Seaweeds-derived compounds modulating effects on signal transduction pathways: A systematic review.
BACKGROUND
Recently, the study of marine natural products has gained interest due to their relevant biological activities. Specially, seaweeds produce bioactive compounds that could act as modulators of cell signaling pathways involved in a plethora of diseases. Thereby, the description of the molecular mechanisms by which seaweeds elicit its biological functions will certainly pave the way to the pharmacological development of drugs.


AIM
This review describes the molecular mechanisms by which seaweeds act and its possible utilization in the design of new drugs.


METHODS
This review was conducted according to the PRISMA-P guidelines for systematic reviews. Two independent authors searched into four different databases using combinations of keywords. Two more authors selected the articles following the eligibility criteria. Information extraction was conducted by two separated authors and entered into spreadsheets. Methodological quality and risk of bias were determined applying a 12-question Risk of Bias criteria tool.


RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
We found 2360 articles (SCOPUS: 998; PubMed: 678; Wiley: 645 and EBSCO: 39) using the established keywords, of which 113 articles fit the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. This work comprises studies in cell lines, and animal models, any clinical trial was excluded. The articles were published from 2005 up to March 31st 2018. The biggest amount of articles was published in 2017. Furthermore, the seaweeds tested in the studies were collected in 15 countries, mainly in Eastern countries. We found that the main modulated signaling pathways by seaweeds-derivate extracts and compounds were: L-Arginine/NO, TNF-α, MAPKs, PI3K/AKT/GSK, mTOR, NF-κB, extrinsic and intrinsic apoptosis, cell cycle, MMPs and Nrf2. Finally, the articles we analyzed showed moderate risk of bias in almost all the parameters evaluated. However, the studies fail to describe the place and characteristics of sample collection, the sample size, and the blindness of the experimental design.


CONCLUSION
In this review we identified and summarized relevant information related to seaweed-isolated compounds and extracts having biological activity; their role in different signal pathways to better understand their potential to further development of cures for cancer, diabetes, and inflammation-related diseases.
['Juárez-Portilla|Claudia|C|', 'Olivares-Bañuelos|Tatiana|T|', 'Molina-Jiménez|Tania|T|', 'Sánchez-Salcedo|José Armando|JA|', 'Moral|Diana I Del|DID|', 'Meza-Menchaca|Thuluz|T|', 'Flores-Muñoz|Mónica|M|', 'López-Franco|Óscar|Ó|', 'Roldán-Roldán|Gabriel|G|', 'Ortega|Arturo|A|', 'Zepeda|Rossana C|RC|']
D000818:Animals D000893:Anti-Inflammatory Agents D000972:Antineoplastic Agents, Phytogenic D000975:Antioxidants D017209:Apoptosis D004353:Drug Evaluation, Preclinical D006801:Humans D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents D020935:MAP Kinase Signaling System D019869:Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinases D028321:Plant Preparations D012624:Seaweed D015398:Signal Transduction D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
Molecular mechanisms Cancer Diabetes Algae Anti-inflammatory Anti-oxidant