The ever-increasing interest in keeping a young appearance and healthy skin has leveraged the skincare industry. This, coupled together with the increased concern regarding the safety of synthetic products, has boosted the demand for new and safer natural ingredients. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to evaluate the dermatological potential of the brown seaweed Carpomitra costata. The antioxidant, anti-enzymatic, antimicrobial, photoprotective and anti-inflammatory properties of five C. costata fractions (F1–F5) were evaluated. The ethyl acetate fraction (F3) demonstrated the most promising results, with the best ability to scavenge 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals (EC50 of 140.1 µg/mL) and the capacity to reduce reactive oxygen species (ROS) production promoted by UVA and UVB radiation in 3T3 cells, revealing its antioxidant and photoprotective potential. This fraction also exhibited the highest anti-enzymatic capacity, inhibiting the activities of collagenase, elastase and tyrosinase (IC50 of 7.2, 4.8 and 85.9 µg/mL, respectively). Moreover, F3 showed anti-inflammatory potential, reducing TNF-α and IL-6 release induced by LPS treatment in RAW 264.7 cells. These bioactivities may be related to the presence of phenolic compounds, such as phlorotannins, as demonstrated by NMR analysis. The results highlight the potential of C. costata as a source of bioactive ingredients for further dermatological applications.

Parkinsons Disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease worldwide, and is characterized by a progressive degeneration of dopaminergic neurons. Without an effective treatment, it is crucial to find new therapeutic options to fight the neurodegenerative process, which may arise from marine resources. Accordingly, the goal of the present work was to evaluate the ability of the monoterpenoid lactone Loliolide, isolated from the green seaweed Codium tomentosum, to prevent neurological cell death mediated by the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) on SH-SY5Y cells and their anti-inflammatory effects in RAW 264.7 macrophages. Loliolide was obtained from the diethyl ether extract, purified through column chromatography and identified by NMR spectroscopy. The neuroprotective effects were evaluated by the MTT method. Cells´ exposure to 6-OHDA in the presence of Loliolide led to an increase of cells´ viability in 40%, and this effect was mediated by mitochondrial protection, reduction of oxidative stress condition and apoptosis, and inhibition of the NF-kB pathway. Additionally, Loliolide also suppressed nitric oxide production and inhibited the production of TNF-α and IL-6 pro-inflammatory cytokines. The results suggest that Loliolide can inspire the development of new neuroprotective therapeutic agents and thus, more detailed studies should be considered to validate its pharmacological potential.

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Peptides have revealed a large range of biological activities with high selectivity and efficiency for the development of new drugs, including neuroprotective agents. Therefore, this work investigates the neuroprotective properties of naturally occurring peptides, endomorphin-1 (EM-1), endomorphin-2 (EM-2), rubiscolin-5 (R-5), and rubiscolin-6 (R-6). We aimed at answering the question of whether well-known opioid peptides can counteract cell injury in a common in vitro model of Parkinson’s disease (PD). Antioxidant activity of these four peptides was evaluated by the 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH) scavenging activity, oxygen radical absorbance capacity (ORAC), and ferric-reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assays, while neuroprotective effects were assessed in a neurotoxic model induced by 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) in a human neuroblastoma cell line (SH-SY5Y). The mechanisms associated with neuroprotection were investigated by the determination of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and Caspase-3 activity. Among the tested peptides, endomorphins significantly prevented neuronal death induced by 6-OHDA treatment, decreasing MMP (EM-1) or Caspase-3 activity (EM-2). Meanwhile, R-6 showed antioxidant potential by FRAP assay and exhibited the highest capacity to recover the neurotoxicity induced by 6-OHDA via attenuation of ROS levels and mitochondrial dysfunction. Generally, we hypothesize that peptides’ ability to suppress the toxic effect induced by 6-OHDA may be mediated by different cellular mechanisms. The protective effect caused by endomorphins results in an antiapoptotic effect (mitochondrial protection and decrease in Caspase-3 activity), while R-6 potency to increase a cell’s viability seems to be mediated by reducing oxidative stress. Our results may provide new insight into neurodegeneration and support the short peptides as a potent drug candidate to treat PD. However, further studies should be conducted on the detailed mechanisms of how tested peptides could suppress neuronal injuries.

Marine fungi and, particularly, endophytic species have been recognised as one of the most prolific sources of structurally new and diverse bioactive secondary metabolites with multiple biotechnological applications. Despite the increasing number of bioprospecting studies, very few have already evaluated the cosmeceutical potential of marine fungal compounds. Thus, this study focused on a frequent seaweed in the Portuguese coast, Halopteris scoparia, to identify the endophytic marine fungi associated with this host, and assess their ability to biosynthesise secondary metabolites with antioxidative, enzymatic inhibitory (hyaluronidase, collagenase, elastase and tyrosinase), anti-inflammatory, photoprotective, and antimicrobial (Cutibacterium acnes, Staphylococcus epidermidis and Malassezia furfur) activities. The results revealed eight fungal taxa included in the Ascomycota, and in the most representative taxonomic classes in marine ecosystems (Eurotiomycetes, Sordariomycetes and Dothideomycetes). These fungi were reported for the first time in Portugal and in association with H. scoparia, as far as it is known. The screening analyses showed that most of these endophytic fungi were producers of compounds with relevant biological activities, though those biosynthesised by Penicillium sect. Exilicaulis and Aspergillus chevalieri proved to be the most promising ones for being further exploited by dermocosmetic industry. The chemical analysis of the crude extract from an isolate of A. chevalieri revealed the presence of two bioactive compounds, echinulin and neoechinulin A, which might explain the high antioxidant and UV photoprotective capacities exhibited by the extract. These noteworthy results emphasised the importance of screening the secondary metabolites produced by these marine endophytic fungal strains for other potential bioactivities, and the relevance of investing more efforts in understanding the ecology of halo/osmotolerant fungi.