Anti-Inflammatory Polyoxygenated Steroids from the Soft Coral Sinularia sp.

Four new polyhydroxylated steroids (1-4) were isolated from a Formosan soft coral Sinularia sp. The structures of these metabolites were determined on the basis of spectroscopic (IR, MS, and I D and 2D NMR) analyses. Among these metabolites, 3 and 4 are rarely found marine steroids with a C-9/C-10 double bond. Compounds I and 2 have shown significant inhibition of the accumulation of the pro-inflammatory COX-2 protein of LPS-stimulated RAW264.7 macrophage cells at 10 mu M.