Marine Organisms as Biomedical Resources Enrich Quality of Life

The Ocean, called the ‘mother of origin of life’, is a rich source of biological and chemical diversity. Marine floras include microflora (bacteria, actinobacteria, cyanobacteria and fungi), microalgae, macroalgae (seaweeds), and flowering plants (mangroves and other halophytes). Marine organisms have unique properties as they are exposed to extreme marine environmental conditions. This vast marine floral resource offer a great way for discovery of new drugs which can fight deadly diseases like cancer, acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), arthritis, etc. Sea has got plenty of metabolites and other resources in living or dead form. Thermo-stable proteases, lipases, esterases, and starch and xylan degrading enzymes have been actively sought from bacterial and archaeal hyperthermophilic marine microorganisms. Marine cyanobacteria appear to be potential sources for production of vitamins such as B complex group and vitamin-E. The carotenoids and phycobiliprotein pigments of cyanobacteria have commercial value as natural food colouring agents, as feed additives, as enhancers of the color of egg yolks, to improve the health and fertility of cattle, as drugs and in the cosmetic industries. Some anti-HIV activity has been observed with the compounds extracted from Lyngbya lagerhaimanii and Phormidium tenue. Thus an attempt to review few marine derived biomedical resources was done emphasizing that with the advent of modern technologies it is anticipated that the marine environment will become an invaluable source of novel compounds in the future.