Natural-product diversity of the New Caledonian marine ecosystem compared to other ecosystems: a pharmacologically oriented view.

In comparison with other ecosystems, biodiversity and natural-product diversity of the New Caledonian marine ecosystem, comprising lagoons, barrier reefs, and deep waters in seamount regions, are described here phylogenetically with the aid of molecular drawings and tabulation of data. Admittedly, since the inception of these studies in 1977, the comparison is biased by selection of New Caledonian organisms on the basis of positive pharmacologically oriented bioassays. However, we show that these and other distortions must be accepted to draw any comparison on a regional basis, which, nonetheless, turn out to be useful for the progress of knowledge, particularly in directing future explorations of biodiversity in the search for new pharmacologically active metabolites.