Deep-Sea Sponges and Corals off the Western Coast of Florida—Intracellular Mechanisms of Action of Bioactive Compounds and Technological Advances Supporting the Drug Discovery Pipeline

Abstract

The majority of natural products utilized to treat a diverse array of human conditions and diseases are derived from terrestrial sources. In recent years, marine ecosystems have proven to be a valuable resource of diverse natural products that are generated to defend and support their growth. Such marine sources offer a large opportunity for the identification of novel compounds that may guide the future development of new drugs and therapies. Using the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) portal, we explore deep-sea coral and sponge species inhabiting a segment of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone, specifically off the western coast of Florida. This area spans ~100,000 km2, containing coral and sponge species at sea depths up to 3000 m. Utilizing PubMed, we uncovered current knowledge on and gaps across a subset of these sessile organisms with regards to their natural products and mechanisms of altering cytoskeleton, protein trafficking, and signaling pathways. Since the exploitation of such marine organisms could disrupt the marine ecosystem leading to supply issues that would limit the quantities of bioactive compounds, we surveyed methods and technological advances that are necessary for sustaining the drug discovery pipeline including in vitro aquaculture systems and preserving our natural ecological community in the future. Collectively, our efforts establish the foundation for supporting future research on the identification of marine-based natural products and their mechanism of action to develop novel drugs and therapies for improving treatment regimens of human conditions and diseases.