''Thelenota anax'' is a species of sea cucumber mostly found in the tropical, South

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

. It is also commonly known as the amber fish. Some other names for ''T. anax'' are black teatfish, blackfish, brownfish, chief sea cucumber, curryfish, elephant trunk cucumber, lollyfish, tripang, and white-teat sea cucumber. ''T. anax'' is found on sandy ocean bottoms and often have ectocommensal relationships. They are commonly fished commercially and exported because of their medicinal properties and large size.

Description

The body of ''T. anax'' can be a creamy beige or light brown with dark brown or red spots. It usually has light colored bumps on the top of its body. ''T. anax'' also has large with papillae located laterally on its body. On its ventral surface there is long white podia. Its mouth is also located ventrally with 18-20 peltate tentacles. The anus is located on the dorsal side of the animal towards the terminal end. Their average length is about 69 cm long, but the longest recorded sea cucumber was 89 cm long. Some of the biggest sea cucumber can weigh up to 5 kg. It also has two gonads that are approximately 70-500mm long. Thelenota_anax

Habitat

''Thelenota anax'' prefers to live on soft, sandy portions of the ocean floor at depths greater than 25 m. Some can be found on the sides of reef slopes.

Ectocommensals

Some organism can often be found living on the outside of ''Thelenota anax''. A few common species found on ''T.anax'' are scaleworms and

gastropods The gastropods (), commonly known as snails and slugs, belong to a large taxonomic class of invertebrates within the phylum Mollusca called Gastropoda (). This class comprises snails and slugs from saltwater, from freshwater, and from land. Ther ...

. The sea cucumber does not appear to be negatively affected by these ectocommensal species.

Commercial value

Many species of sea cucumbers are sold for human consumption as "beche-de-mer". In the

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...

, where ''Thelenota anax'' is commonly harvested, it has a commercial value of around $6.66 per kg . It is one of the less expensive species of sea cucumbers, but is one of the more commonly exported species because of its high body mass.

Medicinal properties

''T. anax'' is commonly consumed in Asian and Middle Eastern countries for its purported medicinal benefits, although research into its effects are ongoing. ''T. anax'' produces many different bioactive compounds such as

arachidonic acid Arachidonic acid (AA, sometimes ARA) is a polyunsaturated omega-6 fatty acid 20:4(ω-6), or 20:4(5,8,11,14). It is structurally related to the saturated arachidic acid found in cupuaçu butter. Its name derives from the New Latin word ''arachi ...

eicosapentaenoic acid Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; also icosapentaenoic acid) is an omega-3 fatty acid. In physiological literature, it is given the name 20:5(n-3). It also has the trivial name timnodonic acid. In chemical structure, EPA is a carboxylic acid with a 20-c ...

, and

docosahexaenoic acid Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) is an omega-3 fatty acid that is a primary structural component of the human brain, cerebral cortex, skin, and retina. In physiological literature, it is given the name 22:6(n-3). It can be synthesized from alpha-lino ...

. These compounds are known to reduce the risk of coronary disease, some cancers, and have anti-inflammatory properties Specifically arachidonic acid promotes blood clotting and wound healing. This is why many Asian countries use T.''anax'' to treat burns and cuts. Studies have also shown that ''T. anax'' produces glycosides Stichopside C (STC) and Stichoposide D (STD). STC makes Ceramide, which is a tumor suppressor lipid. It also causes the apoptosis of colorectal cancer cells and leukemia cells. STD causes the apoptosis of only leukemia cells and inhibits its growth.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q301271 Stichopodidae