Algal polysaccharides: potential bioactive substances for cosmeceutical applications

The Structural Characteristics of Seaweed Polysaccharides and Their Application in Gel Drug Delivery Systems

In recent years, researchers across various fields have shown a keen interest in the exploitation of biocompatible natural polymer materials, especially the development and application of seaweed polysaccharides. Seaweed polysaccharides are a multi-component mixture composed of one or more monosaccharides, which have the functions of being anti-virus, anti-tumor, anti-mutation, anti-radiation and enhancing immunity. These biological activities allow them to be applied in various controllable and sustained anti-inflammatory and anticancer drug delivery systems, such as seaweed polysaccharide-based nanoparticles, microspheres and gels, etc. This review summarizes the advantages of alginic acid, carrageenan and other seaweed polysaccharides, and focuses on their application in gel drug delivery systems (such as nanogels, microgels and hydrogels). In addition, recent literature reports and applications of seaweed polysaccharides are also discussed.

Progress in Modern Marine Biomaterials Research

The growing demand for new, sophisticated, multifunctional materials has brought natural structural composites into focus, since they underwent a substantial optimization during long evolutionary selection pressure and adaptation processes. Marine biological materials are the most important sources of both inspiration for biomimetics and of raw materials for practical applications in technology and biomedicine. The use of marine natural products as multifunctional biomaterials is currently undergoing a renaissance in the modern materials science. The diversity of marine biomaterials, their forms and fields of application are highlighted in this review. We will discuss the challenges, solutions, and future directions of modern marine biomaterialogy using a thorough analysis of scientific sources over the past ten years.

F, Truong HB. Polyhydroxynaphthoquinone Pigment From Vietnam Sea Urchins as a Potential Bioactive Ingredient in Cosmeceuticals

In this study, valuable polyhydroxynaphthoquinone (PHNQ) pigments were recovered from sea urchin food waste and were investigated as a potential bioactive ingredient for cosmeceuticals. The crude PHNQ pigment extract from 4 Vietnam sea urchins, Diadema setosum, Diadema savignyi, Stomopneustes variolaris, and Tripneustes gratilla, exhibited effective 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate scavenging activity, tyrosinase inhibitory activity, and antibacterial activity. The moisturizing cream with 0.5% of PHNQ pigments from D. setosum and Tripneustes gratilla sea urchins showed no dermal irritation over 14 days of mouse skin test. Four major active components in PHNQ were identified via high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with diode array detector and mass spectrometry. Echinochrome A contributed considerably to the antioxidant activity of the extracts while those containing echinochrome A and spinochrome E were significantly active against various bacteria. The promising results laid the foundation for establishing a novel process from food waste to innovative biomaterial and formulating eco-friendly skincare products with PHNQ components from sea urchins as precious ingredient.

Renewable Polysaccharides Micro/Nanostructures for Food and Cosmetic Applications

The worldwide diffusion of nanotechnologies into products nowadays has completely revolutionized human life, providing novel comfort and benefits. Their inclusion in food and cosmetic has a heavy impact over the market, allowing the development of higher value products with enhanced properties. Natural origin polymers and in particular polysaccharides represent a versatile platform of materials for the development of micro/nanostructured additives for food and cosmetic products due to their chemical versatility, biocompatibility, and abundance. Here, we review the current applications of polysaccharides-based micro/nanostructures, taking into consideration the precursors' production, isolation, and extraction methods and highlighting the advantages, possible drawbacks, and market diffusion.

A Critical Review of the Abilities, Determinants, and Possible Molecular Mechanisms of Seaweed Polysaccharides Antioxidants

Oxidative stress induces various cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, and cancer diseases, caused by excess reactive oxygen species (ROS). It is attributed to the lack of sufficient antioxidant defense capacity to eliminate unnecessary ROS. Seaweeds are largely cultivated for their edible and commercial purposes. Excessive proliferation of some seaweeds has occurred in coastal areas, causing environmental and economic disasters, and even threating human health. Removing and disposing of the excess seaweeds are costly and labor-intensive with few rewards. Therefore, improving the value of seaweeds utilizes this resource, but also deals with the accumulated biomass in the environment. Seaweed has been demonstrated to be a great source of polysaccharides antioxidants, which are effective in enhancing the antioxidant system in humans and animals. They have been reported to be a healthful method to prevent and/or reduce oxidative damage. Current studies indicate that they have a good potential for treating various diseases. Polysaccharides, the main components in seaweeds, are commonly used as industrial feedstock. They are readily extracted by aqueous and acetone solutions. This study attempts to review the current researches related to seaweed polysaccharides as an antioxidant. We discuss the main categories, their antioxidant abilities, their determinants, and their possible molecular mechanisms of action. This review proposes possible high-value ways to utilize seaweed resources.

