Membranous, bright crimson fronds, with cartilaginous, cylindrical, branched stipe, from thickened discoid holdfast, to 300 mm long. Branches bearing spirally arranged, leaflike, ovate-lanceolate blades, each with short stipe and pinnately branched midrib, membranous portion monostromatic, margin undulate (on mature blades), entire. Reproductive structures in small oval, stalked blades, borne on midribs in winter.

A conspicuous crimson seaweed up to 30 cm in length. Blades are oval or lanceolate, leaf like and reminiscent of beech leaves. The membranous lamina has a wavy margin and is supported by a conspicuous midrib with opposite pairs of lateral veins. The irregularly shaped, thickened holdfast (about 0.5 cm in diameter) gives rise to a short cylindrical stipe about 1 cm long. The stipe branches sparingly giving rise to spirally arranged blades (about 1.5 - 4 cm wide). The leaves may be pointed in young specimens. In autumn the membranous lamina is lost so that only the midrib remains. Reproductive bodies (e.g. cystocarp) develop on the naked midrib. Cystocarp are globular, with a membranous border, and form in fairly close formation on a short stalks on female plants. Carpogonia on female plants are fertilised during October but carpospores are not released until February. New fronds may grow before all reproductive structures disappear. Reproductive leaflets also grow on the denuded midrib in male and asexual plants. On the male plants tetrasporangial bladelets appear in November and tetraspores released in January and February [Kain & Bates, 1993]. Very wave battered plants may be confused with Phycodrys rubens (q.v.) which has lobed or toothed blades.

Original publication: Lamouroux, J.V.F. (1813). Essai sur les genres de la famille des thalassiophytes non articulées. Annales du Muséum d'Histoire Naturelle, Paris 20: 21-47, 115-139, 267-293, Plates 7-13.

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Provide biological, medical and pharmacological activity - anticoalgulant

Delesseria sanguinea is used in the cosmetics industry for its anticoagulant properties and vitamin K content; the active principle being termed delesserine (Guiry & Blunden, 1991).

The red seaweed Delesseria sanguinea dominantly populates a large artificial reef at Nienhagen in the Baltic Sea. It contains substantial amounts of sulfated polysaccharides (D.s.-SP), which consist of a homogenous fraction of branched sulfated xylogalactans (gal:xyl ˜5.4) and exhibit a pharmacological profile indicating anti-inflammatory and anti-skin aging potencies [1-3].

Compared with heparin, D.s.-SP revealed stronger inhibitory effects on the enzymes elastase, hyaluronidase, heparanase, collagenase as well as on complement activation, cell adhesion to P-selectin and cytokine release from LPS-activated monocytes, but have only moderate anticoagulant activity. Their hyaluronidase and complement inhibitory activities proved even superior than those of the anti-inflammatory β-1,3-glucan sulfate PS3 (Planta Med 2011; 77 - PH9
DOI: 10.1055/s-0031-1282591).

Larsen, A. & Sand-Jensen, K. (2005). Salt tolerance and distribution of estuarine benthic macroalgae in the Kattegat-Baltic Sea area. Phycologia 45: 13-23.

Loiseaux-de Goër, S. & Noailles, M.-C. (2008). Algues de Roscoff. pp. [1]-215, col. figs. Roscoff: Editions de la Station Biologique de Roscoff.

Maggs, C.A. & Hommersand, M.H. (1993). Seaweeds of the British Isles. Volume 1. Rhodophyta. Part 3A. Ceramiales. pp. xv + 444, 129 figs, map. London: HMSO.

This is the type species (lectotype) of the genus Delesseria

Basionym: Fucus sanguineus Hudson