Marine sources as a treasure trove of antimicrobial agents: a systematic review

This review aims to discuss various marine antimicrobial sources, their bioactive agents, and their therapeutic applications and antimicrobial potential.

For this study, the relevant published research articles were meticulously searched and collected from PubMed, Science Direct, Science Open, DOAJ, Google Scholar, Research Gate, and Scilit.net. Only English-language works published between 2015 and February 2025 were included in the literature search. Data collection focused on the marine antimicrobial compounds, which were reported using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) approach.

This review finds excellent antimicrobial potentials of various bioactive compounds isolated from diverse marine sources. For instance, Callyspongia diffusa a demospongiae which chloroform & ethyl acetate extract is very promising against bacteria K. pneumoniae, E. coli, and E. faecalis (MIC range: 0.0002-0.0004 mg/ml) and against fungi C. albicans (MIC: 0.0002-0.0008 mg/ml) and A. niger (MIC: 0.0002-0.0004 mg/ml). Antiviral marine source Nizamuddinia zanardinii brown algae which aqueous extract is very potent against HSV-2 (IC₅₀ 0.000027-0.000123 mg/ml). Stypopodium zonale brown macro algae showed promising antiprotozoal activity against L. amazonensis protozoa (IC₅₀ 0.00027 mg/ml), Bruguiera gymnorrhiza a mangrove tree showed antifungal activities against A. fumigatus (MIC: 0.01841 mg/ml), P. chrysogenum (MIC: 0.02137 mg/ml), and C. albicans (MIC: 0.009 mg/ml).

The findings of this review highlight the significant antimicrobial potential of marine-derived organisms as valuable sources of bioactive compounds exhibiting antibacterial, antiviral, antiprotozoal, and antifungal activities. Overall, continued exploration of marine biodiversity and systematic characterization of marine-derived compounds may contribute to the development of novel and effective antimicrobial agents in the future.