Brown Seaweed Analysis

Brown seaweed have received particular attention in recent years as a potential biorefinery feedstock. Most brown algae have alternating haploid and diploid generations. Haploid cells form isogametes, heterogametes or oogametes, while diploid cells usually form zoospores by meiosis. Haploid (gametophyte) and diploid (sporophyte) cells may be similar in appearance (homomorphic) or different (heteromorphic), or the production of gametophytes may be greatly reduced (Fucales). The brown color of brown seaweed is due to the dominance of the lutein pigment fucoxanthin, which masks the other pigments chlorophyll a and c (without chlorophyll b), beta-carotene, and other luteins. Food reserves are usually complex polysaccharides, sugars and higher alcohols. The main carbohydrate reserve is laminarin, no true starch (compared to green algae). The walls are made of cellulose and alginic acid, a long-chain heteropolysaccharide. CD BioSciences provides analysis of the composition of brown seaweed including the analysis of carbohydrate composition and the composition of brown seaweed is affected by seasons.

Fig. 1 Schematic diagram of the dry matter and carbohydrate composition of brown algae; data summarized from references. (Li Y, et al., 2021)

Our Services

There are about 2000 species of brown algae, most of which are marine. In general, brown seaweed is larger and more species are found in cooler waters. We provide seaweed analysis and customers only need to provide samples.

• Carbohydrate Composition Analysis of Brown Seaweed
  Laminin is a polysaccharide found in brown seaweed that is primarily used as a carbohydrate store. Mannitol is also another important carbohydrate reserve in brown seaweed. Fucoidan is another major polysaccharide in brown seaweed.
• Other Constituents and Seasonality Analysis of Brown Seaweed
  The composition of brown seaweed can vary greatly depending on the species and season. For example, the concentration of laminarin may be lower than 1% or higher than 30%, depending on the season. Due to the large variability in composition, we strongly recommend analyzing the samples directly, for example using our brown algae analysis package, rather than using data from the literature.
• Analysis of Pigment Composition of Brown Seaweeds
  Our experts use spectroscopy and reversed phase HPLC to study the pigment composition of various brown seaweed. Pigments are identified based on their spectral and chromatographic properties and confirmed by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS/MS) analysis.
• Pharmaceutical Properties Analysis of Brown Seaweed
• Antioxidant activity analysis
• Antimicrobial activity analysis
• Immunomodulatory and antitumor activity analysis
• Anticoagulant activity analysis
• Anti-inflammatory and immunostimulatory activity analysis
• Prebiotic activity analysis

Sample Request

• Experimental samples will not be returned, please back up by yourself. Before sampling, a control group and an experimental group should be set up, and it is recommended that each group be repeated more than 3-4 times.
• Snap-frozen storage in liquid nitrogen minimizes the exposure time of brown algae samples at room temperature.
• There is no restriction on the species of brown algae.
• For breeds with special requirements or rare breeds, please contact our staff for more information.
• Due to the wide variation in composition, we strongly recommend direct analysis of the samples.

CD BioSciences is a professional service provider for the marine biology industry. Our brown seaweed analysis services can help you determine the value of your sample and its best use. We provide our customers with the most precise ingredient data and highly informed process expertise. Our team of biomass experts plays a key role in the formulation, optimization and commercial evaluation of biomass value-added processes in industry and academia. If necessary, please feel free to contact us.

Reference

• Li Y, Zheng Y, Zhang Y, et al. Brown algae carbohydrates: Structures, pharmaceutical properties, and research challenges[J]. Marine Drugs, 2021, 19(11): 620.

Please kindly note that our services can only be used to support research purposes (Not for clinical use).