(2S,3S)-Sulfated Pterosin C, a Cytotoxic Sesquiterpene from the Bangladeshi Mangrove Fern Acrostichum aureum

Two new sesquiterpenes, (2R,3S)-sulfated pterosin C (1) and (2S,3S)-sulfated pterosin C (2), along with two known derivatives, (2S,3S)-pterosin C and (2R)-pterosin P, were isolated from a methanolic extract of the aerial parts of Acrostichum aureum. The structures of 1 and 2 were determined by the interpretation of their spectroscopic data. The isolated pterosins were evaluated for their cytotoxic activity against the AGS, HT-29, MDA-MB-231, and MCF-7 human cancer cell lines and the NIH3T3 normal mouse fibroblast cell line, using the MTT assay. Compound 2 showed IC50 values in the range 23.9-68.8 mu M. The lowest IC50 value (23.9 mu M) was recorded against AGS gastric adenocarcinoma cells. Compound 2 was found to exert an apoptotic effect on AGS cells within 24 h of treatment, which increased with time and was greater than the positive control, cycloheximide. The cytotoxicity of 2 seems to be due in part to the sulfate group on C-14 and the configuration at C-2.