Structure and metabolism of bioactive carbohydrates from brown algae. Brown algae produce a diversity of species-specific carbohydrates in their cell walls that exhibit a variety of biological activit

Description

Structure and metabolism of bioactive carbohydrates from brown algae. Brown algae produce a diversity of species-specific carbohydrates in their cell walls that exhibit a variety of biological activities that can be exploited for the development of functional food and biopharmaceutical formulations. However, the metabolic pathways responsible for the biosynthesis of these carbohydrates are poorly characterised. This multidisciplinary project aims to understand the molecular events that control the structure and metabolism of bioactive carbohydrates in the prominent Australian brown alga Ecklonia radiata, with particular focus on alginates and fucoidans. This knowledge will be used to produce in yeast bioactive oligosaccharides that are of high commercial interest to the biopharmaceutical industry.. Scheme: Discovery Projects. Field: 0601 - Biochemistry and Cell Biology. Lead: Prof Vincent Bulone