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Oceans include the greatest extremes of pressure, temperature and light, and habitats can range from tropical waters to ocean trenches, several kilometers below sea level at high pressure. With its 70% of the surface of our planet marine ecosystem still remains largely unexplored, understudied and underexploited in comparison with terrestrial ecosystems, organisms and bioprocesses. The biological adaptation of marine organisms to a wide range of environmental conditions in the specific environment (temperature, salinity, tides, pressure, radiation, light, etc.) has made them an enormous reservoir of interesting biological material for both basic research and biotechnological improvements. As a consequence marine ecosystem is valued as a source of enzymes and other biomolecules exhibiting new functions and activities to fulfill human needs. Indeed, in recent years it has been recognised as an untapped source of novel enzymes and metabolites even though, with regard to the assignment of precise biological functions to genes, proteins and enzymes, it is still considered as the least developed. Using metagenomics to recover genetic material directly from environmental samples, this biogenetic diversification can be accessed but despite the contributions from metagenomic technologies the new field requires major improvements. A few words on the complexity of marine environments should be added here. This complexity ranges from symbiotic relationships to biology and chemistry of defence mechanisms and from chemoecology of marine invasions up to the strategies found in prokaryotes to adapt to extreme environments. The interdisciplinary study of this complexity will enable researchers to find an arsenal of enzymes and pathways greatly demanded in biotechnological applications. As far as marine enzymes are concerned they may carry novel chemical and stereochemical properties, thus biocatalytically oriented studies (testing of suitable substrates, appropriate checking of reaction conditions, study of stereochemical asset of catalysis) should be performed to appropriately reveal this “chemical biodiversity” which increases interest for these enzymes. Among other biomolecules, polysaccharides are the most abundant renewable biomaterial found on land and in oceans. Their molecular diversity is very interesting; except polysaccharides used traditionally in food and non-food industries, the structure and the functionality of most of them are unknown and unexplored. Brown seaweeds synthesize unique bioactive polysaccharides: laminarans, alginic acids and fucoidans. A wide range of biological activities (anticoagulant, antitumor, antiviral, anti-inflammation, etc.) have been attributed to fucoidans and their role with respect to structure-activity relationship is still under debate. In this Research Topic, we wish to centralize and review contributions, idea and comments related to the issues above. In particular results of enzymatic bioprospecting in gross marine environment will be acknowledged along with research for structural characterization and biological function of biomolecules such as marine polysaccharides and all kind of research related to the complexity of bioprocesses in marine environments. Inter- and multi-disciplinary approach to this field is favoured in this Research Topic and could greatly be facilitated by the web and open access nature as well.

Marine enzymes --- algae and microalgae --- Marine Natural Products --- Olfaction --- sulfatase --- marine bioprocesses --- marine polysaccharides --- triterpene glycosides --- Biofuels --- Biodiversity

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The book largely reflect the structural diversity of echinoderm metabolites including triterpene glycosides and fucosylated chondroitin sulfates, as well as branched fatty acids, di- and triacylglycerols and other lipid classes from the sea cucumbers, polyhydroxysteroids from starfish and different classes of sphingolipids from sea cucumbers and starfish. Finally, the MS-based metabolomic approach, which is very helpful for the estimation of such diversity, is discussed. The materials from the Special Issue also illustrate the biomedical potential of the presented metabolites as cytotoxins and anticoagulants. The in silico approach broadens the possibilities to investigate the mechanisms of the action of membranolytic compounds.

