A comparative study of Sargassum horneri Korea and China strains collected along the coast of Jeju Island South Korea: its components and bioactive properties

Abstract

Sargassu in horneri is edible brown seaweed abundant along the coasts of Jeju Island, South Korea In addition to the native S. horneri population, a large amount of S. horneri has been found to invade Jeju Island from the east coast of China Thus, S. horneri of both Korea (SK) and China (SC) strains now inhabits along with the shore of Jeju Island and have become a threat to the coastal biodiversity. However, they could be used in obtaining functional ingredients for industrial level applications provided an optimized cost effective strategy. In the present study, we compared SK and SC strains for the extraction efficiency, components, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties of 80% methanolic extracts and their partially purified fractions. According to the results, two strains indicated similar bioactive properties such as DPPH and alkyl radical scavenging activity as well as anti-inflammatory activities on lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. The yield of 80% methanol extract from SC was higher than SK. However, the yields of the ethyl acetate and chloroform fractions from SK were higher than those of SC strain. The major peaks in the high-performance liquid chromatography chromatograms, which was identified as Apo-9 fucoxanthinone, indicated that both methanolic extracts of SK and SC contains major target peaks but with different amounts. This study might be useful for developing functional materials from SC and SK in future.