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WINTER 2012
Funding For Marine Medical research
To procure these substances, marine pharmaceutical
expeditions are under way around the world. The process
of bringing a new drug to market is long and expensive; the
pharmaceutical industry reports it can take as long as 15 to
20 years and cost as much as $800 million. First, compounds
must be harvested, extracted and then isolated or purified
for lab study. Researchers employ screening techniques to
evaluate therapeutic activity and identify the specific chemicals
responsible for the desired activity. Organic synthesis is used to
ensure a supply. If the results of preliminary tests are positive,
clinical trials are conducted on human subjects and the
company applies for a patent. The Pharmaceutical Research
and Manufacturers of America notes that for every 5,000 novel
compounds found to have biomedical potential, only five make
it into clinical trials, and only one will receive final approval for
commercial patient use.
Given the enormous cost of marine pharmacology, marine
medical research and development is usually a partnership
among government agencies, research institutes and private
corporations. The drug companies play a critical role, not only
subsidizing the cost of research but also providing the business
expertise to navigate the long and expensive road to bringing
new products to market and making them profitable.
China, Japan, Colombia and Brazil are investing heavily in
marine drug research, and the European Union just approved
an €8 million ($10.7 million) budget. In the U.S., the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA’s) National
Undersea Research Program is the primary source of marine
drug research, and its budget is very limited. But since many of
the marine compounds being sought are for cancer cures, the
National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of
Health, provides additional funding. The most extensive marine
drug research in the U.S. is being done at Scripps Institution
of Oceanography in California, Harbor Branch Oceanographic
Institute in Florida, University of California Santa Cruz,
University of Mississippi and University of Alabama.
The roster of private companies spending billions of dollars
to obtain marine miracle drugs is a “Who’s Who” of U.S.
Fortune 100 pharmaceutical companies. The largest four —
Pfizer Inc., Johnson & Johnson, Merck & Co. Inc. and Abbott
Laboratories — spend the most, and Novartis, Aventis, Eli
Lilly, Inflazyme Abbott, Wyeth and Taiho Pharmaceuticals are
also heavily invested. Even the cosmetics giant Estée Lauder
has a vested interest in marine pharmacology; it uses an anti-
inflammatory chemical from a seafan in one of its best-selling
skin-care products.
coral reeF inhabitants in the
underwater PharMacy
Coral reefs are systems composed not only of corals and the
physical structures of their remains but also of millions of living
organisms including
fish, marine plants,
sponges, mollusks,
algae and more.
Of the chemicals
extracted from
marine life so far,
the most biologically
potent are the
poisons primitive
creatures use for self
protection. Some
reef dwellers of
particular interest are invertebrates such as sponges, tunicates,
bryozoans and octocorals, which are permanently attached to
some surface. Since they are immobile, it is necessary for them
to produce compounds for either attracting prey or repelling
predators, for reproduction and other purposes. Many of these
chemicals have been found to have antibiotic, anti-inflammatory
and anti-cancer properties and are therefore highly valued
by drug companies. Venomous species such as stonefish, sea
snakes, box jellyfish, cone snails and pufferfish contain some
of the most toxic compounds known to man. The chemical
compounds present in these organisms are being studied
by researchers, and some have already been used to develop
medicines and cosmetics. Here is an overview of some of the
key discoveries in the “pharmacy of the sea” to date.
algae
Algae range in size from microscopic, single-celled organ-
isms to 150-foot-long kelp stalks. In 1981 researchers at the
Harvard School of Public Health discovered that feeding
Laminaria, a genus of kelp, to laboratory animals partially
immunized them against breast cancer tumors. Pharmocolo-
gists at the John A. Burns School of Medicine in Honolulu
discovered that the Undaria pinnatifida kelp, popularly known
as wakame, enhanced immune cell activity and helped prevent
and even cure lung cancer when injected into mice. Doctors at
the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine believe that an acid in
certain types of algae resembles the transmitter substance that
activates animal nerve cells, and they hope to apply it to studies
of neuromuscular disorders.
Algal toxins were known by humans as long ago as ancient
Egypt. In the Old Testament, Moses described the waters
turning to blood and stinking from dying fish. Scientists today
speculate Moses was describing an incident of red tide, in
which reddish dinoflagellates reached such proportions they
killed the fish in the water by using up the available oxygen
and producing a neurotoxin that renders filter-feeding shell-
fish poisonous to humans. This same toxin has been found to
inhibit the growth of most types of bacteria and is currently
being used experimentally to combat bacterial diseases.
S T E P H E N F R I N K
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