Actinoplanones A and B, new cytotoxic polycyclic xanthones from Actinoplanes sp.

Two new cytotoxic polycyclic xanthones, actinoplanones A (1) and B (2) were isolated from the culture broth of Actinoplanes sp. R-304 by monitoring their bioactivity against HeLa cells. Compound 1 was extremely cytotoxic (IC50 0.00004 micrograms/ml) against HeLa cells. The structures of 1 and 2 were established mainly by analyses of 2D heteronuclear correlation NMR experiments. The absolute configurations of the asymmetric carbons of the compounds have been assigned to be 9R, 24S, 25R and 27S by circular dichroism spectra and NMR analysis using chiral derivatives (esters of alpha-methoxy-alpha-(trifluoromethyl)acetic acid).