New Sesquiterpenoids from the Soft Coral Sinularia i ntacta of the Indian Ocean

Chemical examination of the soft coral species Sinularia intacta collected from the Moyli Island of the Gulf of Mannar of the Indian Ocean resulted in the isolation of three new sesquiterpenoids, 1, 2, and 3, along with the known compounds 8,9-secoafricanane-8,9-dione (5), Δ9(15)-africanene (6), 1-O-hexadecyl-2,3-dihexadecanoylglycerol, batyl alcohol, (24R)-24-methylcholesterol, gorgosterol, a mixture of two monohydroxy-4α-methyl sterols, 4α,24-dimethylcholestan-3β-ol, 4α,24ξ-dimethyl-23ξ-ethylcholestan-3β-ol, a mixture of ceramides, and ergost-24(28)-ene-3β,5α,6β-triol. The structures of the new sesquiterpenoids were established as (9R)-africanane-9,15-diol (1), (9R)-9-methoxyafricanan-15-ol (2), and (9S)-africanane-9,15-diol-15-monoacetate (3) by a study of their spectral data and partial synthesis.