1.5 Developing Industries with New Marine Biotechnology
Materials
One of the main reasons that many are predicting the arrival of the “marine biotech
era” is the expectation that new materials derived from marine organism resources
will take the place of or transform the existing chemical industry. There are
countless species of organisms on Earth that could serve as sources to develop new
materials. In the past, necessary materials for humankind have been taken directly
from the species themselves; the range of species used in developing biological
materials has been extremely vast and diverse, encompassing microbes, plants,
animals, marine organisms, and insects. The growth potential of the marine-derived
new materials industry is expected to be particularly great in view of the many
problems related to materials from land-based sources, including the need to use
food resources. To date, however, there have been few concrete cases of new
materials being developed from marine organisms. The use of new materials
obtained from marine organisms that inhabit and have adapted to extreme environments is expected to increase going ahead.
These new marine materials possess high value added and utility, including raw
materials for pharmaceuticals to treat and prevent disease; biodegradable polymers;
functional polysaccharides; enzyme inhibitors; research reagents; flavoring; functional pigments; and ingredients for cosmetics. Figure 1.3 shows the research stages
that will be disease for research and development of pharmaceutical materials in
particular (Venkatesan and Kim 2015).
1.5.1 Collecting the Species and Preparing the Extract
The search for biomaterials begins with the collection of species based on human
experience. This is a process of choosing bioactive materials to explore and
selecting a candidate species based on folk treatments or the literature. When
combing the literature, a more effective approach is to consult foreign and domestic
materials and related academic journals. This is the stage before bioactivity measurement, with an extraction process using an organic solvent. Methanol or ethanol
is typically used as a solvent, while water is used to investigate highly polar
bioactive substances. The bioactive substances present in organisms are sensitive to
temperature and light and should therefore be extracted in a dark room at a temperature below 40 °C.
1.5.2 Biological and Pharmacological Investigation
of the Crude Extract
Once extracted from the organism, the substance is measured for bioactivity. The
crude extract contains many compounds, but the quantity of actual bioactive
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1 What Is Marine Biotechnology?
Materials
One of the main reasons that many are predicting the arrival of the “marine biotech
era” is the expectation that new materials derived from marine organism resources
will take the place of or transform the existing chemical industry. There are
countless species of organisms on Earth that could serve as sources to develop new
materials. In the past, necessary materials for humankind have been taken directly
from the species themselves; the range of species used in developing biological
materials has been extremely vast and diverse, encompassing microbes, plants,
animals, marine organisms, and insects. The growth potential of the marine-derived
new materials industry is expected to be particularly great in view of the many
problems related to materials from land-based sources, including the need to use
food resources. To date, however, there have been few concrete cases of new
materials being developed from marine organisms. The use of new materials
obtained from marine organisms that inhabit and have adapted to extreme environments is expected to increase going ahead.
These new marine materials possess high value added and utility, including raw
materials for pharmaceuticals to treat and prevent disease; biodegradable polymers;
functional polysaccharides; enzyme inhibitors; research reagents; flavoring; functional pigments; and ingredients for cosmetics. Figure 1.3 shows the research stages
that will be disease for research and development of pharmaceutical materials in
particular (Venkatesan and Kim 2015).
1.5.1 Collecting the Species and Preparing the Extract
The search for biomaterials begins with the collection of species based on human
experience. This is a process of choosing bioactive materials to explore and
selecting a candidate species based on folk treatments or the literature. When
combing the literature, a more effective approach is to consult foreign and domestic
materials and related academic journals. This is the stage before bioactivity measurement, with an extraction process using an organic solvent. Methanol or ethanol
is typically used as a solvent, while water is used to investigate highly polar
bioactive substances. The bioactive substances present in organisms are sensitive to
temperature and light and should therefore be extracted in a dark room at a temperature below 40 °C.
1.5.2 Biological and Pharmacological Investigation
of the Crude Extract
Once extracted from the organism, the substance is measured for bioactivity. The
crude extract contains many compounds, but the quantity of actual bioactive
16
1 What Is Marine Biotechnology?