Flower color and color patterns are important traits for ornamental species; for this reason, a comprehensive understanding of the genetic mechanisms underlying these characters is extremely significant for plant breeders. The tulip tree (Liriodendron tulipifera Linn.) is well known for its flowers, odd leaves and tree form. However, the genetic mechanism underlying its flower color remains unknown. In this study, a putative LtuPTOX gene was identified based on multiple databases of differential transcript expression at various developmental stages and the complete genome sequence of Liriodendron. Then, the full-length cDNA of LtuPTOX was derived from tepals and leaves using RACE approaches. Furthermore, the gene structure and a phylogenetic analysis of PTOX as well as AOXs, highly similar homologs in the AOX family, were used to distinguish between the two subfamilies of genes. In addition, transient transformation and qPCR methods were used to determine the subcellular localization and tissue expression pattern of the LtuPTOX gene. Moreover, the expression of LtuPTOX as well as pigment contents was investigated to illustrate the function of this gene during the formation of orange bands on petals. The results showed that the LtuPTOX gene encodes a 358-aa protein that contains a complete AOX domain (PF01768.17). Accordingly, Liriodendron PTOX and AOX genes were identified as only paralogs since they were rather similar in the sequence. LtuPTOX showed chloroplast localization, and expressed in the colored organs such as petals and leaves. In addition, increasing pattern of LtuPTOX transcripts lead to carotenoids accumulation on the orange-band in the development period of flower bud. Taken together, our results provide that LtuPTOX is involved in petal carotenoid metabolism and orange band formation in L. tulipifera. Meanwhile, the identification of this potentially involved gene will lay a foundation for further uncovering the mechanism of flower color formation in L. tulipifera.

Cucumber green mottle mosaic virus (CGMMV) is a re-emerging threat to greenhouse cucumber and other Cucurbitaceae crop productions worldwide. This seed-borne virus can easily spread from a contaminated seed to seedlings and to adjacent plants through mechanical contact of the foliage of diseased and healthy plants causing extensive yield losses. Additionally, infection may not be limited to the current crop but may also affect subsequent crops due to the long-term persistence of the virus on contaminated crop residues, greenhouse hard surfaces and soil or soil-less greenhouse substrates. In the present work, three greenhouse trials were conducted to develop an integrated pest management strategy towards controlling CGMMV in commercial cucumber greenhouses, by implementing an effective sanitization program and using resistant and grafted cucumber varieties. Results of sanitization trial highlighted that pressure washing and cleansing with an alkaline foam cleanser has eliminated CGMMV on some of the most heavily infested areas. However, three successive applications of cleanser and disinfectants were essential to completely eliminate CGMMV on porous and uneven surfaces, such as cement alleyway, tray gutter and floor mats. The varietal trial revealed that out of 15 cucumber varieties evaluated, two Mini (‘Katrina’ and ‘Khassib’) and three Long English (‘Sepire’, ‘Bomber’ and ‘LC13900’) had reduced or delayed CGMMV infection spread in the greenhouse but were intermediate in yield. The varieties ‘Sunniwell’ and ‘Bonbon’ were the most tolerant to CGMMV. They showed a high CGMMV infection level without compromising yield. These results proved the need for new productive cucumber varieties with CGMMV resistance. Grafting experiment showed only yield increase in case of grafted ‘Picowell’ over ‘Bonbon’ and not marked CGMMV resistance, which is a much desirable result when the grafting experiments are evaluated for their economic potential. In all, the current experimental trials unfold unique methodologies on CGMMV management in commercial greenhouses that are recommended to the growers to be followed for reducing crop losses and get benefitted on revenue compromise.

Background: The use of medicinal plants and their effective compounds as natural sources that have antioxidant properties, has been considered by researchers. Antioxidants are compounds that effectively inhibit the reaction of oxygen and nitrogen-free radicals with biomolecules in a variety of ways, reducing damage or preventing cell death, cardiovascular diseases, and cancers. Objective: In this study, chemical compounds of Adiantum capillus-veneris essential oil were used to evaluate its antioxidant and antimicrobial activity using water distillation and gas chromatography. Methods: The whole plant was dried at room temperature at 25 ° C and the distillation method with water with modifications was used using a Clevenger device for essential oil extraction. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) was used to identify the resulting essential oil compounds and the antioxidant and antibacterial activity of the essential oil was evaluated. Results: The most important chemical constituents of Adiantum capillus-veneris essential oil were carvone (33.00%), carvacrol (15.05%), hexadecanoic acid (7.02%), hexahydrofarnesyl acetone (4.25%) and n-nonanal (4.2%). The antibacterial activity of Adiantum capillus-veneris essential oils (mg/ml) was calculated and the highest antibacterial activity was determined by Staphylococcus aureus (8.23±1.07), Streptococcus pyogenes (12.46±1.62), and Diphtheroid (11.37±1.36) at a concentration of 100 mg/ml of essential oils. Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that the essential oil of Adiantum capillus-veneris prevented the growth of three pathogenic bacteria. This antibacterial property is due to the presence of flavonoid compounds in Adiantum capillus-veneris has the capacity for therapeutic and medical uses.

