ANTI-ATHEROSCLEROTIC BIOACTIVE COMPOUND FROM A MARINE MOLLUSC, CHICOREUS SP.

This study reports the potential of a marine mollusk, Chicoreus sp., as a producer of peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-gamma (PPAR-γ) ligand that activate the scavenger receptor class B type 1 (SR-B1) for anti-atherosclerotic activity. The objective of this study is to determine the cytotoxicity of the obtained compound C35, with a molecular weight of 270.1 and the level of SR-B1 expression of a hepatocellular carcinoma cell line (HepG2) after treatment with the compound. Various concentrations of compound C35 were treated against HepG2 to determine its cytotoxicity level (MTS assay) and against transfected HepG2 with SR-B1 promoter (luciferase assay). A non-toxic result obtained in MTS assay where the IC₅₀ is exceeding 100 µg/mL. For luciferase activities, the compound increases the transcriptional regulations of SR-B1 promoter at specific effective concentrations of 12.5 µg/ml with 1.8-fold higher as compared to the positive control. The compound increased the transcriptional regulations of SR-B1 promoter activity and subsequently increased the luciferase activity of the assay system which also reflects the ability of it as a ligand for PPAR-γ. The efficiency of these compounds was comparable to the liver receptor homolog-1 (LRH-1) suggesting that Chicoreus sp. have the potential as a source for an anti-atherosclerotic agent.