Antioxidant, antibacterial and cytotoxic characteristics of disk and arms of brittle star Ophiocoma erinaceus from the Persian Gulf

Biological and natural products have been considered as the most important source of medicines from ancient times. The aim of this study was to evaluate the antioxidant, antibacterial and cytotoxicity properties of brittle star Ophiocoma erinaceus. Extracts of brittle star central disk and arms were separated by using three solvent types, n-hexane, ethyl acetate, and methanol. The antioxidant activity of each of the extracts was assessed via measuring of reducing power and total antioxidant capacity. Total phenolic and flavonoid contents were also measured spectrophotometrically. The antibacterial effect against three strains of Gram-positive and one Gram-negative bacteria were also investigated. Cytotoxicity test was carried out using the Artemia larvae. Methanolic extracts were found to have the highest antioxidant activity via both methods, and ethyl acetate extract of arms and methanolic extract of the central disk showed the highest antibacterial activity on Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Serratia marcescens, respectively (P<0.05). The highest toxicity level was also observed for extracts of 500 and 1000 μg/mL concentration respectively. The findings suggest that this species has antioxidant, antibacterial and toxicity properties. Therefore purification and identification of these effective compounds are proposed.