Marine Kelp High in Fucosed

Introduction to Fucoidans (Extracted from the Marinova Website)
Fucoidans are naturally occurring components of certain edible seaweeds and echinoderms. They have been part of the human diet for centuries, and in countries such as Japan and Korea are prized for their dietary and medicinal properties.The term fucoidan describes a diverse family of molecules rather than a single chemical compound. Each type of brown marine alga or echinoderm yields a specific fucoidan, and each fucoidan varies in its clinical benefit. Within the host organism itself, fucoidans act as protective agents, especially in reproduction. In kelp, fucoidans assist in the release of mature gametes (eggs and sperm). In echinoderms, eggs have a jelly coat rich in fucoidan, which plays an important role in sperm activation. Our own interest in fucoidans stems from their ability to act as immunomodulators, selectin antagonists, viral attachment inhibitors, enzyme inhibitors and receptor blockers. Through extraction and fractionation, these naturally occurring molecules can be utilized as high efficacy targeted therapeutics. The biological activity of fucoidans in each of these applications is species specific, and while one fucoidan will demonstrate efficacy as an inhibitor of tumor cell proliferation, another one will show no anti-cancer activity, but will be a potent inhibitor of HIV attachment to human immune cells. Fucoidans can be classified as sulphated polysaccharides. They are large sugar polymers made up primarily of the sugar fucose. Fucoidans are often regarded as phytochemical analogues of the mammalian sulphated polysaccharide heparin, and, like heparin, fucoidans demonstrate considerable anti-coagulant, antithrombotic and cholesterol lowering activity.Fucoidans are all subtly different in structure. Many fucoidans consist of additional sugars (such as galactose or mannose) and can be acetylated as well as sulphated. Linkages between sugars and variations in levels of sulphation can yield alterations in function. The actual amount of fucoidan yielded by each species of brown alga can also vary considerably. For example, Undaria pinnatifida sporophyll, the commonly eaten brown alga known as mekabu, contains about 10% fucoidan. Fucus vesiculosus, the common Northern Hemisphere species, can contain as high as 20% fucoidan. However, the nature of the fucoidans yielded from these two species is significantly different. Undaria pinnatifida fucoidan (galactofucan sulphate) is an acetylated and sulphated compound of fucose and galactose, and is highly efficacious as a viral attachment inhibitor and fibrinolytic agent. Fucus vesiculosus fucoidan, in contrast, shows particular efficacy in anti-inflammatory assays.

Mannatech produces Undaria for wellbeing.