moment an important developing stage and is arousing great interest. The first stage –isolation and structural elucidation of new molecules– has been enriched with the possibility of generating an important biotechnological and pharmacological applications as well as with the recent development of a marine chemical ecology research line that intends to undestand the role that secondary metabolites play in the organism, in close relationship of prey-predator. This work presents an updated checklist of the results obtained from interdisciplinary research lines in Argentina, on the isolation, evaluation of biological activities and ecological role of secondary metabolites from the sea stars Allostichaster inaequalis, Anasterias minuta, Cosmasterias lurida, Heliaster helianthus, Labidiaster annulatus and Luidia ludwigi, the ophiuroids Astrotoma agassizii, Ophiactis asperula, Ophiacantha vivipara, Ophiocoma echinata, Ophioplocus januari, Ophionotus victoriae and Gorgonocephalus chilensis, and the sea cucumbers Hemiodema spectabilis, Psolus patagonicus, Staurocucumis liouvillei and Athyonidium chilensis.