A Review of Pigments Derived from Marine Natural Products

Since the early 20th century, a number of active natural pigments have been identified from marine sources, especially algae and marine microorganisms. This review presents 81 marine pigments, covering over 90 % known natural marine pigments. The objective of this article is to provide an overview on the types of pigments, their structural characterization, origins and biological functions that make them unique. We divide the major categories of pigments by chemical structure, either as carotenoids, indole derivatives (quinones and violacein), alkaloids (prodiginines and tambjamines), polyenes, macrolides, peptides, or terpenoids. Many of these pigments have a variety of biological activities, including antitumor, antibacterial, antioxidant and anti‐inflammatory. In addition, we discuss the development of biotechnology, and the contribution and utilization of marine natural pigments and the potential applications in the field of pharmaceutical research.