Marine sources have been attracting the attention of scientists and manufacturers worldwide hoping to find new alternatives for biological active substances. Promising new research indicates that sea cucumber, which is slug-like in appearance and has been a staple in Japan, China and other parts of East Asia since ancient times, is beginning to gain popularity as a dietary supplement in western countries. The roles of sea cucumber extracts in various physiological functions have spurred researchers to investigate the ability of sea cucumber to be an alternative in neutraceutical and medical applications. This article provides a brief introduction to sea cucumber and reviews its numerous bioactive compounds, such as triterpene glycosides, glycosaminoglycans, gangliosides, collagen, branched-chain fatty acid and lectins, which serve as potential sources of neutraceutical, pharmaceutical and cosmetic agents, thus providing a new platform in biochemical research.

No abstract

Acid‐soluble collagen (ASC) and pepsin‐soluble collagen (PSC) were extracted from the muscles of selected cultured catfish (hybrid of Clarias gariepinus x Clarias macrocephalus), red tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), black tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus), pangasius catfish (Pangasius sutchi), sultan fish (Leptobarbus hoevenii) and labyrinth fish (Trichogaster trichopterus), freshwater fishes that are widely consumed in Malaysia. The extracted yields for the tested species were higher for PSC as compared with ASC. The catfish contained the highest amount of collagen (PSC) at 368.36 ± 12.05 mg collagen/g muscles. A mathematical description of the principle kinetics involved in collagen extraction was attained using four two‐parametric models, namely the power law, parabolic diffusion, Peleg's and Elovich's models. The power law model was found to be the best model capable of predicting the extraction data with R2 = 0.993, P value = 0.033% and root mean square deviation = 2.605%, respectively. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS Utilization of fish collagen has been favorable over that of mammalian sources, mainly in making more effective use of underutilized resources. The application of acid‐extraction technology to recover and isolate collagen from Malaysian freshwater fish muscles would be able to boost up the commercial values of these cheap and underutilized protein sources while assisting in conservation of these natural resources in Malaysia. Mathematic models proposed in this study were also proven to be successful in governing and describing the kinetics of collagen extraction process.

In this study, a biodegradable alternative to synthetic plastics was explored, where gelatinized corn starch was blended with polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) using the solution casting method at different ratios. Tensile tests showed that films made of only starch exhibited the lowest tensile strength at 3.66 MPa, which increased as the ratio of PVA in the blend was raised. The water vapor transmission rate was similar even when the starch content was changed. PVA was shown to increase the solubility of the film in water, and starch demonstrated a better ability to absorb water than that of PVA, with the pure starch film swelled up to 167% of its original weight. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) analysis revealed that there was no significant chemical interaction between the starch and PVA which could alter their respective functional groups. Bioplastic films made of only starch showed the least amount of degradation after 3 days when buried in soil, while water uptake in films made of PVA caused it to turn into a sticky gel‐like substance. Chlorella vulgaris exhibited a higher preference for PVA as the substrate when compared to starch. This revealed that C. vulgaris showed promise as a candidate for breaking down the bioplastic films when grown as a heterotroph.

No abstract