Isolation of stigmast-5,24-dien-3-ol from marine brown algae Sargassum tenerrimum and its antipredatory activity

In recent years many sterols with potent biological activity have been identified from marine sources. Here we report the isolation of stigmast-5,24-dien-3-ol (fucosterol) as a major metabolite from the bioactive hexane-fraction of Sargassum tenerrimum using different chromatographic techniques. Moreover, the chemical defense of brown algae Sargassum tenerrimum was investigated using feeding assay performed in an aquarium and in the field.