Screening of Azorean macroalgae for potential of novel angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory peptides. Extraction, purification, characterization and evaluation of the hypertensive activity.

General objective
Investigation and evaluation of fifteen Azorean marine macroalgae species as a source of protein-derived ACE inhibitory hydrolysates and peptides. We aim mainly to gather knowledge on the structure and activity of the peptides, having in mind the possibility of creating, in the future, a patent of new health-promoting products for nutraceutical and pharmaceutical marine biotechnology markets.

Specific objectives

• Identification of new sources of marine bio-products by screening the ACE inhibitory activities of fifteen Azorean marine macroalgae (six Phaeophyta: Cystoseira abies-marina, Cystoseira humilis, Fucus spiralis, Padina pavonica, Sargassum cymosum and Sargassum vulgare; five Rhodophyta: Gelidium microdon, Osmundea pinnatifida, Porphyra sp., Pterocladiella capillacea and Sphaerococcus coronopifolius; four Chlorophyta: Chaetomorpha pachynema, Chaetomorpha linum, Codium adhaerens and Ulva compressa) and, consequently, valorization of Azorean marine macroalgae.
• Isolation of ACE inhibitory peptides fractions derived from protein hydrolysis of the selected Azorean macroalgae species.
• Purification and characterization of the macroalgae ACE inhibitory peptides (amino acids composition and amino acids sequence determination).
• Synthesis of the most active macroalgae ACE inhibitory peptides and comparison of their hypertensive inhibition with the natural ones and also with synthetic hypertensive drugs usually prescribed by physicians.
• Possibility of creating a patent of novel molecular structures with pharmaceutical applications and also the new products for nutraceutical markets.