You are here

Bioactivity of marine organisms: relationships with taxonomy, geography and depth

Download pdf | Full Screen View

Date Issued:
1998
Title: Bioactivity of marine organisms: relationships with taxonomy, geography and depth.
83 views
14 downloads
Name(s): Reed, John K.
Sennett, Susan H.
McCarthy, Peter J.
Pitts, Tara P.
Wright, Amy E.
Pomponi, Shirley A.
Type of Resource: text
Genre: Article
Date Issued: 1998
Publisher: American Academy of Underwater Sciences
Place of Publication: Nahant, MA
Physical Form: pdf
Extent: 14 p.
Language(s): English
Identifier: FA00007421 (IID)
Note(s): Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution (HBOI) has a worldwide collection of over25,000 marine macro-invertebrates and algae representing diverse geographical,latitudinal, and depth (0-3000 ft) ranges. Samples are tested for biological activity in apanel of whole cell and enzyme/receptor assays, including antibacterial, antifungal,cytotoxicity, antitumor, and immunomodulatory assays. Of the taxa sampled, Poriferahave the greatest incidence of activity within these screens and especially within theantimicrobial assays. Cnidaria, Chordata (Ascidiacea), Phaeophyta, and Chlorophytaalso show strong antimicrobial activity. A comparison of bioactivity and depth ofcollection indicates that benthic organisms are active throughout the depth range of thisstudy. Antifungal activity is greatest for high latitude samples then decreases at thelower latitudes, whereas antibacterial activity decreases markedly above 30°N latitude.Strong site-specific trends also exist regardless of latitude or temperature. For example,samples from both the Bahamas and Seychelles show very strong activities for allassays whereas samples from various other tropical, warm water sites such as theVirgin Islands, Senegal, Colombia, Venezuela, and Sierra Leone are inactive in theenzyme assays. Data are used to target potential taxonomic and geographic sources ofnatural products for drug discovery to treat human diseases or as biomedical researchtools.
Florida Atlantic University. Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute contribution 1258
This manuscript is an author version with the final publication available and may be cited as: Reed, J. K., Sennett, S. H., McCarthy, P. J., Pitts, T. P., Wright, A. E., & Pomponi, S. A. (1998). Bioactivity of marine organisms: relationships with taxonomy, geography and depth. In B. Hartwick, E. Banister, & G. Morariu (Eds.), Diving for science 1998: proceedings of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences eighteenth annual Scientific Diving Symposium, in association with Canadian Association for Underwater Science, annual meeting, October 8-11, 1998, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (pp. 50-61). Nahant, MA: American Academy of Underwater Sciences
Subject(s): Marine organisms
Bioactive compounds
Marine natural products
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00007421
Host Institution: FAU