Rumphellaoic acid a, a novel sesquiterpenoid from the formosan gorgonian coral Rumphella antipathies

Abstract

A novel sesquiterpenoid, rumphellaoic acid A ( 1), was isolated from the gorgonian coral Rumphella antipathies , and was found to possess a carbon skeleton that was obtained for the first time from a natural sources. The structure of 1 was elucidated by spectroscopic methods and this compound and was found to exert a moderate inhibitory effect on the release of elastase by human neutrophils.