Highlighting the Biological Potential of the Brown Seaweed Fucus spiralis for Skin Applications

Skin aging is a biological process influenced by intrinsic and extrinsic factors. The last ones, mainly exposure to UV radiation, increases reactive oxygen species (ROS) production leading to a loss of extracellular matrix, also enhanced by enzymatic degradation of matrix supporting molecules. Thus, and with the growing demand for eco-friendly skin products, natural compounds extracted from brown seaweeds revealed to be good candidates due to their broad range of bioactivities, especially as antioxidants. The aim of this study was to assess the dermo-cosmetic potential of different fractions obtained from the brown seaweed Fucus spiralis. For this purpose, in vitro antioxidant (Total Phenolic Content (TPC), 1,1-Diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity, Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Power (FRAP), Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC)), anti-enzymatic (collagenase, elastase and hyaluronidase), antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory (NO production) and photoprotective (ROS production) capacities were evaluated. Although nearly all fractions evidenced antioxidant effects, fraction F10 demonstrated the highest antioxidant ability (EC₅₀ of 38.5 µg/mL, DPPH assay), and exhibited a strong effect as an inhibitor of collagenase (0.037 µg/mL) and elastase (3.0 µg/mL). Moreover, this fraction was also the most potent on reducing ROS production promoted by H₂O₂ (IC₅₀ of 41.3 µg/mL) and by UVB (IC₅₀ of 31.3 µg/mL). These bioactivities can be attributed to its high content of phlorotannins, as evaluated by LC-MS analysis, reinforcing the potential of F. spiralis for further dermatological applications.

Phycocosmetics and Other Marine Cosmetics, Specific Cosmetics Formulated Using Marine Resources

Marine resources exist in vast numbers and show enormous diversity. As a result, there are likely many possible applications for marine molecules of interest in the cosmetic industry, whether as excipients or additives, but especially as active substances. It is possible to obtain extracts from active substances; for example, quite a few algae species can be used in moisturizing or anti-ageing products. In the field of topical photoprotection, mycosporine-like amino acids and gadusol are important lines of enquiry that should not be overlooked. In the field of additives, the demonstration that certain seaweed (algae) extracts have antimicrobial properties suggests that they could provide alternatives to currently authorized preservatives. These promising leads must be explored, but it should be kept in mind that it is a long process to bring ingredients to market that are both effective and safe to use.

Isolation, Characterization, and Antioxidant Activity Evaluation of a Fucoidan from an Enzymatic Digest of the Edible Seaweed, Hizikia fusiforme

The previous study suggested that the sulfated polysaccharides from Hizikia fusiforme (HFPS) possess strong antioxidant activity. The purpose of this study is to isolate fucoidan from HFPS and to investigate its antioxidant activity. A fucoidan (HFPS-F4) with a molecular weight of 102.67 kDa was isolated from HFPS. HFPS-F4 contains 99.01% of fucoidan (71.79 ± 0.56% of carbohydrate and 27.22 ± 0.05% of sulfate content). The fucoidan increased the viability of H₂O₂-treated Vero cells by 5.41, 11.17, and 16.32% at the concentration of 12.5, 25, and 50 μg/mL, respectively. Further results demonstrated that this effect act diminishing apoptosis by scavenging intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) via increasing the expression of the endogenous antioxidant enzymes, which was induced by elevating total nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (Nrf2) levels. In addition, the in vivo test results displayed that the pretreatment of fucoidan improved the survival rates and decreased heart-beating rate, ROS, cell death, and lipid peroxidation in H₂O₂-stimulated zebrafish. Taken together, these results demonstrated that fucoidan isolated from HFPS has strong in vitro and in vivo antioxidant activities and it could be utilized in pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, and cosmeceutical industries.

