Therapeutic potential of abalone and status of bioactive molecules: A comprehensive review

Abstract

Marine organisms are increasingly being investigated as sources of bioactive molecules with therapeutic applications as nutraceuticals and pharmaceuticals. In particular, nutraceuticals are gaining popularity worldwide owing to their therapeutic potential and incorporation in functional foods and dietary supplements. Abalone, a marine gastropod, contains a variety of bioactive compounds with anti-oxidant, anti-thrombotic, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, and anti-cancer activities. For thousands of years different cultures have used abalone as a traditional functional food believing consumption provides health benefits. Abalone meat is one of the most precious commodities in Asian markets where it is considered a culinary delicacy. Recent research has revealed that abalone is composed of many vital moieties like polysaccharides, proteins, and fatty acids that provide health benefits beyond basic nutrition. A review of past and present research is presented with relevance to the therapeutic potential of bioactive molecules from abalone.

Shellfish: Nutritive Value, Health Benefits, and Consumer Safety

“…are commercially farmed in China (Lou and others ). In the past 40 y, the world abalone supply has increased 5‐fold owing primarily to increased abalone farming practices (Suleria and others ). The Japanese carpet shell or Manila clam ( Ruditapes philippinarum ), Yesso scallop ( Patinopecten yessoensis ), blue mussel ( Mytilus edulis ), Asian green mussel ( Perna viridis ), green‐lipped mussel ( P. canaliculus ), the scallop ( P. yessoensis ), crab ( Scylla serrata ), and the clam ( Anadara granosa ) are other farmed shellfish items (Kim and Venkatesan ).…”

“…Antarctic krill ( Euphausia superba ) is distributed around the South Pole; about 500000 tons are harvested annually by the USSR and Japan (Gigliotti and others ). There is recent commercial interest in abalone because it is a culinary delicacy, besides having therapeutic value (Suleria and others ).…”

“…Cultivated thick‐shell mussels represent a source of health‐benefiting long‐chain n ‐3 PUFA, EAAs, and minerals (Li and others ). Abalones farmed in China have abundant n‐3 PUFAs, particularly EPA (Su and others 2000; Lou and others ; Suleria and others ). The popular farmed marine mussels belonging to Mytilus spp.…”

Alternative Splicing Profile and Sex-Preferential Gene Expression in the Female and Male Pacific Abalone Haliotis discus hannai

“…It is widely distributed throughout temperate and tropical coastal regions (~100 species) [1]. Of them, approximately 20 species are important for commercial aquaculture and wild fisheries worldwide as highly prized seafood items containing bioactive molecules (e.g., polysaccharides, proteins, fatty acids) that support health benefits beyond basic nutrition [2]. Global abalone production from farms reached 63,245 metric tons (MT) in 2010 after rapid development of aquaculture techniques [3]; total production increased to 85,344 MT in 2011 and 103,464 MT in 2013 [4].…”

“…Asian countries such as China, Korea, and Japan are currently major suppliers of abalone in the global market, while abalone culture is also growing in Europe (e.g., the UK, the Channel Islands, Ireland, France, and Spain) [4]. Particularly, Southeast Asia, along with China (80%) and Korea (12%), are the largest producers of farmed abalone in the world, whereas Japan and China are the major consumer regions [2,4]. …”