Articles

Seaweeds represent a diverse and valuable source of cosmetic compounds such as vitamins, minerals, trace elements, amino acids, antioxidants, etc., with moisturizing, anti-inflammatory, and regenerative effects. The so-called “blue cosmetics” represent a line of products related to the use of natural active ingredients and an important market share in major international cosmetic brands. To be recognised as environmentally sustainable, it is essential to ensure that algae-derived products comply with environmentally sound harvesting, production, and extraction practices. In this work, Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology was used to carry out an environmental impact assessment of the processing of the brown algae extract from Fucus vesiculosus and its comparative profile with the most used antioxidants in cosmetics: vitamin C and green tea extracts. Considering an equivalent formulation in antioxidant content, the results showed that seaweed has the lowest environmental load while green tea extracts have the highest environmental impact. Furthermore, to further reduce emissions from seaweed processing, the use of renewable energy sources and the valorisation of biomass residues as fertilisers in a circular economy approach are proposed.

The use of seaweed as a source of bioactive extracts has received increased attention from the market in recent years—particularly for nutraceutical applications. In this context, this study evaluated the nutraceutical application of seaweed biomass and extracts from three seaweeds from Portugal: Ulva sp., Laminaria ochroleuca, and Chondrus crispus. For each of the said seaweeds, four different extracts were obtained using GRAS solvents—acetone (A), ethanol (E), ethanol–water (1:1) (EW), and one polysaccharide-rich extract (P) using water and further precipitation with ethanol. The bioactive potential of the extracts was assessed in terms of antioxidant capacity (ABTS+, DPPH, NO, O2 􀀀 scavenging, and ORAC-FL assay) and anti-inflammatory capacity (COX inhibition and human red blood cell membrane stabilisation). Furthermore, the biochemical profile was determined for the raw biomass and extracts to better comprehend their possible applications as nutraceuticals. The results show that all extracts have antioxidant potential. Five extracts (L. ochroleuca E, EW, and P and Ulva sp. E and P) showed anti-inflammatory capacity. Overall, L. ochroleuca EW extract exhibited the most promising potential as both an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory and is an interesting candidate nutraceutical ingredient.