Exploration and possible enhancement of seaweeds from Italian coasts

Seaweeds are extremely versatile and the products obtained can be consumed directly or used in many fields. Apart from contributing greatly to the nutritional status of communities, seaweeds show a wide-ranging use in many industries. The Mediterranean Sea, even though representing the 0.82% of the world’s oceans, is a seaweeds biodiversity hotspot, and is at the same time the area affected by the introduction and spread of alien marine species. In Italy, the seaweed industry does not appear a widespread sector; furthermore, the harvesting and exploitation of macroalgae have always had a character of extreme sporadicity. However, the coastal habitats can offer an opportunity to enhance the endemic and alien species as a resource in the Bio-based Circular Economy framework. In this context, the objective of our research is a screening on the applicative potential of endemic and alien seaweeds from two Italian coastal sites: The Strait of Messina and the Lagoon of Venice. Among the investigated species, ethanolic extracts from the red alga Asparagopsis taxiformis and sulphated polysaccharides from the alien brown algae Undaria pinnatifida and Sargassum muticum have shown interesting results in the veterinary-pharmaceutical and energy sectors. The possibility of exploiting these seaweeds for industrial uses would at the same time to manage the biomass proliferation of alien species and to promote a new economic sector, thus diversifying the fishing activity, allowing to increase local production and the valorization of the resources within the framework of a Bio-based Circular Economy process.