Metabolites produced by marine algae have been found to have many antimicrobial properties. This is because they are produced by the marine organisms as chemical deterrents and as such contain bioactive compounds. The principal classes of marine algae that produce these types of secondary metabolites are Cyanophyceae, Chlorophyceae and Rhodophyceae. Observed biogenic products include polyketides, amides, alkaloids, fatty acids, indoles and lipopeptides. For example, over 10% of compounds isolated from Lyngbya majuscula, which is one of the most abundant cyanobacteria, have antifungal and antimicrobial properties. Additionally, a study by Ren et al. (2002) tested halogenated furanones produced by Delisea pulchra from the Rhodophyceae class against the growth of Bacillus subtilis. When applied at a 40 µg/mL concentration, the furanone inhibited the formation of a biofilm by the bacteria and reduced the biofilm's thickness by 25% and the number of live cells by 63%.
These characteristics then have the potential to be utilised in man-made materials, such as making anti-fouling paints without the environment-damaging chemicals. Environmentally safe alternatives are needed to TBT (tin-based antifouling agent) which releases toxic compounds into water and the environment and has been banned in several countries. A class of biogenic compounds that has had a sizeable effect against the bacteria and microalgae that cause fouling are acetylene sesquiterpenoid esters produced by Caulerpa prolifera (from the Chlorophyceae class), which Smyrniotopoulos et al. (2003) observed inhibiting bacterial growth with up to 83% of the efficacy of TBT oxide.
Current research also aims to produce these biogenic substances on a commercial level using metabolic engineering techniques. By pairing these techniques with biochemical engineering design, algae and their biogenic substances can be produced on a large scale using photobioreactors. Different system types can be used to yield different biogenic products.