Sea Cucumber Compound May Help Stop Cancer Spread

Sea cucumbers, the unassuming marine invertebrates often referred to as the janitors of the ocean for their role in cleaning the seabed and recycling nutrients, might hold more value than meets the eye. A groundbreaking study led by researchers at the University of Mississippi suggests that a unique sugar compound found in sea cucumbers could be the key to stopping the spread of cancer.

The study, published in the journal Glycobiology, reveals that a compound known as fucosylated chondroitin sulfate, derived from the sea cucumber species Holothuria floridana, has the potential to inhibit Sulf-2, an enzyme known to play a significant role in cancer progression. The compound was shown to block Sulf-2’s activity without causing harmful side effects, such as interfering with blood clotting — a common complication with many enzyme-inhibiting medications.

Marwa Farrag, a fourth-year doctoral candidate in the Department of BioMolecular Sciences at the University of Mississippi and the study’s lead author, emphasized the unique nature of marine life-derived compounds. “Marine life produces compounds with unique structures that are often rare or not found in terrestrial vertebrates,” she explained. “The sugar compounds in sea cucumbers are unique. They aren’t commonly seen in other organisms. That’s why they’re worth studying.”

The research was a collaborative effort involving scientists from the University of Mississippi and Georgetown University, combining their expertise in biomolecular sciences, pharmacology, computational biology, and chemistry. Their findings suggest that the natural compound from sea cucumbers may serve as a more effective and safer alternative to traditional Sulf-2 inhibitors.

At the cellular level, both human and mammalian cells are coated with glycans—complex sugar structures that regulate cell communication, immune response, and threat recognition. In cancer cells, the enzyme Sulf-2 alters the structure of these glycans, essentially manipulating them in ways that aid the cancer’s spread. Vitor Pomin, associate professor of pharmacognosy at Ole Miss, likened these glycans to a forest of tiny leaves on each cell’s surface. “Enzymes change the function of this forest—essentially prunes the leaves of that forest,” he said. “If we can inhibit that enzyme, theoretically, we are fighting against the spread of cancer.”

The research team used a combination of laboratory testing and advanced computer modeling to assess how effectively the sea cucumber-derived compound could inhibit Sulf-2. Their experimental findings were in strong agreement with computer simulations, a consistency that provided them with increased confidence in the compound’s potential.

Robert Doerksen, a professor of medicinal chemistry involved in the project, noted the significance of the parallel results. “We were able to compare what we generated experimentally with what the simulation predicted, and they were consistent,” he said. “That gives us more confidence in the results.”

One of the study’s most promising revelations was the compound’s safety profile. According to Joshua Sharp, associate professor of pharmacology at the university, the sea cucumber sugar compound does not interfere with blood coagulation—a common and dangerous side effect of many drugs that inhibit enzymes like Sulf-2. “If you are treating a patient with a molecule that inhibits blood coagulation, one of the adverse effects that can be pretty devastating is uncontrolled bleeding,” Sharp explained. “So, it’s very promising that this particular molecule that we’re working with doesn’t have that effect.”

Beyond its effectiveness and safety, the researchers highlighted additional advantages of sourcing cancer-fighting compounds from marine organisms. Sharp pointed out that many carbohydrate-based drugs have been in use for decades, yet are still extracted from animals like pigs due to the difficulty of chemical synthesis. Marine organisms like sea cucumbers offer a cleaner, more sustainable source for these complex molecules, reducing the risk of contamination or virus transmission.

“It’s a more beneficial and cleaner resource,” added Pomin. “The marine environment has many advantages compared to more traditional sources.”

Despite the potential, researchers acknowledge a key challenge: scalability. Sea cucumbers, particularly those used in culinary traditions across the Pacific Rim, are not abundant enough to support large-scale drug production. The next step is developing a reliable synthetic method to produce the compound in the lab. “One of the problems in developing this as a drug would be the low yield, because you can’t get tons and tons of sea cucumbers,” said Pomin. “So, we have to have a chemical route, and when we’ve developed that, we can begin applying this to animal models.”

The success of the research was made possible by the interdisciplinary nature of the team, underscoring the importance of collaboration in tackling complex medical challenges. “This research took multiple expertise: mass spectrometry, biochemistry, enzyme inhibition, computation,” said Pomin. “It’s the effort of the whole team.”

As the team continues their work to synthetically replicate the compound and explore its therapeutic applications in animal models, the study opens new avenues for marine-based cancer therapies. If successful, the humble sea cucumber could one day revolutionize how we fight cancer, providing a natural, safer, and effective alternative to traditional treatments.