Potential health benefits of fucoidan from the brown seaweeds Sargassum plagiophyllum and Sargassum polycystum

Abstract

Fucoidan from brown seaweed has been proposed as a potential therapeutic due to its properties. Fucoidan is a sulfated polysaccharide and has been shown to have several biological activities, including antibacterial, antiviral, and anticoagulant. In this study, fucoidan was extracted from Sargassum plagiophyllum, Sargassum aquifolium, and Sargassum polycystum collected from southern Thailand. Fucoidan from S. plagiophyllum and S. polycystum was obtained in significantly higher yields (3.6-fold) than that obtained from S. aquifolium. Fucoidan from the former two seaweed species with higher fucoidan contents was evaluated for its potential benefits. The fucoidan extracted from S. plagiophyllum and S. polycystum contained both sulfate and glucuronic acid conjugates at approximately 28.0% and 7.7% of the fucoidan content and 33.5% and 12.8% of the fucoidan content, respectively. In addition, fucoidan extracted from both S. plagiophyllum and S. polycystum had antioxidant activity and suppressed tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) production from lipopolysaccharide (LPS) activated macrophages. Interestingly, the half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50 values) of fucoidan in the breast cancer cell line MCF-7 were 250 μg mL−1 from S. plagiophyllum and 190 μg mL−1 from S. polycystum. Additionally, 200 μg mL−1 fucoidan from both species had inhibitory properties similar to those of the anti-cholesterol drug simvastatin in Randox reaction cholesterol assays. Overall, the results of this study imply that fucoidan from S. plagiophyllum and S. polycystum has potential health benefits. This study confirms the beneficial properties of fucoidan from its habitat in southern Thailand. Herein is the first report of the bioactivities of fucoidan from S. plagiophyllum, while the bioactivities of fucoidan from S. polycystum were used for comparative study. However, both fucoidans require further research.