Lipophilic Fraction of Cultivated Bifurcaria bifurcata R. Ross: Detailed Composition and In Vitro Prospection of Current Challenging Bioactive Properties

abstract

Macroalgae have been seen as an alternative source of molecules with promising bioactivities to use in the prevention and treatment of current lifestyle diseases. In this vein, the lipophilic fraction of short-term (three weeks) cultivated Bifurcaria bifurcata was characterized in detail by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). B. bifurcata dichloromethane extract was composed mainly by diterpenes (1892.78 +/- 133.97 mg kg(-1) dry weight (DW)), followed by fatty acids, both saturated (550.35 +/- 15.67 mg kg(-1) DW) and unsaturated (397.06 +/- 18.44 mg kg(-1) DW). Considerable amounts of sterols, namely fucosterol (317.68 +/- 26.11 mg kg(-1) DW) were also found. In vitro tests demonstrated that the B. bifurcata lipophilic extract show antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial activities (against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria), using low extract concentrations (in the order of mu g mL(-1)). Enhancement of antibiotic activity of drug families of major clinical importance was observed by the use of B. bifurcata extract. This enhancement of antibiotic activity depends on the microbial strain and on the antibiotic. This work represents the first detailed phytochemical study of the lipophilic extract of B. bifurcata and is, therefore, an important contribution for the valorization of B. bifurcata macroalgae, with promising applications in functional foods, nutraceutical, cosmetic and biomedical fields.

keywords

MINIMAL INHIBITORY CONCENTRATION; ALGA CYSTOPHORA-MONILIFORMIS; FATTY-ACIDS; NATURAL-PRODUCTS; ANTIINFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY; MARINE MACROALGAE; BROWN SEAWEEDS; RICH SOURCE; DITERPENES; PHYTOCHEMICALS

subject category

Pharmacology & Pharmacy

authors

Santos, SAO; Trindade, SS; Oliveira, CSD; Parreira, P; Rosa, D; Duarte, MF; Ferreira, I; Cruz, MT; Rego, AM; Abreu, MH; Rocha, SM; Silvestre, AJD

our authors

acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank to FCT-Portugal (Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia) and POPH/FSE for the postdoctoral grant to S.A.O.S. (SFRH/BPD/84226/2012), PhD grant to I.F. (SFRH/BD/110717/2015), for CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials, POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007679 (FCT Ref. UID/CTM/50011/2013), QOPNA research unit (FCT UID/QUI/00062/2013) financed by national funds through the FCT/MEC and when applicable co-financed by FEDER under the PT2020 Partnership Agreement and CNC financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), through the Centro 2020 Regional Operational Program: project CENTRO-01-0145-FEDER-000012-HealthyAging2020, the COMPETE 2020-Operational Program for Competitiveness and Internationalization, and the Portuguese national funds via FCT-Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia, I.P.: project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-007440. The work was also supported by FEDER funds through the Operational Program Competitiveness Factors-COMPETE and national funds by FCT under the strategic project UID/NEU/04539/2013. M.F.D. also acknowledges FCT for the financial support under the Project UID/AGR/00115/2013. Part of the work of ALGAplus team was funded by the project SEACOLORS, LIFE13 ENV/ES/000445; the team also wishes to thank intern Raquel Silva.

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