Research & information: general --- Chemistry --- diacylglycerol ether --- 1-O-alkylglyceryl ether --- nutraceutical oils --- bêche-de-mer --- sea cucumber --- Bohadschia argus --- Holothuria (Theelothuria) spinifera --- fucosylated chondroitinsulfates --- fucan sulfates --- anticoagulant activity --- disulfated steroids --- NMR spectra --- starfish --- Pteraster marsippus --- cytotoxic activity --- 3D culture --- Psolus chitonoides --- triterpene glycosides --- chitonoidosides ---   triterpene glycosides --- membranolytic action --- hemolytic --- molecular dynamic simulation --- Thyonidium kurilensis --- kurilosides --- polyhydroxysteroids --- steroid glycosides --- lipids --- mass spectrometry --- metabolomics --- metabolomic profiling --- sphingolipids --- ceramides --- cerebrosides --- gangliosides --- sialic acid --- Asteroidea --- Holothuroidea --- biological activity --- neuritogenic activity ---  

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The search for bioactive secondary metabolites from marine organisms has been an active area of research since the 1950s. The distinct biodiversity of the marine environment has afforded a vast array of unique secondary metabolites, many of which possess potent biological activities. This Special Issue of Marine Drugs will highlight recent bioactive marine natural product studies conducted by southern hemisphere scientists on an array of marine organisms.

Sinularia --- Alcyoniidae --- anticancer activity --- lobane --- cembrane --- diterpene --- conotoxins --- ShK toxin --- ion channels --- docking --- molecular dynamics --- potential of mean force --- free energy perturbation --- bioactivity --- biosynthesis --- brominated secondary metabolites --- choline ester --- indole --- sea cucumber --- viscera --- saponins --- mass spectrometry --- MALDI --- ESI --- HPCPC --- triterpene glycosides --- structure elucidation --- bioactive compounds --- marine invertebrate --- Echinodermata --- holothurian --- Cnemidocarpa stolonifera --- taurine amide --- PC3 cell line --- immunofluorescence assay --- thiaplidiaquinone --- Aplidium --- ascidian --- thiazinoquinone --- apoptosis --- Jurkat --- cytotoxicity --- malaria --- farnesyltransferase --- synthesis --- thiaplakortone --- regioisomer --- tricyclic --- natural product scaffold --- X-ray --- crystal --- Plasmodium falciparum --- antiplasmodial --- cephalostatin --- mandelalide --- methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus --- MRSA PK --- bisindole alkaloids --- salternamide A (SA) --- HIF-1α --- PI3K/Akt/mTOR --- p42/p44 MAPK --- STAT3 --- cell death

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The search for bioactive secondary metabolites from marine organisms has been an active area of research since the 1950s. The distinct biodiversity of the marine environment has afforded a vast array of unique secondary metabolites, many of which possess potent biological activities. This Special Issue of Marine Drugs will highlight recent bioactive marine natural product studies conducted by southern hemisphere scientists on an array of marine organisms.

Medicine --- Sinularia --- Alcyoniidae --- anticancer activity --- lobane --- cembrane --- diterpene --- conotoxins --- ShK toxin --- ion channels --- docking --- molecular dynamics --- potential of mean force --- free energy perturbation --- bioactivity --- biosynthesis --- brominated secondary metabolites --- choline ester --- indole --- sea cucumber --- viscera --- saponins --- mass spectrometry --- MALDI --- ESI --- HPCPC --- triterpene glycosides --- structure elucidation --- bioactive compounds --- marine invertebrate --- Echinodermata --- holothurian --- Cnemidocarpa stolonifera --- taurine amide --- PC3 cell line --- immunofluorescence assay --- thiaplidiaquinone --- Aplidium --- ascidian --- thiazinoquinone --- apoptosis --- Jurkat --- cytotoxicity --- malaria --- farnesyltransferase --- synthesis --- thiaplakortone --- regioisomer --- tricyclic --- natural product scaffold --- X-ray --- crystal --- Plasmodium falciparum --- antiplasmodial --- cephalostatin --- mandelalide --- methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus --- MRSA PK --- bisindole alkaloids --- salternamide A (SA) --- HIF-1α --- PI3K/Akt/mTOR --- p42/p44 MAPK --- STAT3 --- cell death --- Sinularia --- Alcyoniidae --- anticancer activity --- lobane --- cembrane --- diterpene --- conotoxins --- ShK toxin --- ion channels --- docking --- molecular dynamics --- potential of mean force --- free energy perturbation --- bioactivity --- biosynthesis --- brominated secondary metabolites --- choline ester --- indole --- sea cucumber --- viscera --- saponins --- mass spectrometry --- MALDI --- ESI --- HPCPC --- triterpene glycosides --- structure elucidation --- bioactive compounds --- marine invertebrate --- Echinodermata --- holothurian --- Cnemidocarpa stolonifera --- taurine amide --- PC3 cell line --- immunofluorescence assay --- thiaplidiaquinone --- Aplidium --- ascidian --- thiazinoquinone --- apoptosis --- Jurkat --- cytotoxicity --- malaria --- farnesyltransferase --- synthesis --- thiaplakortone --- regioisomer --- tricyclic --- natural product scaffold --- X-ray --- crystal --- Plasmodium falciparum --- antiplasmodial --- cephalostatin --- mandelalide --- methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus --- MRSA PK --- bisindole alkaloids --- salternamide A (SA) --- HIF-1α --- PI3K/Akt/mTOR --- p42/p44 MAPK --- STAT3 --- cell death

