MICROALGAE AS SOURCES OF PHARMACEUTICALS AND OTHER BIOLOGICALLY-ACTIVE COMPOUNDS

In the last decade the screening of microalgae, especially the cyanoba cteria (blue-green algae), for antibiotics and pharmacologically activ e compounds has received ever increasing interest. A large number of a ntibiotic compounds, many with novel structures, have been isolated an d characterised. Similarly many cyanobacteria have been shown to produ ce antiviral and antineoplastic compounds. A range of pharmacological activities have also been observed with extracts of microalgae, howeve r the active principles are as yet unknown in most cases. Several of t he bioactive compounds may find application in human or veterinary med icine or in agriculture. Others should find application as research to ols or as structural models for the development of new drugs. The micr oalgae are particularly attractive as natural sources of bioactive mol ecules since these algae have the potential to produce these compounds in culture which enables the production of structurally complex molec ules which are difficult or impossible to produce by chemical synthesi s.