eng Oriental Scientific Publishing Company Biomedical and Pharmacology Journal 0974-6242 2026-03-20 19 1 398 409 10.13005/bpj/3360 70287 article Anak Agung Ayu Putri Permatasari 1 Putu Angga Wiradana 1 I Gede Widhiantara 1 Ni Kadek Yunita Sari 1 I Made Gde Sudyadnyana Sandhika 1 Mochammad Aqilah Herdiansyah 2 Department of Biology, Faculty of Health and Science, Universitas Dhyana Pura, Jalan Raya Padangluwih, Dalung, North Kuta, Badung Regency, Bali Province, Indonesia. Department of Biology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universitas Airlangga, Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia Center for Biomedical Research, Research Organization for Health, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), Bogor, West Java, Indonesia Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common type of primary liver cancer worldwide. Several signaling pathways are involved in the development and apoptosis of cancer cells. Brown macroalgae, Sargassum aquifolium, is a marine functional food source known to have anticancer activity by interfering with carcinogenesis and acting as a tumor suppressor. This study aims to screen phytoconstituents from ethanol extract of S. aquifolium and the anticancer effects of its compounds on five protein receptors involved in the development and apoptosis of HCC in silico approach. Phytochemical screening was performed by GC-MS and molecular docking was performed on selected compounds from S. aquifolium with growth receptors such as VEGFR2, EGFR; apoptotic proteins such as Bcl-2, Caspase-3, and Caspase-9. GC-MS analysis, by comparing spectra to the NIST database, identified nineteen bioactive compounds. Among these, only four exhibited potential as candidates for HCC therapy. This study showed that better docking scores were obtained by linoleic acid when compared to palmitic acid, dodecanoic acid, formic acid, and phytol. Linoleic acid demonstrates promising binding affinity for receptors associated with HCC, suggesting its utility as a therapeutic inhibitor. To fully realize this potential, however, future studies should focus on the isolation of this phytoconstituent and the evaluation of its bioactivity through in vivo models. Such research would yield more comprehensive insights and further illuminate its pharmacological prospects. https://biomedpharmajournal.org/vol19no1/phytoconstituents-and-molecular-docking-of-ethanol-extract-of-sargassum-aquifolium-j-agardh-with-different-apoptosis-proteins-involved-in-hepatocellular-carcinoma/ ADME-Tox GC-MS Molecular docking Pharmacology Phytochemical Sargassum aquifolium