Rapid analytical approach for bioprofiling compounds with radical scavenging and antimicrobial activities from seaweeds

Brown seaweeds are traditionally used as food in Asian countries, and they are a valuable source of bioactive compounds. Herein, a novel high-throughput methodological approach was developed for the tracing of compounds with radical scavenging and antimicrobial activities in Saccharina japonica and Undaria pinnatifida methanol extracts. The seaweed metabolites were separated by a novel high-performance thin-layer chromatography method, the bioactive bands were identified by bioautography assays. The bioactive compounds were characterized with ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with linear trap quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry. Stearidonic, eicosapentaenoic, and arachidonic acids were identified as major components having radical scavenging and antimicrobial activities. The suggested method provides a fast identification and quantification of bioactive compounds in multicomponent biological samples.