Marine Bioactive Peptides (Fishes, Algae, Cephalopods, Molluscs, and Crustaceans)

Abstract

The interest in marine species to produce biofunctional compounds has increased in the last decades, primarily due to their high-quality proteins, lipids, and micronutrients. Usually, marine organisms contain significant quantities of protein that lead to the production of novel bioactive peptides. These marine peptides, which are encrypted within the primary sequence of the native protein and can be generated by chemical and enzymatic hydrolysis, microbial fermentation, or gastrointestinal digestion, could have a role in the prevention and management of different noncommunicable diseases, such as heart diseases and cancer. However, despite the advantages of marine bioactive peptides, some aspects should be studied in greater depth, such as peptide bioactivity after incorporation into food matrix and processing, interaction with different food components, the long-term stability, bioavailability, and toxicity. This chapter reviews the recent literature on the bioactive peptides from fishes, algae, mollusks, and crustaceans, focusing on their bioactive properties, structure-activity relationship, and bioaccessibility/bioavailability.