Trends, Prospects and Utilizations of Sea Cucumber Fisheries in Malaysia

Abstract

Abstract-The holothurian or sea cucumber is one of the marine resources, which has been used not only as luxury food for certain countries but also as medicines. Because of its' higher nutraceutical and pharmaceutical values, sea cucumber has become one of the most important products and it has high price in international market and thus provide an important employment and income source to the coastal communities in many Pacific island countries including Malaysia. They have been harvested for hundreds of years for trade with Asia and were probably one of the worthy exports from the Indo-Pacific islands. Unfortunately, the increase in demand and price, combined with the development of cash economies and growing coastal populations in many islands, has led to widespread overfishing of the resource across much of this region. There is a high level of interest in adoption of aquaculture and stock enhancement techniques to restore production phases, but different capacity levels require implementation of different techniques. Some Pacific island countries and territories have completed successful research trials of hatchery, nursery and release techniques, and now have capacity to scale up this activity but such types of research are still in the initial stage in Malaysia. Factors that work in favor of successful aquaculture include pristine marine environments, long familiarity with sea cucumbers as a commodity, and traditional marine tenure systems that in some places can provide a basis for management of released sea cucumbers. Currently, the exploitation of sea cucumber turns out to be excessive and disrupts its sustainability. Aquaculture is the best way to prevent this severe problem. The success of sea cucumber culture is very depending on broodstock management, seed availability and suitable food for larvae as well as juvenile along with appropriate grow-out culture techniques under controlled rearing protocols.

Wild sea cucumber trade in rural Madagascar: Consequences for conservation and human welfare

“…Those who collected sea cucumbers during the prior year became significantly wealthier and more food secure than those who did not. This is consistent with findings in the southwest of Madagascar and globally, where households depend on collecting sea cucumbers as part of their income by farming them in shallow waters (Al-Rashdi & Claereboudt, 2010;Purcell et al, 2018;Rasolofonirina et al, 2003;Zulfaqar et al, 2016). Yet, farming is not a viable option for collectors in many regions due to the lack of shallow waters they require.…”

Acaudina molpadioides mediates lipid uptake by suppressing PCSK9 transcription and increasing LDL receptor in human liver cells

“…Acaudina molpadioides or locally known as sea potato has gained popularity among researchers in recent decades, not only due to their nutritive value, but also due to their potential health benefits and therapeutic uses ( Khotimchenko, 2018 ). It has a long history as a traditional food and folk medicine which can be explored as a potential source of high-value components for functional foods and the nutraceutical industry ( Zulfaqar et al, 2016 ). With the discovery of PCSK9 as a regulator of LDL-C uptake by liver cells, more studies are required to elucidate the mechanisms through which the natural products may play an important in modulating the expression of this protein as therapeutic intervention in the treatment of hypercholesterolemia and the outset of atherosclerosis.…”

Echinoderm fisheries: their culture, conservation, bioactive compounds and therapeutic applications

“…Therapeutic properties and medicinal benefits of sea cucumbers can be linked to the presence of a wide array of bioactive compounds (Bordbar et al, 2011;Rahman, 2014a;Rahman, 2014b;Rahman, 2014c;Rahman et al, 2015;Rahman et al, 2017a;Rahman et al, 2017b), especially triterpene glycosides (saponins) (Kerr and Chen, 1995), chondroitin sulfates (Vieira et al, 1991), glycosaminoglycan (Pacheco et al, 2000), sulfated polysaccharides (Mourao and Pereira, 1999), sterols (glycosides and sulfates) (Goad et al, 1985), phenolics (Mamelona et al, 2007), cerberosides (Sugawara et al, 2006), lectins (Mojica and Merca, 2005), peptides (Rafiuddin et al, 2004), glycoprotein, glycosphingolipids and essential fatty acids (Bordbar et al, 2011). However, the multiple biological, nutritional and therapeutic properties of sea cucumbers with respect to their potential and significant uses for functional foods, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical products and human health benefits have recently been well-documented (Rahman et al, 2015;Zulfaqar et al, 2016a;Zulfaqar et al, 2016b;Rahman et al, 2017a;Rahman et al, 2017b;Rahman et al, 2020). Sea cucumbers are also one of the delicacies of fine Chinese cuisine and are of cultural importance.…”