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Marine Drugs
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Marine Sulfated Polysaccharides and Their Biomedical Applications
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Marine Sulfated Polysaccharides and Their Biomedical Applications

A special issue of Marine Drugs (ISSN 1660-3397). This special issue belongs to the section "Marine Pharmacology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2026) | Viewed by 2595

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Seung-U Son

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Precision Nutrition Research Group, Korea Food Researcch Institute, Wanju-gun 55365, Republic of Korea
Interests: natural polysaccharide; structural analysis; structure–activity relationship; immune response; inflammation

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Marine sulfated polysaccharides are valuable bioactive compounds that can be extracted from diverse marine sources, including algae, invertebrates, and microorganisms. They exhibit low biotoxicity and demonstrate preventive and therapeutic effects across a broad spectrum of diseases, including immunomodulation, anti-cancer, anti-viral, and anti-obesity activities. Moreover, they possess unique chemical and structural characteristics that distinguish them from plant and mushroom polysaccharides, which are closely linked to their biological activities. Therefore, this Special Issue will cover the following topics, as well as a broad range of other subjects related to marine sulfated polysaccharides.

  • Biological activities and molecular mechanisms of marine sulfated polysaccharides in the prevention and treatment of various diseases.
  • Structural features of marine sulfated polysaccharides.
  • Structure–activity relationship of marine sulfated polysaccharides.

We invite you to submit your research and comprehensive review papers to this Special Issue, aiming to advance our understanding of marine sulfated polysaccharides.

Dr. Seung-U Son
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Marine Drugs is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • marine sulfated polysaccharide
  • ulvan
  • fucoidan
  • galactan
  • algae
  • immunoregulation
  • anti-cancer
  • anti-obesity
  • biomedical application
  • structural analysis

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 3014 KB  
Article
Sulfated Pelvetia siliquosa Polysaccharides Attenuate Pyroptosis via NF-κB Pathway Inhibition Against Calcium Oxalate Stone Formation
by Xin-Yi Tong, Xue-Wu Chen, Jia-Yi Zhang and Jian-Ming Ouyang
Mar. Drugs 2026, 24(2), 72; https://doi.org/10.3390/md24020072 - 8 Feb 2026
Viewed by 688
Abstract
Objective: The formation of calcium oxalate (CaOx) kidney stones is accompanied by the pyroptosis of renal epithelial cells. The risk of kidney stone formation can possibly be reduced through pyroptosis inhibition. Methods: Pyroptosis of HK-2 cells induced by 3 µm CaOx monohydrate (COM-3 [...] Read more.
Objective: The formation of calcium oxalate (CaOx) kidney stones is accompanied by the pyroptosis of renal epithelial cells. The risk of kidney stone formation can possibly be reduced through pyroptosis inhibition. Methods: Pyroptosis of HK-2 cells induced by 3 µm CaOx monohydrate (COM-3 µm) was inhibited by Pelvetia siliquosa polysaccharides before and after sulfation (PSP0 and PSP3, with −OSO3− contents of 1.04% and 36.12%, respectively). The inhibitory efficiency and mechanism of PSP0 and PSP3 were evaluated via caspase-1/PI double staining and Western blot detection of pathway proteins in pyroptosis cells. The potential anti-stone effect of polysaccharides was evaluated through measurement of the extent of crystal adhesion on the cell surface. Results: The proportion of pyroptosis cells induced by COM-3 µm reached 17.87%. After protection by PSP0 and PSP3, the percentage of pyroptosis cells was reduced to 12.7% and 6.35%. The levels of NLRP3, ASC, gasdermin D, IL-1β, and IL-18 related to pyroptosis were downregulated. In addition, the activation of the NF-κB pathway was considerably inhibited. During inhibition of pyroptosis, reactive oxygen species and lactate dehydrogenase levels were decreased, the integrity of zonula occludens-1 protein was restored, and the expressions of CaOx-specific adhesion proteins (ANXA3 and CD44) were substantially decreased. As a result, the adhesion of COM crystals on the cell surface was reduced. PSP3 exhibited a higher protection energy efficiency than PSP0. Conclusions: PSP0 and PSP3 inhibited the pyroptosis of HK-2 cells through the NLRP3/ASC/caspase-1/IL-1β pathway, which caused the inhibition of cell inflammation and injury, reduced the expressions of adhesion proteins, and reduced the risk of CaOx crystal adhesion and stone formation. The biological activity of PSP0 and PSP3 after sulfation modification increased. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Marine Sulfated Polysaccharides and Their Biomedical Applications)
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22 pages, 4154 KB  
Article
Characterization of YKL-40 Binding to Extracellular Matrix Glycosaminoglycans
by Unnur Magnusdottir, Yiming Yang Jonatansdottir, Kristinn R. Oskarsson, Jens G. Hjorleifsson, Jon M. Einarsson and Finnbogi R. Thormodsson
Mar. Drugs 2025, 23(10), 379; https://doi.org/10.3390/md23100379 - 26 Sep 2025
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1428
Abstract
YKL-40 is a chitinase-like glycoprotein implicated in various pathological processes, yet its glycosaminoglycan (GAG) binding profile beyond heparin has not been examined. In this study, we performed a Microscale Thermophoresis (MST) analysis on the heparin-binding glycoprotein YKL-40 using low molecular weight GAG oligosaccharides. [...] Read more.
YKL-40 is a chitinase-like glycoprotein implicated in various pathological processes, yet its glycosaminoglycan (GAG) binding profile beyond heparin has not been examined. In this study, we performed a Microscale Thermophoresis (MST) analysis on the heparin-binding glycoprotein YKL-40 using low molecular weight GAG oligosaccharides. We identified two new GAG ligands, dermatan sulfate (DS) and hyaluronan (HA), while chondroitin sulfate (CS) showed no detectable binding affinity. The results show that heparin is bound with the strongest affinity, followed by DS and HA. To further investigate these differences, molecular docking was used to evaluate possible binding modes. Molecular docking results indicated that both heparin and DS interacted with the same site on YKL-40, the heparin-binding site at residues 143–149, suggesting a multifunctional binding region that may act as a competitive switch or integration hub for spatially regulated signaling. Together, these findings expand the known ligand profile of YKL-40 and offer new insights into its ECM-context-dependent roles, with implications for targeting YKL-40 in diseases involving chronic inflammation, fibrosis, and cancer progression. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Marine Sulfated Polysaccharides and Their Biomedical Applications)
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