Screening for antibacterial and antifungal activities in marine benthic invertebrates from northern Norway

• Main Authors: Tadesse, Margey, Gulliksen, Bjørn, Strøm, Morten B., Styrvold, Olaf B., Haug, Tor
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2008
• Subjects: VDP::Mathematics and natural science: 400::Chemistry: 440::Pharmaceutical chemistry: 448; antimicrobial screening; marine bioprospecting; natural products; sponges; Synoicum pulmonaria; tunicates; Arctic; Norway; Northern Norway
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10037/2728

This is the accepted manuscript version of the article. Reprinted with permission. Published version is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jip.2008.06.009 The published version of this article is part of Margey Tasesse's doctoral thesis, which is available at http://hdl.handle.net/10037/2702 Benthic marine invertebrates collected from sub-Arctic regions of northern Norway, were found to be a promising source of novel bioactive compounds against human and fish pathogenic bacteria and fungi. Lyophilized material from seven species of ascidians, six sponges and one soft alcyonid coral were extracted with 60% acidified acetonitrile (ACN). After separation into an ACN-rich phase (ACN extract) and an aqueous phase, and subsequent solid phase extraction of the aqueous phase, fractions differing in polarity were obtained and screened for antibacterial and antifungal activities, along with the more lipophilic ACN-extracts. Antimicrobial activity was determined against two Gram-negative, two Gram-positive bacteria, and two strains of fungi. Notably, all the invertebrate species in the study showed activity against all four strains of bacteria and the two strains of fungi. In general, the aqueous fractions displayed highest antimicrobial activity, and the most potent extracts were obtained from the colonial ascidian Synoicum pulmonaria which displayed activity against bacteria and fungi at a concentration of 0.02 mg/ml; the lowest concentration tested.