Aquapreneur » pharmaceutical

Researchers worry that damage to the oceans could mean some species — and whatever chemicals they produce — will be lost before they’re found

Admin — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 20:45:20 +0000

Marc Slattery, a marine biologist by training, looks to sponges and coral as possible sources of drugs. As stationary species in the open ocean, these organisms have developed many chemical defenses to protect themselves. Slattery studies whether those chemicals could protect us, too. Maybe the same compounds that fend off fish could battle viruses, kill bacteria, and even fight cancer.

“These organisms are producing some nasty sorts of chemistry,” Slattery explains. “If you focus on the biotech side of things, there may be a drug in that” — or, he suspects, many.

After a long history of success on land, pharmacognosy — the search for substances in nature that have pharmaceutical potential — is finally getting its sea legs. Slattery, a pharmacognosy professor at the University of Mississippi, is one of the researchers scouring the oceans for cures.

Ocean acidification, warming water temperature and pollution all threaten sensitive corals and the symbiotic species that live on the reefs. Says Michael Lesser, a coral reef biologist at the University of New Hampshire who collaborates with Slattery, “We could lose something that could have great value to us as human beings, and not even know it.”

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MDPI Publishes New Marine Drugs Issue: Volume 8, Issue 6

Admin — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 19:16:40 +0000

MDPI AG announce the publication of the following issue: Mar.
Drugs, Volume 8, Issue 6 (June 2010), Pages 1731-1961 at
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/

Table of Contents:

Sonia de Caralt, Javier Sánchez-Fontenla, María J. Uriz and Rene H.
Wijffels
Article: In Situ Aquaculture Methods for Dysidea avara (Demospongiae,
Porifera) in the Northwestern Mediterranean
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1731-1742; doi:10.3390/md8061731
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1731

Charles Santhanaraju Vairappan, Takahiro Ishii, Tan Kai Lee, Minoru Suzuki
and Zhan Zhaoqi
Article: Antibacterial Activities of a New Brominated Diterpene from
Borneon Laurencia spp.
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1743-1749; doi:10.3390/md8061743
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1743

Ruth Harris, Elena Lecumberri and Angeles Heras
Article: Chitosan-Genipin Microspheres for the Controlled Release of
Drugs: Clarithromycin, Tramadol and Heparin
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1750-1762; doi:10.3390/md8061750
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1750

João C. Fernandes, Humberto Spindola, Vanessa de Sousa, Alice
Santos-Silva, Manuela E. Pintado, Francisco Xavier Malcata and João E.
Carvalho
Communication: Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Chitooligosaccharides in Vivo
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1763-1768; doi:10.3390/md8061763
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1763

Xiaomei Wei, Tim S. Bugni, Mary Kay Harper, Imelda T. Sandoval, Elizabeth
J. Manos, Jennifer Swift, Ryan M. Van Wagoner, David A. Jones and Chris M.
Ireland
Article: Evaluation of Pyridoacridine Alkaloids in a Zebrafish Phenotypic
Assay
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1769-1778; doi:10.3390/md8061769
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1769

Annarita Poli, Gianluca Anzelmo and Barbara Nicolaus
Review: Bacterial Exopolysaccharides from Extreme Marine Habitats:
Production, Characterization and Biological Activities
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1779-1802; doi:10.3390/md8061779
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1779

Susan Matthew, Ranjala Ratnayake, Mikel A. Becerro, Raphael
Ritson-Williams, Valerie J. Paul and Hendrik Luesch
Article: Intramolecular Modulation of Serine Protease Inhibitor Activity
in a Marine Cyanobacterium with Antifeedant Properties
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1803-1816; doi:10.3390/md8061803
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1803

Li Liu and Kathleen S. Rein
Review: New Peptides Isolated from Lyngbya Species: A Review
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1817-1837; doi:10.3390/md8061817
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1817

Amandine Caillaud, Pablo de la Iglesia, H. Taiana Darius, Serge Pauillac,
Katerina Aligizaki, Santiago Fraga, Mireille Chinain and Jorge Diogène
Review: Update on Methodologies Available for Ciguatoxin Determination:
Perspectives to Confront the Onset of Ciguatera Fish Poisoning in Europe
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1838-1907; doi:10.3390/md8061838
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1838

