Precisely Revealing the Structure of Marine Fucoidan
CD BioGlyco has developed a dedicated Marine Glycobiology section to uncover the mysteries of the seabed and unlock the applications of marine carbohydrates in biomedicine, pharmacy, materials, and other fields. Detailed Characterization helps to understand these biological activities and promote their potential applications in pharmaceuticals, health products, and cosmetics. We provide clients with worry-free characterization services for Marine Plants, Marine Animals, and Marine Microorganisms.
Fucoidan is a complex sulfated polysaccharide found primarily in the cell walls of brown algae. The following is a detailed description of the characterization of fucoidan:
Characterization of Fucoidan Quality
- Fucoidan Characteristics: We use different methods to determine the sugar content, fucose content, fucoidan content, sulfate content, and uronic acid content in the samples. The phenol-sulfuric acid assay is a simple acid-catalyzed condensation reaction that is commonly used to determine the total sugar concentration in carbohydrates. The cysteine-sulfuric acid method is used to quantify the L-fucose content in fucoidan. Toluidine blue (TB) is used to determine the fucoidan content in samples. Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) is used to determine the sulfate content in fucoidan. m-phenylphenol is used for the colorimetric determination of uronic acid.
- Impurity Content: Fucoidan contains polymer impurities such as alginate and protein. We provide corresponding testing services to quantify the content of substances such as protein, phenolic compounds, alginate, laminaran, etc. in the sample to help clients determine the quality grade of fucoidan.
Physicochemical Characteristics
- Elemental Analysis: Elemental analysis is usually performed to determine its key elemental components such as carbon (C), hydrogen (H), sulfur (S), and possibly trace amounts of other elements, depending on its source and purity.
- Molecular Weight Averages: Fucoidan is not uniform in composition and has different molecular weights. Molecular weight is a key factor affecting its bioactivity, solubility, and bioavailability. We use advanced techniques such as gel permeation chromatography (GPC) or size exclusion chromatography (SEC) to determine the molecular weight distribution of fucoidan samples.
- Monomeric Composition: Fucoidan is primarily composed of fucose monomers, but may contain several other sugars and uronic acids such as galactose, mannose, glucose, uronic acid, xylose, etc. We use high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) or gas chromatography (GC) in combination with MS to accurately identify and quantify the monomer composition of fucoidan.
- Glycosidic Linkage: The glycosidic bonds in fucoidan are usually sulfate ester bonds, and the backbone varies greatly. Methods such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy are used to determine glycosidic bonds.
Chemical Characterization
We use NMR, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and ultra-violet visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy to identify the functional groups and structural motifs of fucoidan.

Publication
Technology: Hydrothermal-assisted extraction, FTIR spectroscopy, Electrospray ionization-MS (ESI-MS)
Journal: Marine Drugs
IF: 4.9
Published: 2023
Results: The authors extracted fucoidan from Ascophyllum nodosum by hydrothermal-assisted extraction, purified the crude extract by solvent, molecular weight cut-off filter (MWCO), and solid phase extraction (SPE), and determined the in vitro antioxidant activity. The results showed that the purified fucoidan exhibited higher antioxidant activity than commercial fucoidan, but lower antioxidant activity than the crude extract. The authors also characterized the chemical structure of fucoidan by ESI-MS and FTIR spectroscopy.
Fig.1 ESI-MS spectra of purified fucoidan obtained from MWCO fraction from A. nodosum seaweed. (Rajauria, et al., 2023)
Applications
- Fucoidan has antiviral, anticancer, anticoagulant, and anti-inflammatory activities and is used in drug development in related fields.
- By identifying different fucoidan structures, researchers better design supplements aimed at promoting intestinal health and prebiotic effects.
- Fucoidan promotes wound healing and skin regeneration. Characterizing fucoidan helps develop effective fucoidan therapies.
- Characterizing the structural and functional properties of fucoidan can help develop new biomaterials using fucoidan.
- Due to its biocompatibility and bioactivity, functionalized fucoidan can be used to develop materials for drug delivery.
Advantages of Us
- Our advanced analytical techniques such as NMR ensure high sensitivity, high accuracy, and reproducibility of analysis, detecting small changes in fucoidan structure and composition.
- We provide comprehensive analytical services from molecular weight determination to monosaccharide composition and bonding analysis to ensure you get the most detailed and accurate profile of your samples.
- Our team of experts optimally interprets complex data to provide actionable insights into fucoidan structure, composition, and functional properties.
- We understand that each client's needs are unique, so we provide tailored characterization services to meet specific requirements. Whether it is academic research, product development, or quality control, we will adapt our technology to provide the most relevant data.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the significance of monosaccharide composition analysis in fucoidan?
The structure of fucoidan molecules varies depending on their biological source, and determining the monosaccharide composition helps to understand the structure of fucoidan molecules from different sources. Consistent monosaccharide composition is essential for the quality and efficacy of fucoidan in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. The biological activity of fucoidan is often related to its specific monosaccharide composition. Analyzing the monosaccharide composition of fucoidan is essential to study their interactions at the molecular level and to develop new formulations or derivatives with enhanced properties.
How do you ensure the reproducibility of fucoidan characterization results?
We use internationally certified standard experimental procedures and strictly implement sample preparation, instrument calibration, and data collection to ensure the consistency of the experiment. Internal standards and controls are added to each batch of samples to monitor the consistency of the results. Internationally recognized statistical tools are used to ensure that the changes are within an acceptable range.
CD BioGlyco combines advanced analytical techniques to help clients fully understand the molecular structure, composition, and potential biological activity of fucoidan to ensure its effective application in various fields. If you are interested in our comprehensive fucoidan analysis services, please feel free to contact us.
References
- Rajauria, G.; et al. Purification and molecular characterization of fucoidan isolated from Ascophyllum nodosum brown seaweed grown in Ireland. Marine Drugs. 2023, 21(5): 315.
- From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brown_algae#/media/File:Kelp-forest-Monterey.jpg.