Distinctive strains of Pantoea are used as soil inoculants for their ability to promote plant growth. Pantoea agglomerans strain C1, previously isolated from the phyllosphere of lettuce, can produce indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), solubilize phosphate, and inhibit plant pathogens, such as Erwinia amylovora. In this paper, the complete genome sequence of strain C1 is reported. In addition, experimental evidence is provided on how the strain tolerates arseniate up to 100 mM, and on how secreted metabolites like IAA and siderophores act as biostimulants in tomato cuttings. The strain has a circular chromosome and two prophages for a total genome of 4,846,925-bp, with a GC content of 55.2%. Genes related to plant growth promotion and biocontrol activity, such as those associated with IAA and spermidine synthesis, solubilization of inorganic phosphate, acquisition of ferrous iron, and production of volatile organic compounds, siderophores and GABA, were found in the genome of strain C1. Genome analysis also provided better understanding of the mechanisms underlying strain resistance to multiple toxic heavy metals and transmission of these genes by horizontal gene transfer. Findings suggested that strain C1 exhibits high biotechnological potential as plant growth-promoting bacterium in heavy metal polluted soils.

Solidago virgaurea L. (European goldenrod, Woundwort), Asteraceae, is a familiar medicinal plant in Europe and other parts of the world, widely used and among the most researched species from its genus. The aerial parts of European goldenrod have long been used for urinary tract conditions and as an anti-inflammatory agent in the traditional medicine of different peoples. Its main chemical constituents are flavonoids (mainly derived from quercetin and kaempferol), C6-C1 and C6-C3 compounds, terpenes (mostly from the essential oil), and a large number of saponin molecules (mainly virgaureasaponins and solidagosaponins). Published research on its potential activities is critically reviewed here: antioxidant, antiinflammatory, analgesic, spasmolitic, antihypertensive, diuretic, antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasite, cytotoxic and antitumor, antimutagenic, antiadipogenic, antidiabetic, cardioprotective, and antisenescence. The evidence concerning its potential benefits is mainly derived from non-clinical studies, some effects are rather modest, whereas others are more promising, but need more confirmation in both non-clinical models and clinical trials.

Recently L-shaped tunneling field-effect-transistor (LTFET) has been introduced to overcome the thermal subthreshold limit of conventional metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect-transistors (MOSFET). In this work, shortcoming of LTFET was investigated. It was found that corner effect present in LTFET effectively degrades its subthreshold slope. To get rid of corner effect a new type of device with dual material gates is presented. The new device termed as DG-LTFET gets rid of the corner effect and results in a significantly improved subthreshold slope of less than 10 mV/dec, and an improved ON/OFF current ratio over LTFET. In this work DG-LTFET was evaluated for different device parameters, and bench-marked against LTFET. This work presents an optimum configuration of DG-LTFET in terms of device dimensions and doping levels, to get the best subthreshold, ON current and ambipolar performance from the DG-LTFET.

Cells actively sense differences in topology, matrix elasticity and protein composition of the extracellular microenvironment and adapt their function and morphology. In this study, we focus on the cross-talk between matrix stiffness and protein coating density that regulate morphology and proliferation dynamics of single myocytes. For this, C2C12 myocytes were monitored on L-DOPA functionalized hydrogels of 22 different elasticity and fibronectin density compositions. Static images were recorded and statistically analyzed to determine morphological differences and to identify the optimized extracellular matrix (ECM). Using that information, selected ECMs were used to study the dynamics before and after cell proliferation by statistical comparison of distinct cell states. We observed a fibronectin density independent increase of the projected cell area until 12 kPa. Additionally, changes in the fibronectin density led to an area optimum at about 2.6 μg/cm, which was confirmed by an independent F-actin analysis, revealing a maximum actin filament to cell area ratio of 7.5 %. The proliferation evaluation showed an opposite correlation between cell spreading duration and speed to the matrix elasticity and protein density, which did not affect the cell cycle duration. In summary, we identified an optimized ECM composition, while independent matrix properties regulate distinct cell characteristics.

