Abstract

The chemical and biological properties of anti-inflammatory marine natural products whose mechanism of action involves inhibition of phospholipase A2 (PLA2), an enzyme of key importance in the biosynthesis of proinflammatory chemical signals and mediators, has been reviewed. Remarkably, most marine natural products display a selective inhibition profile against secretory PLA2 enzymes, with little or null ability to interfere with cytosolic PLA2. Variabilin, a marine furano-terpene, appears to be a notable exception, endowed with a distinctive dual inhibitor profile towards both secretory and cytosolic PLA2 proteins.

Keywords: inflammation, sesterterpenoids, manoalide, pla2 enzymes, cacospongionolides, luffariellolides, petrosaspongiolides