Discodermia
# Discodermia

Discodermia is a genus of deep-water sea sponge.

## Species

The following species are accepted within Discodermia:

* Discodermia adhaerens Van Soest, Meesters & Becking, 2014
* Discodermia arbor Carvalho & Xavier, 2020
* Discodermia aspera Carter, 1880
* Discodermia calyx Döderlein, 1884
* Discodermia claviformis Kieschnick, 1896
* Discodermia discifera (Lendenfeld, 1907)
* Discodermia discifurca Sollas, 1888
* Discodermia dissoluta Schmidt, 1880
* Discodermia dubia Vacelet & Vasseur, 1971
* Discodermia emarginata Dendy, 1905
* Discodermia gorgonoides Burton, 1928
* Discodermia inscripta (Schmidt, 1879)
* Discodermia interspersa Kumar, 1925
* Discodermia irregularis Hoshino, 1976
* Discodermia japonica Döderlein, 1884
* Discodermia jogashima Tanita & Hoshino, 1989
* Discodermia kellyae Carvalho & Xavier, 2020
* Discodermia kiiensis Hoshino, 1977
* Discodermia koreana Sim, 1982
* Discodermia laevidiscus Carter, 1880
* Discodermia natalensis Kirkpatrick, 1903
* Discodermia ornata Sollas, 1888
* Discodermia panoplia Sollas, 1888
* Discodermia papillata Carter, 1880
* Discodermia polydiscus (Bowerbank, 1869)
* Discodermia polymorpha Pisera & Vacelet, 2011
* Discodermia proliferans Lévi & Lévi, 1983
* Discodermia ramifera Topsent, 1892
* Discodermia sinuosa Carter, 1881
* Discodermia stylifera Keller, 1891
* Discodermia tuberosa Dendy, 1922
* Discodermia vermicularis Döderlein, 1884
* Discodermia verrucosa Topsent, 1928

## Pharmacology

D. dissoluta is of interest to bio and organic chemists because it produces (+)-discodermolide, a polyketide natural product with immunosuppressive and cancer killing properties.

Antimicrobial/anticancer peptides called discodermins have been isolated from D. kiiensis.