Bárbara Frazão, Rosário Martins and Vitor Vasconcelos
Article: Are Known Cyanotoxins Involved in the Toxicity of Picoplanktonic
and Filamentous North Atlantic Marine Cyanobacteria?
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1908-1919; doi:10.3390/md8061908
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1908

Chen Zhang and Se-Kwon Kim
Review: Research and Application of Marine Microbial Enzymes: Status and
Prospects
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1920-1934; doi:10.3390/md8061920
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1920

Christine J. Band-Schmidt, José J. Bustillos-Guzmán, David J.
López-Cortés, Ismael Gárate-Lizárraga, Erick J. Núñez-Vázquez and
Francisco E. Hernández-Sandoval
Review: Ecological and Physiological Studies of Gymnodinium catenatum in
the Mexican Pacific: A Review
Mar. Drugs 2010, 8(6), 1935-1961; doi:10.3390/md8061935
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-3397/8/6/1935

Indonesia And US Launch Deep-Sea Expedition

Admin — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 22:10:47 +0000

The first joint expedition by the Republic of Indonesia and the United States to explore unknown deep-sea areas in Indonesian waters is currently under way.

The expedition is the first activity in a multi-year partnership to advance ocean science, technology and education. This is the first expedition of the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, and the first joint international expedition to send live images and other data from sea to scientists on watch at Exploration Command Centers ashore both in Indonesia and the United States.

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Trius Therapeutics Awarded U.S. Department of Defense Contract to Develop Novel Antibiotics from Marine Natural Product Libraries

Admin — Fri, 21 May 2010 15:33:40 +0000

Trius Therapeutics, Inc. today that it has been awarded a new four and a half year contract from the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Defense, for the development of novel antibiotics directed against gram-negative bacterial pathogens. Trius may receive up to $29.5 million in support of development efforts under the new DTRA contract, which is funded as part of DTRA’s Transformational Medical Technologies Initiative (TMTI). Pursuant to the contract, Trius will apply its proprietary Focused Antisense Screening Technology (FAST) discovery platform to identify the targets of antibacterial compounds from marine natural product libraries developed in the laboratory of Dr. William Fenical, Distinguished Professor of Oceanography at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego.

Trius will then apply its structure-based drug design and development capabilities in an effort to optimize promising antibacterial compounds for activity against gram-negative biodefense pathogens such as Yersinia pestis, Francisella tularensis and Burkholderia pseudomallei. Trius believes that these compounds will also be active against gram-negative pathogens involved in common hospital acquired infections.

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AstraZeneca signs deal for pain drugs from sea snails

Admin — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 22:04:28 +0000

AstraZeneca has linked up with Australian biotechnology company Xenome to develop pain drugs derived from the venom of sea snails.

The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker’s MedImmune unit has been screening Xenome’s library of 2,000 compounds for drug candidates in the area of pain management for over a year and has now obtained exclusive licences for four peptides. Financial details have not been disclosed but but the Brisbane-based firm will be eligible to receive milestone and royalty payments.

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Aquapharm completes £4.2 million investment

Admin — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 16:01:49 +0000

Aquapharm Biodiscovery, a leading marine biotechnology company based at the European Centre for Marine Biotechnology in Oban, Scotland, today announces the close of a £4.2 million investment from existing investors Aescap Venture, Tate & Lyle Ventures, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and NESTA. Alongside the completion of the financing, Aquapharm has appointed the seasoned biotech entrepreneur Simon Best as CEO. Current CEO and founder Andrew Mearns Spragg will take up the role of Chief Technical Officer.

The additional finance will be used towards the further development and commercialisation of Aquapharm’s product portfolio produced from over 7,250 marine micro-organisms. Natural products from this unique source of new biological and chemical diversity are already being exploited commercially with major partners such as Croda Plc and Dr Reddy’s Laboratories in the personal care and pharmaceutical fields respectively. New collaborations in further applications such as nutrition are also in the pipeline.

