chemistry of Briareum asbestinum

Briareum asbestinum, a soft coral, is a rich source of diterpenoid natural products. The secondary metabolites of B. asbestinum fall into four classes : asbestinins, briarellins, briareolate esters, and briaranes. Briareolate esters have been shown to possess biological activity and were previously only reported from Tobago. Our group recently isolated briareolate esters from a specimen collected off the coast of Boca Raton, Florida. To determine whether location has an impact on the chemistry produced by the organism, a method to discern between chemotypes was sought. Several techniques including thin layer chromatography (TLC), high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and sclerite analysis were employed, with NMR being the most successful method. By utilizing both 1H and COSY NMR experiments, it is possible to differentiate between the chemotypes of B. asbestinum. Application of this method allowed analysis of chemical variability with respect to location.