Marine Derived Indole Alkaloids and Their Biological Activity
Summary
Marine derived indole alkaloids constitute a structurally diverse class of natural products characterised by the indole core—a bicyclic motif combining a benzene ring fused to a pyrrole ring—often further elaborated with halogenation, methylation or peptide linkage. Isolated from sponges, tunicates, algae, bacteria and fungi, these compounds have attracted attention for a broad spectrum of biological activities. Many display potent cytotoxic effects against cancer cell lines, while others inhibit key enzymes or receptors implicated in infectious diseases, inflammation and neurological disorders. The unique environmental pressures of marine habitats drive biosynthetic innovations, yielding unusual ring systems, dimeric (“bis-indole”) architectures and hybrid scaffolds. Advances in separation and structural elucidation have enabled rapid discovery of new analogues, and synthetic routes now allow scaled access and systematic modification. Structure–activity relationship studies reveal that halogenation patterns, ring connectivity and stereochemistry critically influence potency and selectivity. Collectively, marine indole alkaloids represent a fertile resource for lead discovery and mechanistic investigation, with several candidates progressing towards preclinical evaluation in antimicrobial, anticancer and anti-inflammatory programmes.
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Marine Derived Indole Alkaloids and Their Biological Activity publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in marine derived indole alkaloids and their biological activity across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Indole alkaloids: Natural products containing an indole core, often exhibiting diverse bioactivities.
Bis-indole: A compound featuring two indole units joined by a linker or fused ring system.
Cytotoxicity: The capacity of a substance to kill or damage cells, commonly measured in vitro against cancer cell lines.
Antiplasmodial activity: Inhibition of the malaria parasite Plasmodium spp.
Structure–activity relationship (SAR): The correlation between chemical structure modifications and changes in biological activity.
References
- Marine-Derived Indole Alkaloids and Their Biological and Pharmacological Activities †. Marine Drugs (2021).
- Recent Advances of Marine Natural Indole Products in Chemical and Biological Aspects. Molecules (2023).
- An Overview of Aplysinopsins: Synthesis and Biological Activities. Marine Drugs (2023).
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