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AbstractBackgroundMarine brown algae are biologically diverse and their medicinal value has been explored limited. We assessed whether Padina tetrastromatica Hauck will possess the immune stimulatory and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1) inhibitory activity.Materials and MethodsAqueous and methanolic extracts were tested for the Th1/Th2 cytokines using PBMC. Subsequently, leukotriene B4 (LTB4), nitric oxide (NO) and anti-oxidant effect were analyzed using RAW264.7 cells. In addition, Padina extracts were tested for the HIV-1 clade C & A by measuring the levels of viral p24 antigen in infected peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) and against reverse transcriptase (RT).ResultsAt 100 μg/mL, aqueous and methanolic extracts produced a significant amount of IL-10 and IFN-γ at 24 h and 72 h post-stimulation by PBMCs. It also produced a significant amount of LTB4, NO and had an antioxidant effect on RAW264.7 cell, suggesting the immune stimulating potential of P. tetrastromatica. Upon infection of PBMCs with 100 TCID50, aqueous and methanolic extracts of P. tetrastromatica inhibited HIV-1 C (>90%) and HIV-1 A (>50%) showed a significant reduction in HIV-1 p24 levels and HIV-1 RT inhibition (>50%). GC-MS study revealed a relative abundance of tetradecanoic and oleic acid in the methanolic extract of P. tetrastromatica, which might be responsible for immune stimulation and anti-HIV-1 activity.ConclusionAt lower concentrations (100 mg/mL), the aqueous and methanolic extracts of P. tetrastromatica showed the strong immune stimulation and greatest anti-HIV-1 potential in vitro. This study demonstrates the therapeutic potential of these brown algae P. tetrastromatica for the benefit of mankind.

The present investigation evaluates the hepato‐protective potential of R‐phycoerythrin (R‐PE)‐rich protein extract obtained from Portieria hornemannii (Lyngbye) Silva against H2O2‐induced hepatotoxicity using HepG2 cells (in vitro) and male Wistar albino Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) rats (in vivo). H2O2 treatment led to dose‐dependent decreases in cell viability of HepG2, which was ameliorated by the treatment with R‐PE‐rich extract. In vivo studies showed that all the vital parameters including enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants as well as liver marker enzymes were affected in the experimentally induced HCC male Wistar rats upon exposure to the N‐diethylnitrosamine (DEN), a carcinogen. However, there was moderate to better restoration of such parameters in the carcinoma rats treated with R‐PE‐rich protein extract. Practical applications Therapeutic alternatives originating from food or food supplements are gaining popularity as “nutritional therapy” and they are well studied for their chemo‐preventive effects. Investigations of several food‐derived bioactive compounds revealed their ability to antagonize dysregulated targets in cellular signaling pathways to exhibit antineoplastic activities. Isolation of bioactive molecules present in marine food products and determination of their broad range pharmaceutical activity by means of deducing specific molecular targets as well as establishing minimal toxicity to normal tissues could aid in treatment of cancer. Phycobiliproteins are an important group of pigment molecules extracted from the red and blue green algae. A study was envisaged to evaluate the anticancer potential of RPERPE (R‐PE‐rich protein extract) obtained from P. hornemannii (Lyngbye) Silva against HCC using male Wistar albino rats as models. This study offers the scope of using the R‐PE‐rich protein extract of P.hornemannii for developing therapeutic anticancer formulation.

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