Scotland's Marine Riches

Since its opening in 2002 the European Centre for Marine Biotechnology near Oban has gradually become the focal point for much research into how the seas can help further research into groundbreaking new drugs. The state-of-the-art facility currently houses several companies who are at the forefront of unlocking the sea's potential.

GlycoMar is a natural marine products and drug discovery company that was set up specifically to exploit the diverse biological organisms present in Scotland's marine environment. They are the first such company to specialise in marine invertebrate glycobiology the process of extracting chemical compounds from molluscs and crustaceans and their products are turning out to have wide-ranging medical applications.

Natural resources

One of GlycoMar's recent discoveries was that the slime secreted by undersea creatures like Starfish contained chemicals that could assist in combating conditions as diverse as hay fever and respiratory problems. GlycoMar Managing Director Dr Charles Bavington, PhD from Edinburgh University, said 'as unprepossessing as this substance sounds we collect it from the animals in order to collect the patented compounds it contains.' The slime is extracted from the sea creatures using a suction device. 'The process is very easy and they are not harmed in any way,' says Dr Bavington. 'The animals are always producing more slime in their bodies so they can be used repeatedly.'

The collected slime containing complex sugars and carbohydrates known to play a central role in combating many diseases is then dried and turned into a powder which is sent to Canadian pharmaceuticals firm Rhinopharma which then turns the substance into marketable drugs. 'We are concentrating on Starfish at the moment,' Dr Bavington said, 'but we are interested in looking at other sea creatures in the future.'

Harvesting marine microbes

Another company based at the ECMB is Aquapharm Biodiversity Ltd; one of the UK's first marine biotechnology companies. Dr Andrew Mearns Spragg, a post graduate of Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, was only 28 when he set up the company in 2000, but already he has received one of the UK's highest awards for innovation the prestigious Gannochy Trust Innovation Award of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, awarded annually to a young innovator whose work has the potential to promote 'social and economic well-being.' Aquapharm has been described as "bioprospectors", harvesting marine microbes, a relatively unexplored source of novel molecules. So far, Aquapharm has built a "library of goo" storing over 6500 marine bacteria and fungi.

The 50,000 prize was awarded in recognition of Dr Spragg's pioneering work in marine biotechnology: Aquapharm discovered a new compound P-216CM which has strong anti-microbial activity and which tests have shown can combat infections like the MRSA hospital superbug. 'The compound is completely new to science,' Dr Spragg said recently. 'It's exciting because it works in a completely different way to our current antibiotics. It's a rare find.'

And Dr Spragg thinks that while in the past drug research companies had looked to places on land for undiscovered secrets, in the future they will increasingly be looking to the seas for new breakthroughs. 'Companies have often looked to the Amazon rainforest to find new compounds, but the rate of discovery is slowing down. Life evolved in the oceans, so there is a greater diversity of molecules there,' he explained. 'The sea produces new chemicals of shapes and structures not seen on land and Scotland's seas are some of the most prolific in Europe.'

World renowned marine research facility

Also committed to research and education in marine science in Scotland is The Scottish Association for Marine Science, or SAMS. The charity is one of the oldest oceanographic organisations in the world established in 1884 and, as the owner and operator of the Dunstaffnage Marine Laboratory near Oban, SAMS is also an internationally renowned marine research establishment whose activities encompass the entire breadth of marine science.

Besides research SAMS is also engaged in tertiary education, running an undergraduate honours degree course in marine science. It is not alone; Scotland is increasingly becoming one of the foremost countries in Europe for marine study, with Stirling, Aberdeen, Glasgow, Heriot-Watt and St. Andrews universities now all offering bachelor of science degrees in Marine Biology. All of which possess an international significance for research into marine resources.

A fertile hunting ground

And it's not only in the discovery of new drugs and new species that Scotland's waters are proving fertile hunting ground, they are also playing a pivotal role in the development of renewable energy. Heriot-Watt University is involved in a project designed to tap into the enormous energy reserves to be found in the waves and tidal currents around our coastline.

Programme director Professor John Side said that the project based at the university's International Centre for Island Technology in Orkney was aimed at finding practical solutions to the challenges of harnessing wave and tidal power. 'We want to look at potential constraints ... and find ways for costal communities to become involved in and benefit from this new industry.'

The burgeoning renewable energy market

It is all part of a drive towards making Scotland a key player in the burgeoning renewable energy market; a drive that aims to see Scotland producing 50% of electricity generated to come from renewable sources by 2020, and leading the world in the research and development of marine energy devices.

Between starfish slime and wave energy it is thought that as many as 7000 new jobs could be created within Scotland's diverse marine industry over the coming decade; not to mention the huge gains for mankind as the exploration of our seas continues to yield innovative new drugs and environmentally-friendly energy, ultimately allowing the whole world to benefit from Scotland's diverse, complex marine life.