Extraction, Physicochemical Characterization and Pharmacological Evaluation of Alginate from a Mediterranean Species of Brown Algae Dictyopteris membranaceae

Abstract

Brown seaweeds have attracted the attention of research. Alginates, one of the components of brown seaweed, are the subject of our study. In this work, we present the extraction, the physico-chemical characterization and the pharmacological evaluation of alginate from the brown seaweed Dictyopteris membranaceae. The extraction of alginates from brown seaweed was conducted using Rioux et al. method with few modifications. The characterization of alginates was then preceded by infra-red spectroscopy. The content of different components was determined using Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy. Molecular properties were determined using size exclusion chromatography. The results of our study showed that the yield of extraction of alginate from Dictyopteris membranacea is 7% of dry weight. Protein, total sugar and alginic acid content were determined using colorimetric assays. The results are comparable to those reported in literature. The infra-red spectrum confirmed the nature of our extract. The molecular weight is 77823 Daltons. Additionally, our extract presented a higher gastroprotective activity at 200mg/Kg than sucralfate administered at the same dose. Our results suggest that alginate from Dictyopteris membranaceae could be used as a gastroprotective agent.