Anti-inflammatory activity of phlorotannin-rich fermented Ecklonia cava processing by-product extract in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophages

In this study, fermentation was employed as a tool to further increase the bioactive potential of processing by-product from a brown seaweed, Ecklonia cava, which can be obtained from food and cosmetic industries after its polyphenol extraction. The fermentation process was done for 24 h using an industrially important microorganism Candida utilis prior to being extracted with 80 % ethanol. The anti-inflammatory potential of the fermented E. cava processing by-product extract (FEPBE) was evaluated in vitro. The phlorotannin-rich FEPBE dose-dependently inhibited the nitric oxide production, prostaglandin-E-2 production and suppressed the inducible nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 expressions in lipopolysaccharide-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells. The release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, interleukin-1 beta and interleukin-6, was significantly suppressed by the extract in a dose-dependent manner. Due to the profound anti-inflammatory activity, FEPBE appears as a value-added biomass fraction that can be exploited in numerous industrial applications as a source of functional ingredients.