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Review
. 2020 Oct 14:2020:2417410.
doi: 10.1155/2020/2417410. eCollection 2020.

Pharmaceutical and Nutraceutical Potential Applications of Sargassum fulvellum

Jian Liu  1   2 , Sibusiso Luthuli  1 , Qifang Wu  1 , Mingjiang Wu  1 , Jong-Il Choi  2 , Haibin Tong  1
Affiliations
Review

Pharmaceutical and Nutraceutical Potential Applications of Sargassum fulvellum

Jian Liu et al. Biomed Res Int. .

Abstract

Sargassum fulvellum is a brown seaweed of the Sargassaceae family which has been demonstrated to exhibit antipyretic, analgesic, antiedema, antimicrobial, antioxidant, antitumor, neuroprotective, anticoagulative, anti-inflammatory, and hepatoprotective activities. It has been widely used as a food additive and as a medicine in oriental medicine to treat lumps, dropsy, swelling, testicular pains, and urinary problems. S. fulvellum has been identified as a potential producer of a wide spectrum of natural compounds such as carotenoids, fucoidans, and phlorotannins, showing different biological activities in various industrial applications including pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, cosmeceutical, and functional food. However, the promising health effects associated with the extracts and compounds isolated from S. fulvellum have not been reviewed to date. The present review thus focuses on the biological activity of S. fulvellum as reported by previous publications, which include antioxidant, anticoagulant, anti-inflammatory, neuroprotective, immunomodulatory, antidiabetic, and anticancer effects. Thus, this review might serve to increase the utilization of this invaluable natural source as a potential component in pharmaceutical and nutraceutical applications.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Example structures of the primary types of phlorotannins: fucols (a); phlorethols (b); fucophlorethols (c).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Structures of bioactive compounds isolated from S. fulvellum.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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MeSH terms

Substances