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The books described marine glycoconjugates. Two articles concern microalgal metabolites such as steroid and sphingoid glycoconjugates, and a glycoprotein from a sea cucumber with interesting biological activities, respectively. One article discusses the fatty acid composition and thermotropic behavior of glycolipids and other membrane lipids of green macrophyte Ulva lactuca. Three articles cover lectin subjects. One review article analyzes perspectives of marine and freshwater lectins’ application in experimental oncology and the therapy of oncological diseases; another article describes the use of a sponge lectin in the construction of a recombinant virus. The third article concerns the function of the immunity of a lectin in producing this compound crinoid. Two articles concern steroid glycosides from star?sh, and two others concern triterpene glycosides from sea cucumbers. One article describes the e?ect of a glycosaminoglycan from the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus on hyperglycemia in the liver of insulin-resistant mice. One article concerns the isolation of 10 new triterpene glycosides from a fungus associated with a sea cucumber. The article by Dworaczek et al. characterizes the O-speci?c polysaccharide (O-antigen) of a bacterial pathogen of common carp by chemical and immunochemical methods. In total, the Special Issue comprises14 articles, including the editorial and two reviews.

n/a --- functions --- feather star --- Aeromonas --- glycosylceramides --- sghC1qDC --- O-antigen --- colony formation --- Bcl-2 proteins --- phospholipids --- sterol glycoconjugates --- Anthenea aspera --- glycosides --- Anneissia japonica --- cancer therapy --- secondary metabolites --- Echinoderm --- Apostichopus japonicus --- microalgae --- urease activity --- triterpene glycosides --- cytotoxic activity --- Alexandrium minutum --- Acremonium striatisporum --- betaine lipid --- signal transduction --- thermal adaptation --- Psolus fabricii --- O-polysaccharide --- oncolytic vaccinia virus --- N-Acetyllactosamine (LacNAc) --- l-perosamine --- differential scanning calorimetry --- Lethasterias fusca --- polyhydroxysteroids --- AMPK --- glycoprotein --- NMR spectroscopy --- glucose metabolism --- anti-biofilm activity --- ERK --- fish pathogen --- marine antiproliferative compounds --- lectin --- immunospecificity --- in vivo studies --- apoptosis --- distribution --- steroidal glycosides --- natural products --- biological activities --- Aphrocallistes vastus lectin --- marine fungi --- cell adhesion --- in vitro studies --- mass spectrometry --- psolusosides --- starfish --- sea cucumber --- glycosaminoglycan --- lipopolysaccharide (LPS) --- glycolipids --- fatty acids --- structures --- Akt --- diterpene glycosides --- body components --- structure --- mitophagy --- marine lectins --- crinoid --- cancer --- asterosaponins