Human Keratinocyte UVB-Protective Effects of a Low Molecular Weight Fucoidan from Sargassum horneri Purified by Step Gradient Ethanol Precipitation

Ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation-induced oxidative skin cell damage is a major cause of photoaging. In the present study, a low molecular weight fucoidan fraction (SHC4) was obtained from Sargassum horneri by Celluclast-assisted extraction, followed by step gradient ethanol precipitation. The protective effect of SHC4 was investigated in human keratinocytes against UVB-induced oxidative stress. The purified fucoidan was characterized by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ¹H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), agarose gel-based molecular weight analysis and monosaccharide composition analysis. SHC4 had a mean molecular weight of 60 kDa, with 37.43% fucose and 28.01 ± 0.50% sulfate content. The structure was mainly composed of α-L-Fucp-(1→4) linked fucose units. SHC4 treatment dose-dependently reduced intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels and increased the cell viability of UVB exposed HaCaT keratinocytes. Moreover, SHC4 dose-dependently inhibited UVB-induced apoptotic body formation, sub-G₁ accumulation of cells and DNA damage. Inhibition of apoptosis was mediated via the mitochondria-mediated pathway, re-establishing the loss of mitochondrial membrane potential. The UVB protective effect of SHC4 was facilitated by enhancing intracellular antioxidant defense via nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)/heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) signaling. Further studies may promote the use of SHC4 as an active ingredient in cosmetics and nutricosmetics.

A Brief Review of Nutraceutical Ingredients in Gastrointestinal Disorders: Evidence and Suggestions

The dietary effect on gut health has long been recognized through the empirical practice of soothing gastric discomfort with certain types of food, and recently the correlation between specific diets with lower incidences of several gastrointestinal diseases has been revealed. Ingredients from those considered beneficial foods have been isolated and studied, and some of them have already been put into the supplement market. In this review, we focus on latest studies of these food-derived ingredients for their proposed preventive and therapeutic roles in gastrointestinal disorders, with the attempt of drawing evidence-based suggestions on consuming these products.

Marine Seaweed Polysaccharides-Based Engineered Cues for the Modern Biomedical Sector

Seaweed-derived polysaccharides with unique structural and functional entities have gained special research attention in the current medical sector. Seaweed polysaccharides have been or being used to engineer novel cues with biomedical values to tackle in practice the limitations of counterparts which have become ineffective for 21st-century settings. The inherited features of seaweed polysaccharides, such as those of a biologically tunable, biocompatible, biodegradable, renewable, and non-toxic nature, urge researchers to use them to design therapeutically effective, efficient, controlled delivery, patient-compliant, and age-compliant drug delivery platforms. Based on their significant retention capabilities, tunable active units, swelling, and colloidal features, seaweed polysaccharides have appeared as highly useful materials for modulating drug-delivery and tissue-engineering systems. This paper presents a standard methodological approach to review the literature using inclusion-exclusion criteria, which is mostly ignored in the reported literature. Following that, numerous marine-based seaweed polysaccharides are discussed with suitable examples. For the applied perspectives, part of the review is focused on the biomedical values, i.e., targeted drug delivery, wound-curative potential, anticancer potentialities, tissue-engineering aspects, and ultraviolet (UV) protectant potential of seaweed polysaccharides based engineered cues. Finally, current challenges, gaps, and future perspectives have been included in this review.

Potential Use of Seaweed Bioactive Compounds in Skincare-A Review

Modern lifestyles have developed new attention on appearance and personal care which attract a huge number of consumers towards cosmetic products. The demand for a skincare product with natural ingredients is rapidly increasing. Seaweeds are major resources for in-demand active compounds with a wide variety of applications. The use of seaweed-derived ingredients in cosmetic products has increased in recent years as many scientific studies have proved the potential skincare properties of seaweed bioactive compounds. This review emphasizes possible skincare properties of seaweed bioactive compounds. The review outlines the mechanism involved in skin problems including hyperpigmentation, premature skin aging, and acne in the first part while the second part focuses on the promising application of seaweeds in skin protection by highlighting the bioactive compound responsible for their bioactivity.

