Diterpenoids in marine Cnidaria: an overview of existing data.

Cnidarians are venomous animals widely distributed in all marine environments. Venomousness is a primary feature of these organisms, which is especially notable for some species that are considered to be a threat to humans and a serious hindrance for economic activities such as tourism and fishing. In spite of this, cnidarians are also an important source of compounds having useful properties, although relevant research is still in its infancy. Diterpenoid compounds isolated from some cnidarians, mainly benthic species (soft corals), have been demonstrated to have antimicrobial, antimalarial, antifungal, and antiviral properties. Other cnidarian-derived diterpenoids have been shown to have hemolytic properties on mammal erythrocytes. Furthermore, the cytotoxicity of diperpenoids from cnidarians has been evaluated and demonstrated on leukemic, colorectal, and other cancer cells. Therefore, cnidarians can be considered a promising source of such interesting compounds, and diterpenoid compounds derived from cnidarian extracts may prove useful as new drugs. This review aims to describe and discuss the available data on discovery and usefulness of cnidarian diterpenoids.