Potential Anti-Fouling Properties of Extracts from the Mediterranean Sponge Ircinia Oros: An Ecotoxicological Screening

Abstract The phylum Porifera and their symbionts produce a wide variety of bioactive compounds, playing a central role in their ecology and evolution. In this study, four different extracts (obtained by non-polar and semi-polar extraction methodologies) from the Mediterranean sponge Ircinia oros were tested for their potential antifouling purposes. The evaluation was performed using three different target species, associated with three different endpoints: the marine bacterium Aliivibrio fischeri (inhibition of bioluminescence), the marine diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum (inhibition of growth) and different development stages of the brackish-water serpulid Ficopomatus enigmaticus (gametes: sperm motion, vitality inhibition and cellular damage; larvae: development; adults: AChE (acetylcholinesterase)-inhibitory activity). Effects of extracts were species-specific and did not vary among different extraction methodologies. In particular, no significant reduction of bioluminescence of A. fischeri was observed for all tested samples. By contrast, extracts inhibited P. tricornutum growth and had toxic effects on different F. enigmaticus’ developmental stages. Obtained results suggest that the proposed test battery can be considered a suitable tool as bioactivity screening of marine natural products.