Structure of Pseudocerosine, an Indolic Azafulvene Alkaloid from the Flatworm <i>Pseudoceros indicus</i>

Abstract

The rim of the tunic of the flatworm Pseudoceros indicus is characterized by blue dots on a white background. The isolation and structure elucidation of the blue pigment is reported. It is shown by extensive analysis of spectroscopic data to be an indolic azafulvene, which has been named pseudocerosine.