Aspewentins A-C, norditerpenes from a cryptic pathway in an algicolous strain of Aspergillus wentii.

Through addition of suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid, two new aromatic norditerpenes, aspewentins A (1) and B (2), along with an oxygenated derivative, aspewentin C (3), were obtained from the culture of an Aspergillus wentii strain (na-3) isolated from the tissue of the brown alga Sargassum fusiforme. The structures and absolute configurations were unambiguously elucidated by spectroscopic analyses and quantum chemical calculations. Aspewentins A-C were produced before sporulation and exhibited potent bioactivities against some marine-derived organisms.