TRENDS IN STUDY AND APPLICATION OF MARINE RESOURCES

Abstract

Oceans cover almost 70% of the earth's surface and are characterized by enormous biological and chemical diversity. Purified marine compounds and/or bioactive complex mixtures can be used for the creation of innovative products with possible pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, and other industrial uses. Multidisciplinary approaches have been in fact reported to identify bioactive compounds, biocompatible components, gene clusters and innovative eco-sustainable processes. Recently, there has been a renewed interest in the exploration of the marine habitat also thanks to the advancement of sampling, cultivation, molecular biology and bioinformatics technologies. The platforms for the identification of bioactivity, the optimization of biomass production, the development of sustainable protocols and innovative methods for extraction of biomaterials, and the use of discarded/underutilized biomass are currently between the main hot topics.