Delineating chilling and forcing periods is one of the challenging topics in understanding how temperatures drive the timing of budburst and bloom in fruit tree species. Here, we investigated this question on olive trees, using flowering data collected over six years on 331 cultivars in the worldwide collection of Marrakech, Morocco. Using a Partial Least Squares approach on a long-term phenology (29 years) of ‘Picholine Marocaine’ cultivar, we showed that the relevance of delineating the chilling and forcing periods depends more on the variability of inter-annual temperatures than on the long-term datasets. In fact, chilling and forcing periods are similar between those delineated by using datasets of 29 years and those of only 6 years (2014–2019). We demonstrated that the variability of inter-annual temperatures is the main factor explaining this pattern. We then used the datasets of six years to assess the chill and heat requirements of 285 cultivars. We classified Mediterranean olive cultivars into four groups according to their chill requirements. Our results, using the Kriging interpolation method, indicated that flowering dates of most of these cultivars (92%) were governed by both chilling and forcing temperatures. Our investigations provided first insights to select adapted cultivars to global warming.

The past few years have brought substantial progress toward understanding how human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) enters the remarkably wide spectrum of cell types and tissues that the virus is observed to infect. Neuropilin-2 and platelet-derived growth factor receptor alpha (PDGFRα) were identified as receptors, respectively, for the trimeric and pentameric glycoprotein H / glycoprotein L (gH/gL) complexes that in large part govern HCMV cell tropism, while CD90 and CD147 were also found to play roles during entry. X-ray crystal structures for the proximal viral fusogen, glycoprotein B (gB), and for the pentameric gH/gL complex (pentamer) were solved. A novel virion gH complex consisting of gH bound to UL116 instead of gL was described, and findings supporting the existence of a stable complex between gH/gL and gB were reported. Additional work indicates that the pentamer promotes a mode of cell-associated spread that resists antibody neutralization, as opposed to the trimeric gH/gL complex (trimer), which appears to be broadly required for the infectivity of cell-free virions. Finally, viral factors such as UL148 and US16 were identified that can influence the incorporation of the alternative gH/gL complexes into virions. We will review these advances and their implications for understanding HCMV entry and cell tropism.

The potential yield of annual crops is affected by management practices and water and energy availabilities throughout the crop season. The current work aimed to assess the effects of plant population and soil covering on yield components of maize. Field experiments were carried out during 2014-15 and 2015-16 growing seasons at areas grown with oat straw, voluntary plants and bare soil, considering five different plant populations (40,000, 60,000, 80,000, 100,000 and 120,000 plants ha-1) and three sowing dates (15 Sep., 30 Oct., 15 Dec.) for the hybrid P30F53YH in Ponta Grossa, State of Parana, Brazil. Non-impacts of soil covering or plant population on plant height at the flowering phenological stage were observed. Significant effects of soil covering on crop physiological and yield components responses throughout the 2014-15 season were detected. Influence of plant populations on yield components was evidenced, suggesting that from 80,000 plants ha-1 the P30F53YH hybrid performs a compensatory effect among assessed yield components in such a way as to not compromise productivity insofar as plant population increases up to 120,000 plants ha-1. It was noticed a positive trend of yield components and crop final yield as a function of plant density increments.

The aim of the study was to analyze the in ovo injection of chemically and biologically synthesized silver nano-particles (Ag NPs) using Brassica oleracea L. var capitate f. Rubra, (BOL) conjugation with L-Arginine (L-Arg) on the immune, muscle growth, survivability and hatchability of the broiler chickens. L-Arg (100 μg) conjugated with 1000 µg of Ag NPs synthesized by (BOL)-extract and L-Arg (100 μg) conjugated with 100 µg of Ag NPs chemically synthesized were injected into fertile eggs at 8d, 14d and 18d of incubation. Living embryo and hatched chicks were calculated. Survivability and hatchability were not affected by the injected dose of L-Arg (100 μg) with 1000 µg (BOL-Ag NPs) and L-Arg (100 μg) with 100 µg (C-Ag NPs) but it significantly improved when the eggs were injected on day 14 of incubation compared with those injected on days 8 or 18. Moreover, the protein expression of muscle development markers such as myogenin and myoD were significantly up-related in 14 d of incubation whereas the heat shock proteins (HSPs) such as HSP-60 and HSP-70 were significantly up-regulated in 18 d incubation. In addition, the in ovo injection on 18 d significantly increased the serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT) and serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) as well the immunoglobulin (IgM) levels were increased in 14d incubation period in serum at the same concentration.

