A Long Way From Cod Liver Oil

Scientists from the University of Aberdeen are working to turn bacteria from the ocean floor into drugs to treat diseases such as cancer.

The University's Marine Biodiversity Centre held an event at the King’s College Conference Centre today to discuss how nature can be used as medicine.
A waxy green substance from a sea creature found in the Great Barrier Reef, and bacteria from the depths of the ocean off the Californian coast are just two of the examples that researchers are hoping hold the key to treating a range of diseases.

Professor Marcel Jaspars, Director of the Marine Biodiscovery Centre, said that the centre had been working alongside academics from St Andrew’s University for the past two years, but the research had been ongoing for just over seven years.

He said: “The greatest diversity of life on our planet can be found in the world’s seas in the form of marine organisms which live in a huge variety of habitats. Cutting-edge work being conducted within the University’s Marine Biodiscovery Centre is using state-of the-art technologies to break new ground in the development of drugs using the rich and diverse range of unique compounds which exist in these deep sea organisms."

The Marine Biodiscovery Centre which was launched in 2010, is one of only three centres in Europe dedicated to the exploration of the natural resources from the sea. The centre brings together chemists and biologists to work together on the development of new pharmaceuticals.
Around 50 representatives from the academic world and industry attended the one day event.