Fucoidans are complex polysaccharides derived from brown seaweeds which consist of considerable proportions of L-fucose and other monosaccharides, and sulphated ester residues. The search for novel and natural bioproduct drugs (due to toxicity issues associated with chemotherapeutics) has led to the extensive study of fucoidan due to reports of it having several bioactive characteristics. Among other fucoidan bioactivities, antidiabetic and anticancer properties have received the most research attention in the past decade. However, the elucidation of the fucoidan structure and its biological activity is still vague. In addition, research has suggested that there is a link between diabetes and cancer; however, limited data exist where dual chemotherapeutic efforts are elucidated. This review provides an overview of glucose metabolism, which is the central process involved in the progression of both diseases. We also highlight potential therapeutic targets and show the relevance of fucoidan and its derivatives as a candidate for both cancer and diabetes therapy.

Sweet sorghum bagasse (SSB) and corncob (CC) have been identified as promising feedstocks for the production of second-generation biofuels and other value-added chemicals. In this study, lime (Ca(OH)₂) and NaOH pretreatment efficacy for decreasing recalcitrance from SSB and CC was investigated, and subsequently, the pretreated biomass was subjected to the hydrolytic action of an in-house formulated holocellulolytic enzyme cocktail (HEC-H). Compositional analysis revealed that SSB contained 29.34% lignin, 17.75% cellulose and 16.28% hemicellulose, while CC consisted of 22.51% lignin, 23.58% cellulose and 33.34% hemicellulose. Alkaline pretreatment was more effective in pretreating CC biomass compared to the SSB biomass. Both Ca(OH)₂ and NaOH pretreatment removed lignin from the CC biomass, while only NaOH removed lignin from the SSB biomass. Biomass compositional analysis revealed that these agricultural feedstocks differed in their chemical composition because the CC biomass contained mainly hemicellulose (33–35%), while SSB biomass consisted mainly of cellulose (17–24%). The alkaline pretreated SSB and CC samples were subjected to the hydrolytic action of the holocellulolytic enzyme cocktail, formulated with termite derived multifunctional enzymes (referred to as MFE-5E, MFE-5H and MFE-45) and exoglucanase (Exg-D). The HEC-H hydrolysed NaOH pretreated SSB and CC more effectively than Ca(OH)₂ pretreated feedstocks, revealing that NaOH was a more effective pretreatment. In conclusion, the HEC-H cocktail efficiently hydrolysed alkaline pretreated agricultural feedstocks, particularly those which are hemicellulose- and amorphous cellulose-rich, such as CC, making it attractive for use in the bioconversion process in the biorefinery industry.