Aquaculture and by-products: Challenges and opportunities in the use of alternative protein sources and bioactive compounds

There is a growing concern about chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, cancer and cardiovascular diseases resulting from profound changes in the western lifestyle. Aquaculture by-products are generated in large quantities and they can be profitably recycled through their bioactive compounds used for health or food supplements. Improving waste utilization in the field of aquaculture is essential for a sustainable industry to prevent or minimize the environmental impact. In this sense fish by-products are a great source of protein and omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids which are particularly studied on Atlantic salmon or rainbow trout. Fish protein hydrolysate (FPH) obtained from chemical, enzymatical and microbial hydrolysis of processing by-products are being used as a source of amino acids and peptides with high digestibility, fast absorption and important biological activities. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic (EPA) and docosahexaenoic (DHA) from fish discards have been reported to decrease postprandial triacylglycerol levels, reduction of blood pressure, platelet aggregation and the inflammatory response. Crustacean by-products can also be used to produce chitosan with antioxidant and antimicrobial activity for food and pharmaceutical industries and carotenoids with important biological activity. Seaweeds are rich in bioactive compounds such as alginate, carrageenan, agar, carotenoids and polyphenols with different biological activities such as antioxidant, anticancer, antidiabetic, antimicrobial or anti-inflammatory activity. Finally, regarding harvest microalgae, during the past decades, they were mainly used in the healthy food market, with >75% of the annual microalgal biomass production, used for the manufacture of powders, tablets, capsules or pills. We will report and discuss the present and future role of aquaculture by-products as sources of biomolecules for the design and development of functional foods/beverages. This chapter will focus on the main bioactive compounds from aquaculture by-products as functional compounds in food and their applications in biomedicine for the prevention and treatment of diseases.

Structure Determination of Large Isomeric Oligosaccharides of Natural Origin through Multipass and Multistage Cyclic Traveling-Wave Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometry

Carbohydrate isomers with identical atomic composition cannot be distinguished by mass spectrometry. By separating the ions according to their conformation in the gas phase, ion mobility (IM) coupled to mass spectrometry is an attractive approach to overcome this issue and extend the limits of mass spectrometry in structural glycosciences. Recent technological developments have significantly increased the resolving power of ion mobility separators. One such instrument features a cyclic traveling-wave IM separator integrated in a quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometer. This system allows for multipass ion separations and for pre-, intra-, and post-IM fragmentation. In the present study, we utilize this system to explore a complex mixture of oligoporphyrans derived from the enzymatic digestion of the cell wall of the red alga P. umbilicalis. We are able to deduce their complete structure using IM arrival times and the m/z of specific fragments. This approach was successfully applied for sequencing of oligoporphyrans of up to 1500 Da and included the positioning of the methyl ether and sulfate groups. The structures defined in this study by IM-MS/MS agree with those found in the past but use much more time-consuming analytical approaches. This study also revealed some so far undescribed structures, present at very low abundance. In addition, the results made it possible to compare the abundance of the different isomers released by the enzyme and to draw further conclusions on the specificity of β-porphyranase and more particularly on its accommodation tolerance of anhydro-bridges in subsites. Finally, a separation of two isomers with very similar mobility was obtained after 58 passes around the cIM, with an estimated resolving power of 920 for these triply charged species, confirming the structures attributed to these two isomers.

Enzymatic Extraction, Purification, and Characterization of Polysaccharides from Penthorum chinense Pursh: Natural Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory

Penthorum chinense Pursh (PCP) is a kind of functional food or medicine for liver protection. In the present work, Plackett-Burman design, steepest ascent method, and response surface methodology (RSM) were employed to obtain maximum total sugar yield. The experimental yield of 6.91% indicated a close agreement with the predicted yield of 7.00% of the model under optimized conditions. The major polysaccharide fraction (PCPP-1a) from PCPP was purified and identified as acidic polysaccharides with a high content of uronic acid (FT-IR, UV, HPGPC). PCPP had similar monosaccharide profile with PCPP-1a but was rich in galacturonic acid (HPLC). Both of PCPP and PCPP-1a possessed strong hydroxyl radical scavenging, DPPH radical scavenging, and Fe²⁺ chelating activities. Moreover, they were revealed to show strong anti-inflammatory activities by inhibiting NO, TNF-α, and IL-1β release compared to LPS treatment in RAW264.7 cells. These data suggest that the polysaccharides from PCP could be potential natural products for treating ROS and inflammatory-related diseases.