Lihouidine, a novel spiro polycyclic aromatic alkaloid from the marine sponge Suberea n. sp. (Aplysinellidae, Verongida).

An investigation of a new species of sponge from the genus Suberea collected at Lihou Reef in the Coral Sea afforded lihouidine, an unprecedented cytotoxic spiro nonacyclic polyaromatic alkaloid. The structure of the alkaloid, which was racemic, was determined by a combination of 1D and 2D NMR techniques and single-crystal X-ray structural analysis.