Argusides B and C, Two New Cytotoxic Triterpene Glycosides from the Sea Cucumber Bohadschia argus Jaeger

Two new triterpene glycosides, argusides B and C ( 1 and 2 , resp.), have been isolated from the sea cucumber Bohadschia argus Jaeger collected in the South China Sea. Their structures have been established by spectral analysis (2D‐NMR and ESI‐MS) and chemical evidence. Compounds 1 and 2 both possess a holostane‐type triterpene aglycone with a C(9)C(11) bond and a OH group at C(12), but differ in their substituents at C(17) and the hexasaccharide moiety. The two glycosides exhibited significant cytotoxicities against four human tumor cell lines (A549, HCT‐116, HepG2, and MCF‐7). In comparison with the positive control V‐16 (etoposide), 1 and 2 showed higher cytotoxicities to A549 and HCT‐116 cell lines.