Chemical Composition of Laurencia obtusa Extract and Isolation of a New C(15)-Acetogenin

A new C(15)-acetogenin, sagonenyne (20), exhibiting an unusual single tetrahydropyran ring was isolated from an ethyl acetate extract of Laurencia obtusa collected on the Corsican coastline. Its structure was established by detailed NMR spectroscopic analysis, mass spectrometry, and comparison with literature data. Twenty-three known compounds were identified in the same extract by means of column chromatography steps, using a (13)C-NMR computer aided method developed in our laboratory. In addition to sesquiterpenes, which represent the main chemical class of this extract, diterpenes, sterols, and C(15)-acetogenins were identified. The crude extract was submitted to a cytotoxicity assay and was particularly active against THP-1 cells, a human leukemia monocytic cell line.