A marine brown alga was collected from Geoje, located on the southern coast of Korea. This species shares the generic features of Dictyota and is morphologically characterized by the combined features of erect or prostrate thallus with smooth margin, dichotomous to subdichotomous branches not twisted at the terminal part, absence of surface proliferations, 1-3 cell layered cortex and unilayered medulla, and lack of involucrum in sporangia subtended by a single stalk cell. In a phylogenetic tree based on rbcL sequences, this species nests in the same clade with Dictyota bartayresiana. The genetic distance between both sequences within the clade was calculated as 1.2%, considered to be within the intra-species range for the genus. Based on these morphological and molecular analyses, this Korean alga is identified as D. bartayresiana described originally from the West Indies. This is the first record of D. bartayresiana in Korea.

A large number of edible seaweeds are consumed by the coastal peoples of Asia. Some of them are used in traditional remedies in many parts of the world. In this study we investigated effects of supplementation with ethyl acetate extracts of the brown alga Eisenia bicyclis (EBE) on rat macrophage to evaluate the possibilities as immune-modulators. Twelve male SD rats were divided into two groups and the treatments were as follows: A, no Eisenia bicyclis extract (EBE) intake and distilled water ; B, oral supplemented with EBE 200 mg/kg. After 5 weeks of supplementation, rats were sacrificed to assess the effect on peritoneal macrophage functions. We showed no increasing effects on tumoricidal activity, phagocytic activity and NO production in macrophages in EBE supplementation group. However, EBE supplementation suppressed NO-iNOS production and p65 translocation into the nucleus in LPS-stimulated macrophages. Overall, these results suggest that the supplementation of EBE might have an anti-inflammatory effects on NO-iNOS production in macrophages throughout the inhibition of NF-kB activation.