Erythropodium caribaeorum | |
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Erythropodium caribaeorum in the Aquarium de La Rochelle | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Cnidaria |
Subphylum: | Anthozoa |
Class: | Octocorallia |
Order: | Alcyonacea |
Family: | Anthothelidae |
Genus: | Erythropodium |
Species: | E. caribaeorum |
Binomial name | |
Erythropodium caribaeorum (Duchassaing & Michelotti, 1860) [1] | |
Synonyms | |
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Erythropodium caribaeorum, commonly known as the encrusting gorgonian or encrusting polyps, is a species of soft coral in the family Anthothelidae. It inhabits coral reefs and rocky bottoms in the Caribbean, Bahamas, and Florida, growing at depths of 0.5 to 25 metres. [2]
E. caribaeorum is of interest from a drug discovery perspective because it produces eleutherobin, a diterpene glycoside with potential anticancer activity. [3]