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Seaweed Extract Holds Promise as Lymphoma Treatment

Admin — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 00:39:49 +0000

Seaweed offers the widest range of minerals of any food, as well as plant compounds called lignans, which have cancer-protective properties. New research presented at a recent cancer conference notes that seaweed extract holds promise as a treatment for lymphoma, a disease classified into Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s types.

Mohammad Irhimeh, PhD, assistant professor of hematoncology and stem cells at the Hashemite University in Jordon, noted that “some forms of B-cell lymphoma are especially resistant to standard treatment and thus new therapies are needed.” He and his colleagues presented new research at the second AACR Dead Sea International Conference on Advances in Cancer Research held March 7-10.

In their research they used a commercial seaweed extract to treat lymphoma cells and discovered that the extract inhibited the growth of lymphoma cells while leaving healthy cells alone.

Seaweeds contain fucoidan, a sulfated polysaccharide located in the cell walls of many species of brown seaweed. Previous research has shown that fucoidan has antitumor and antiangiogenic (meaning it prevents the growth of new blood vessels, which nourish cancer cells) properties.

Irhimeh and his colleagues at the University of California, Berkeley, and Royal Hobart Hospital in Australia, also observed indications that the seaweed extract was associated with apoptosis, a process by which cells essentially commit “suicide.”

The findings of this study regarding the activity of seaweed extract on lymphoma cells have prompted the investigators to look forward to additional research with the goal of conducting phase II or III clinical trials. Seaweed extracts hold promise of a new treatment approach for the tens of thousands of people who have or who will be diagnosed with lymphoma.

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The Scottish Seed Fund (SSF) has invested £100k in new biotechnology start-up Marine Biotech Limited (MBL)

Admin — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 23:31:18 +0000

The Stirling-based company closed its first round of funding in

January with the investment from SE and other private and

industry investors, to be spent on a commercial R&D pilot.

Incorporated only last year, the company has also secured a

Scottish Enterprise grant for developing new technology. MBL

aims to become a leader in the field of marine pharmacology

research and development, producing commercial products

through contract manufacturing agreements.

The Stirling-based company closed its first round of funding in January with the investment and other private and industry investors, to be spent on a commercial R&D pilot. Incorporated only last year, the company has also secured a Scottish Enterprise grant for developing new technology. MBL aims to become a leader in the field of marine pharmacology research and development, producing commercial products through contract manufacturing agreements.

International Seaweed Symposium to be held in Ensenada Baja California México, February 22-26, 2010

Admin — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 00:09:20 +0000

This symposium offers you the opportunity to stay abreast of the most recent advances in

applied phycology and industrial opportunities. You will be able to learn about new topics of

global interest such as the use of genomic data in the development of new cultivars,

advances in the understanding of plant and animal response mechanisms to seaweed

extracts, and exciting advances in the understanding of the metabolism of algal

polysaccharides. Other relevant topics will include the role of seaweeds as carbon sink,

seaweeds as a source of biofuels, and the feasibility and implications of large-scale

cultivation. The problems associated with the spread of non-indigenous species, seaweed

diseases and their effects on seaweed farms, as well as the effect on the ecology of seaweed

communities will also be discussed.

The symposium offers the opportunity to stay abreast of the most recent advances in applied phycology and industrial opportunities. Learn about new topics of global interest such as the use of genomic data in the development of new cultivars, advances in the understanding of plant and animal response mechanisms to seaweed extracts, and exciting advances in the understanding of the metabolism of algal polysaccharides.

Other relevant topics will include the role of seaweeds as carbon sink, seaweeds as a source of biofuels, and the feasibility and implications of large-scale cultivation. The problems associated with the spread of non-indigenous species, seaweed diseases and their effects on seaweed farms, as well as the effect on the ecology of seaweed communities will also be discussed.

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GRC hosts Marine Natural Products conference in California, Feb 2010

Admin — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 16:48:39 +0000

The mission of the 2010 MNP GRC is to bring traditional participants in this area, including natural products chemists, synthetic chemists and marine biologists, together with specialists in newly emerging areas of marine microbiology, molecular biology, genetic engineering and genomics in a highly interactive forum where new avenues of research will be developed.

Applications for this meeting must be submitted by February 7, 2010.

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