Marine Bioactive Compounds: Sources, Characterization and Applications 2012th Edition

This book aims to bring together the areas of macroalgal taxonomy with strategies and methods used to characterise marine bioactive compounds. In addition, it looks at the importance of correct taxonomic characterization. It also describes applications of bioactive compounds from the marine environment and discusses how marine bioactive compounds represent a major market application in food and other industries. It provides examples of bioactive compounds isolated from marine resources.

Examples are given as to how bioactive compounds have been used in functional food formulations and pharmaceutical applications, and how they alter biological activity to provide therapeutic benefits, nutritional values and health protection.

It looks at the screening process for identification of bioactive molecules including computing methods for efficient in silico analysis, and describes different production methods used for bioactive compound isolation and identification. Furthermore, this book provides an insight into the market opportunities that exist for the identification and commercialization of new marine bioactive compounds. It also highlights regulations in the US, Europe, Japan and China regarding health or novel food claims for functional food products.

Maria Hayesis a natural products chemist based at the Teagasc Food Research Centre, in Dublin, Ireland. She is the current Marine Functional Foods Research Initiative scientific project manager and is involved in the harvesting of bioactive compounds from seaweeds, marine rest raw materials and microalgae. NutraMara is a €5 million project funded by the Marine Institute (MI), Ireland and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (DAFF), Ireland.