Table 2.

Toxicology of fucoidan.

Fucoidan source	Characteristics	Studies	Dose	Species	Results	Ref.
Undaria pinnatifida	53% total sugar 7.4% sulfate 27% Uronic acid 54% fucose 35% galactose	Acute in vivo Ames test Bone marrow micronucleus	1000 mg/kg body weight per day for 28 days	Sprague Dawley rats	Not toxic to 1000 mg/kg bw; Increase in ALT at 200 mg/kg	Chung 2010 [25]
Laminaria japonica	Fucoidan Fraction MW average “10–300 kD”	Oral dosing in experimental model; Toxicity by clinical observation	Escalation doses up to 20 mg/kg	Dogs with hemophilia A; Rats	No clinical toxicity	Prasad 2008 [31]
Laminaria japonica	Fluorescent labeled fucoidan	Subcutaneous	5 mg/kg	Rat	Half life 83 min	Prasad 2008 [31]
Laminaria japonica	MW average 189 kDa Fucose 28% sulfate 29% total sugasr 48%	Acute and sub-chronic toxicity	300, 900 and 2500 mg/kg bw to 6 months	Wistar Rats	Not toxic to 300 mg/kg bw Prolonged clotting at 900 and 1200 mg/kg bw	Li 2005 [26]
Undaria pinnatifida	64.4 ± 6.0% fucose, 31.9 ± 4.7% galactose, 3.6 ± 1.3% mannose, and 31.7 ± 2.2% sulfate	Genotoxicity Bacterial mutation Bone marrow Micronucleus formation	Up to 2000 mg/kg/bw orally	Sprague Dawley rats	Fucoidan presents no significant genotoxic concern.	Kim 2010 [32]
Undaria pinnatifida	64.4 ± 6.0% fucose, 31.9 ± 4.7% galactose, 3.6 ± 1.3% mannose, and 31.7 ± 2.2% sulfate	Toxicty measures—body weight, ophthalmoscopy urinalysis, hematology, and histopathology; Clotting paramaters; Prothrombin time or activated partial thromboplastin time	1350 mg/kg bw/day for 4 weeks orally	Sprague Dawley rats	No changes to No change to prothrombin time or activated partial thromboplastin time	Kim 2009 [30]
Undaria pinnatifida	75% fucoidan	Full blood count, clinical biochemistry	3 g per day for 12 days	Human	No toxicity noted	Irhimeh 2005, 2007, 2009 [19,28,29]
Fucus vesiculosis Macrocystis pyrifera Laminaria japonica	75% total fucoidan	Full blood count, clinical biochemistry	0.1 and 1 g for 84 days	Human	No toxicity	Myers 2010 [27]
Fucus vesiculosis Macrocystis pyrifera Laminaria japonica	75% total fucoidan	Full blood count, clinical biochemistry	0.1 and 1 g for 28 days	Human	No toxicity	Myers 2011 [33]
Cladisiphon sp.	85% fucoidan	Patients with HTLV1 were treated clinically	6 g per day up to 13 months	Human	Four patients diarrhea; No other toxicity noted; Reduction in viral load	Araya 2011 [34]