# Discovery of Secondary Metabolites from the Sponge-Derived Fungus Aspergillus templicola

## TL;DR

Researchers isolated new compounds from a sponge-derived fungus, some of which show anti-inflammatory and cancer-fighting properties.

## Contribution

Discovery of four new cytochalasins and a novel cyclic pentapeptide from Aspergillus templicola.

## Key findings

- Compound 2 showed strong anti-inflammatory activity in zebrafish assays.
- Compounds 4 and 6 displayed modest cytotoxicity against human cancer cells.
- Structures of new compounds were confirmed using advanced analytical methods.

## Abstract

Combining biosynthetic gene cluster analysis with the OSMAC strategy, fractionation of the fermentation extract of Aspergillus templicola from the sponge Agelas sp. led to the isolation of four novel cytochalasins, colachalasins J–M (1–4), a novel cyclic pentapeptide, avellanin P (5), together with five known compounds (6–10). The structures of 1–9 were elucidated using spectroscopic data, single crystal X-ray diffraction, and Marfey’s analysis. Compound 2 exhibited potent anti-inflammatory activity in zebrafish assays. Additionally, Compounds 4 and 6 showed modest cytotoxicity against several human cancer cell lines with IC50 values ranging from 2.6 to 11.2 μm.