Algae increasingly attract the attention of researchers as a promising source of biologically active substances. Seaweeds is a very important component of marine ecosystems. They are used as food and in agriculture (as fertilizers and feed additives). The global algae industry annually processes up to 8 million tons of raw macrophyte biomass. Among processed products, polysaccharides (agar, carrageenan, fucoidan, alginates) are of great importance. They are used in the food industry, medicine, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, etc. Biologically active substances of algae include pigments used as food coloring and antioxidants, as well as medicinal raw materials. In the composition of brown algae, the predominant pigment is fucoxanthin. It is used in the treatment of tumor diseases. In addition, it has anti-inflammatory, antiangiogenic and antioxidant properties, stabilize carbohydrate metabolism and the work of the cardi ovascular system. The content of carotenoid fucoxanthin was studied in six species of brown algae (Scytosiphon lomentaria (Lyngb.) Link, Petalonia zosterifolia (Reinke) Kuntze, Punctaria latifolia Grev., Desmarestia viridis (O.F.Müller) J.V. Lamour., Ectocarpus silicuzeus (Dillwyn) Lyngb. and Cystoseira barbata (Stackh.) C. Agardh from the Tiligulsky estuary of the Black Sea. The pigments were extracted with 96% ethanol, and their separation was carried out by thin-layer chromatography on a silofol plate. The concentration of individual eluted pigments was determined by the optical density (D) at the corresponding wavelength and extinction coefficient of the pigment in this solvent. It was established that fucoxanthin content in the studied algae species varied within 0.55–4.11 mg/g dry weight. The minimum value is represented by D. viridis, and the maximum – by P. latifolia. Seasonal variations of pigment content observed: in most species, it increased from February to April. Increased eutrophication of water of the algae habitats caused a decrease in their fucoxanthin content. It was shown that with an increase in the level of eutrophication of water, the content of fucoxanthin in algae decreases. A promising object in biotechnology may be Punctaria latifolia, in which the highest content of fucoxanthin among the brown algae species studied by us is revealed.

Keywords: Phaeophyceae, Black Sea, fucoxanthin, pygments

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