Seaweeds :: Biology, Biodiversity, Marine Food

Seaweeds belong to a group of organisms that has enormous ecological importance and represent a significant proportion of the world’s biodiversity. Seaweeds have always been of great interest in Asian culture as marine food sources (Rioux et al., 2009). In contrast, Seaweeds represent an important economical resource mostly in the countries of East and south Asia where they are not only largely harvested but also intensively and largely employed in the human nutrition (Caliceti et al., 2002). They can be classified as green algae (Chlorophyta), red algae (Rhodophyta) and brown algae (Phaeophyta) depending on their nutrient and chemical composition (Dawczynski et al., 2007). In addition, the seaweed industry uses tones of wet seaweeds annually, either from the wild or from cultivated crop (Dhargalkar and Verlecar, 2009). Seaweeds or marine macroalgae are potential renewable resource in the marine environment and known to be extremely rich source of bioactive compounds (Chandini et al., 2008). Therefore, algae can be a very interesting natural source of new metabolites with various biological activities that could be used as functional ingredients (Plaza et al., 2008). Biological activities are correlated to the presence of chemical compounds, particularly secondary metabolites. The presence of these compounds may assist in predicting some traditional uses of medicinal plants (Kamatou et al, 2008). However, novel potential areas have to be explored in order to maximize the effective utilization of seaweeds. The Phaeophyceae or brown seaweeds are a large group of multicellular algae, and they play an important role in marine environments both as food, and for the habitats they form. Most brown seaweeds contain the pigment fucoxanthin and various pheophycean tannins which are responsible for the distinctive greenish-brown color as the name indicated. Worldwide there are about 1500 species of brown seaweeds and they produce vast numbers of useful secondary metabolites (Davis et al., 2003, Reddy and Urban, 2009). Some species are of sufficient commercial importance, such that they have become subjects of extensive research in their own right. The term cosmeceutical is now commonly used to describe a cosmetic product that exerts a pharmaceutical therapeutic benefit (Choi and Berson, 2006). Therefore, cosmeceuticals are cosmetic products with biologically active ingredients purporting to have medical or drug-like benefits. Dermatological research suggests that the bioactive ingredients used in cosmeceuticals do indeed have benefits beyond the traditional cosmetics such as creams, lotions, and ointments (Chen et al., 2005). There are number of synthetic components have been extensively used as ingredients for cosmetics. Seaweeds :: Biology, Biodiversity, Marine Food Seaweeds belong to a group of organisms that has enormous ecological importance and represent a significant proportion of the world’s biodiversity. Seaweeds have always been of great interest in Asian culture as marine food sources (Rioux et al., 2009). In contrast, Seaweeds represent an important economical resource mostly in the countries of East and south Asia where they are not only largely harvested but also intensively and largely employed in the human nutrition (Caliceti et al., 2002). They can be classified as green algae (Chlorophyta), red algae (Rhodophyta) and brown algae (Phaeophyta) depending on their nutrient and chemical composition (Dawczynski et al., 2007). In addition, the seaweed industry uses tones of wet seaweeds annually, either from the wild or from cultivated crop (Dhargalkar and Verlecar, 2009). Seaweeds or marine macroalgae are potential renewable resource in the marine environment and known to be extremely rich source of bioactive compounds (Chandini et al., 2008). Therefore, algae can be a very interesting natural source of new metabolites with various biological activities that could be used as functional ingredients (Plaza et al., 2008). Biological activities are correlated to the presence of chemical compounds, particularly secondary metabolites. The presence of these compounds may assist in predicting some traditional uses of medicinal plants (Kamatou et al, 2008). However, novel potential areas have to be explored in order to maximize the effective utilization of seaweeds. The Phaeophyceae or brown seaweeds are a large group of multicellular algae, and they play an important role in marine environments both as food, and for the habitats they form. Most brown seaweeds contain the pigment fucoxanthin and various pheophycean tannins which are responsible for the distinctive greenish-brown color as the name indicated. Worldwide there are about 1500 species of brown seaweeds and they produce vast numbers of useful secondary metabolites (Davis et al., 2003, Reddy and Urban, 2009). Some species are of sufficient commercial importance, such that they have become subjects of extensive research in their own right. The term cosmeceutical is now commonly used to describe a cosmetic product that exerts a pharmaceutical therapeutic benefit (Choi and Berson, 2006). Therefore, cosmeceuticals are cosmetic products with biologically active ingredients purporting to have medical or drug-like benefits. Dermatological research suggests that the bioactive ingredients used in cosmeceuticals do indeed have benefits beyond the traditional cosmetics such as creams, lotions, and ointments (Chen et al., 2005). There are number of synthetic components have been extensively used as ingredients for cosmetics.