Bifurcaria bifurcata: a key macro-alga as a source of bioactive compounds and functional ingredients

Summary The aim of this work was to study the proximate composition and the bioactive profile of Bifurcaria bifurcata. It contains 73.31 ± 0.69% of moisture, 8.57 ± 0.11 g per 100 g dry weight (d.w.) of protein, 5.81 ± 0.14 g per 100 g d.w. of lipid content and 30.15 ± 0.00 g per 100 g d.w. of ash. The polyunsaturated fatty acids were the most abundant fatty acid (FA), accounting for 2426.56 mg per 100 g which represents 41.77% of the total FA. The methanolic fraction showed high quantity of polyphenols (220.01 ± 0.010 phloroglucinol equivalents g−1 extract), DPPH radical reduction capacity (EC50:58.82 μg mL−1) and oxygen radical absorbent capacity (3151.35 ± 119.33 μmol Trolox equivalents g−1 extract). The highest antimicrobial effect was observed against Pseudomonas aeruginosa (11.3 ± 1.5 mm) and Saccharomyces cerevisiae (IC50:17.07 μg mL−1) induced by methanolic and dichloromethane fractions, respectively. Dichloromethane fraction revealed the highest antitumor activity on Caco-2 and HepG-2 cells. Bifurcaria bifurcata can be a promising source of bioactive compounds and functional ingredients.