Work

Sea Cucumber (Isostichopus badionotus): Bioactivity and Wound Healing Capacity In Vitro of Small Peptide Isolates from Digests of Whole-Body Wall or Purified Collagen

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Low-molecular-weight peptides derived from the digestion of body wall proteins in some sea cucumber species have wound-healing and health-promoting properties, but their potency varies widely by species, growth environment, age, and season. For the first time, small peptide (1–3 kDa) fractions have been isolated from the whole-body wall of the sea cucumber Isostichopus badionotus and its constituent collagen and tested for wound healing capacity in vitro. Ultrafiltered digests (1–3 kDa) of the pure collagen, as well as 1–3 kDa digests of the whole-body wall, had potent antioxidant activities and promoted rapid wound healing in a keratinocyte scratch wound assay. Gene expression studies suggested that the wound-healing actions of the individual collagen and body wall 1–3 kDa fractions differed significantly. Low-molecular-weight peptides derived from I. badionotus collagen did promote wound healing in vitro; however, their efficacy may have been modulated by additional factors produced during body wall or collagen digestion. These findings need to be confirmed in vivo.

Source: Marine Drugs

DOI: 10.3390/md23110411