Potential beneficial effects of marine algal sterols on human health.

The importance of bioactive derivatives as functional ingredients has been well recognized due to their valuable health beneficial effects. Therefore, isolation and characterization of novel functional ingredients with biological activities from marine algae have gained much attention. Sterols are important structural component of cell membranes. It has been reported that plant sterols exhibit various beneficial biological activities such as hypercholesterolemic, antioxidant, anticancer, antidiabetic, antihypertensive, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, and antibacterial activities. Marine algae with a great diversity can be a very interesting natural resource of sterols. This chapter focuses on biological activities of marine algae derived sterols with potential health beneficial applications in functional foods and pharmaceuticals.