Molecular characteristics and anti-inflammatory activity of the fucoidan extracted from Ecklonia cava

► We extracted the fucoidan from Ecklonia cava by enzymatic extraction technique. ► Their molecular characteristics and anti-inflammatory activities were investigated. ► The crude and fractionated fucoidan has various molecular characteristics ► E. cava fucoidan exhibited strong anti-inflammatory activities by NO inhibition ► E. cava fucoidan may be a useful therapeutic approach for the inflammatory diseases.