First evidence of bioactive compounds from the sponge <i>Agelas oroides</i> (Schmidt, 1864) against pancreatic carcinoma

Pancreatic cancer is one of the most aggressive tumours with poor prognosis and low year survival rate. Marine sponges are considered a challenging source of bioactive compounds, as potential drugs for cancer treatments. Here we report a bioassay-guided investigation of the methanolic extract of the sponge <i>Agelas oroides</i> (Schmidt, 1864), which displayed a potent cytotoxic activity against pancreatic adenocarcinoma (MIA PaCa-2 cells with <40% viability at 1 µg/ml). Two-step fractionation of the extract by SPE-HRX and RP-HPLC led to the identification of brominated pyrrole alkaloids as the chemical constituents of one of the most active fractions (IC₅₀ = 34 µg/ml). Among these, we identified the 4,5-dibromopyrrole-2-carboxylic acid as the bioactive product (IC₅₀ = 10 µg/ml). Our results disclose for the first time the sponge <i>A. oroides</i> as a source of cytotoxic alkaloids targeting pancreatic cancer and provide a contribute to the development of alternative strategies for the treatment of these severe pathologies.