Protective effect of bioactive pigment isolated from new halophilic cyanobacteria strain against harmful metal induced toxicity in human cell

Hypersaline environments are colonized by an unexpected diversity of halophilic microorganisms that are widely adapted to survive and proliferate under extreme conditions of salinity, oxidative and UV stress. Among these microorganisms, cyanobacteria species are rich in natural biomolecules such as phenolic compounds, carbohydrates, protein and pigments. Phycocyanin (C-PC), blue pigment, extracted from cyanobacteria has various therapeutic activities including antioxidant, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties. We are interested to C-PC from cyanobacterium Phormidium versicolor (NCC466) which is isolated from solar saltern of Sfax. We assessed in vitro, herein, the beneficial effects of this metabolite, particularly, the hepatoprotective activities. In our investigation, 25 µg/mL of this pigment was assessed for hepatoprotective activity against 35 µg/mL of cadmium (Cd) induced toxicity in HepG2 cells by determining cell viability. This study shows that C-PC protects cells against the harmful effects of Cd by increasing cell viability reaching 90%. Moreover, morphological studies also supported the protective effect of C-PC. The phycocyanin from P. versicolor has a food grade which could be a valuable nutraceutical product for pharmacological purposes.