In Vitro Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Fucoidans from Five Species of Brown Seaweeds

Abstract

This study aimed to compare the anti-inflammatory effects of fucoidans from brown seaweeds (Saccharina japonica (SJ), Fucus vesiculosus (FV), Fucus distichus (FD), Fucus serratus (FS), and Ascophyllum nodosum (AN)), and determine the relationship between composition and biological activity. The anti-inflammatory activity was tested in vitro. It is believed that inflammation could be triggered by free radicals. Fucoidans from F. vesiculosus (FV1 and FV3) showed the strongest 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity with an IC50 = 0.05 mg/mL. In the total antioxidant capacity (TAC) test, the activity was concentration-dependent. Notable, the TAC of fucoidans except samples of FV2 and SJ (which have a lower phenolic content) was higher than that of phloroglucinol. The TAC of fucoidans strongly and positively correlated with polyphenol content. A weak correlation was associated with xylose content. The synergistic effect for fucoidans was calculated for the first time using carbohydrates and polyphenols as model mixtures. The synergy in the DPPH test was found only for FV1 and FV3 (mixture effect ME = 2.68 and 2.04, respectively). The ME strongly positively correlated with polyphenols. The relationship of ME with fucose content was positive but moderate. It was first established that the anti-inflammatory effects of fucoidan could be mediated via the inhibition of protein denaturation. The inhibition was concentration-dependent and strongly correlated with the fucose content and moderate with sulfate content. The purified fucoidan FV2 showed the most promising activity (IC50 = 0.20 mg/mL vs. IC50 = 0.37 mg/mL for diclofenac sodium). Similar relations were also observed in the membrane protection model. Fucoidans were able to stabilize the cell membrane integrity of human red blood corpuscles (HRBC). The results of our study support the rationality of fucoidan use as a promising agent for the treatment of inflammatory-related diseases via mechanisms of radical scavenging, antioxidant activity, inhibition of protein denaturation, and HRBC membrane stabilization.

Characterization and Cytotoxic Activity of Microwave-Assisted Extracted Crude Fucoidans from Different Brown Seaweeds

“…Following Obluchinskaya et al with some modifications [ 12 ], 10 mg of each fucoidan sample were hydrolyzed in 0.5 mL 2 M trifluoracetic acid at 100 °C for 3 h. Following that, the solutions were cooled in ice bath and then the pH was adjusted at 7.0 by 2 M NaOH. The analyzed samples were hydrolyzed fucoidans in addition to several neutral sugar monomers as glucose, fucose, galactose, mannose, and rhamnose.…”

“…Fucoidans have shown potential bioactivities, including antioxidant, anti-coagulant, anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, and management of metabolic diseases and kidney dysfunction [ 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ] with furtherly formulated in pharmaceutical preparations as an essential step for clinical investigations and commercial marketing [ 20 ]. However, the recent studies found that the antioxidant activity is correlated potentially with the phenolic contents in crude fucoidan extracts [ 21 ].…”

“…However, the recent studies found that the antioxidant activity is correlated potentially with the phenolic contents in crude fucoidan extracts [ 21 ]. Interestingly, fucoidans’ chemical and physico-chemical properties have been successfully related with their bioactivities in numerous structure-activity relationship studies such as sulfation degree and molecular weight, and monomeric composition [ 12 , 21 , 22 ]. Particularly, the antitumor activity of fucoidan fractions is typically attributed to low molecular weight and high sulfation degree [ 23 , 24 ].…”

Fucoidan in Pharmaceutical Formulations: A Comprehensive Review for Smart Drug Delivery Systems

“…As a result of the relatively high molecular weight, negatively charged sulfate groups, and hydrophilicity, fucoidans generally have a low skin permeation coefficient. It was also found that the anti-inflammatory effect of fucoidan, especially that based on the inhibition of protein denaturation, is dependent on the fucose and sulfate content of the extract obtained from five different brown seaweed species, which are Saccharina japonica, F. vesiculosus, Fucus distichus, Fucus serratus, and Ascophyllum nodosum [ 74 ].…”

Evaluating the Skin Interactions and Permeation of Alginate/Fucoidan Hydrogels Per Se and Associated with Different Essential Oils

“…Fucoidan is essentially composed of L-fucose and sulfate ester groups, presenting different biological activities dependent on its source and its molecular weight, type of sugar content, sulfation degree, molecular structure, harvesting, and extraction conditions [ 16 ]. The most reported properties are antitumor [ 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 ], antiviral [ 22 , 23 ], anti-inflammatory [ 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 ], and anticoagulant [ 26 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 ], but also skin management potential [ 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 ]. Pozharitskaya and colleagues evidenced the cutaneous application of fucoidan with pharmacokinetic studies in rats, which indicated fucoidan’s ability to cross the skin barrier and accumulate in the striated muscles [ 38 ].…”