Financial system is essentially chaotic and unstable if there is not any external inputs. By means of Lyapunov function method, design of switching law, novel fuzzy assumption, $L^p$ estimation technique and Laplace semigroup theory, the author presents the boundedness and LMI-based (globally) asymptotical input-to-state stability criteria of financial systems. Particularly, the globally asymptotical stability in the meaning of switching implies that when the time $t$ is big enough, the dynamic of any subsystem must approach its unique equilibrium point. Besides, the global financial crisis often erupts periodically, which illuminates that the global stability in the classical sense is actually meaningless. So the stability in the meaning of switching proposed in this paper is suitable and appropriate. Numerical examples illuminate the effectiveness of the obtained results.

Optical rotatory dispersion (ORD) is a beautiful analytical technique for the study of chiral molecules and polymers. In this study, ORD was applied successfully to follow the degree of polycondensation of l-(+)-lactic acid toward the formation of poly(lactic acid) oligomers (PLAO) and high molecular weight poly(l-lactic acid) (PLLA) in a simple esterification reaction equipment. PLLA is a biodegradable polymer obtainable from renewable raw materials. The racemization of the intrinsically isotactic PLLA through thermal treatment can be easily followed through the use of ORD spectroscopy. Organic or molecular electronics is a hot topic dealing with the combination of π-conjugated organic compounds and polymers with specific properties (e.g. chirality) which can be exploited to construct optoelectronic devices such as organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), organic photovoltaic (OPV) high efficiency cells, switchable chirality devices, organic field-effect transistors (OFETs), and so on. ORD spectroscopy was applied to study either the gigantic optical rotation of PLLA films as well as to detect successfully the excitonic coupling occurring in thin solid PLLA green film loaded with a combination of two dyes: SY96 (a pyrazolone dye) and PB16 (the metal-free phthalocyanine pigment). The latter compound PLLA loaded with SY96 and PB16 shows a really gigantic optical activity in addition to typical ORD signal due to exciton coupling and may be considered as a simple and easily accessible model composite of a chiral polymer matrix combined with π-conjugated dyes for molecular electronics studies.

The infections caused by Chikungunya virus (CHIKV), genus Alphavirus, have become a health problem around the world, due to this virus’s widespread occurrence and high morbidity rate and the absence of vaccines or antiviral drugs. In this study, we analyzed a competitive inhibitor of ornithine decarboxylase—an enzyme that is key in the biosynthesis of polyamines (PAs), N-ω-chloroacetyl-L-ornithine (NCAO), which is a possible inhibitor of CHIKV replication because intracellular polyamines participate in the in vitro transcription and translation of CHIKV. NCAO does not have any cytotoxic effect on C6/36 cells even at 1000 μM at 72 h post-exposure. However, in Vero cells, a cytotoxic effect was present above 380 μM at 48 h post-exposure, which was considered when determining the inhibitory effect on viral replication. In this work, we demonstrate that NCAO inhibits the replication of CHIKV in Vero and C6/36 cells in a dose-dependent manner, causing a decrease in the PFU/mL of at least 4 logarithms (p <0.01) in both cell lines. Viral yields were restored by the addition of exogenous polyamines, mainly putrescine. The HPLC analyses showed that NCAO decreases the content of intracellular PAs, even though mainly spermidines and spermines are present in infected cells. NCAO inhibits CHIKV replication by depleting the intracellular polyamines in Vero and C6/36 cells, suggesting that this compound is a possible antiviral for CHIKV infections.

After the discovery of Corynebacterium glutamicum from the avian feces contaminated soil, its enigmatic L-glutamate secretion by corynebacterial MscCG-type mechanosensitive channels has been utilized for the industrial monosodium glutamate production. Bacterial mechanosensitive channels are activated directly by increased membrane tension upon hypoosmotic downshock, thus the physiological significance of the corynebacterial L-glutamate secretion has been considered as adjusting turgor pressure by releasing cytoplasmic solutes. In this review, we present information that corynebacterial mechanosensitive channels have been evolutionally specialized as carriers to secrete L-glutamate into the surrounding environment in their habitats rather than osmotic safety valves. The lipid modulation activation of MscCG channels in L-glutamate production can be explained by the “Force-From-Lipids” and “Force-From-Tethers” mechanosensing paradigms and differs significantly from the mechanical activation upon hypoosmotic shock. The review also provides information on the search for possibilities that Corynebacterium glutamicum was originally a gut bacterium in the avian host in the aim of understanding physiological roles of corynebacterial mechanosensing. Corynebacterium glutamicum is able to secrete L-glutamate by mechanosensitive channels in the gut microbiota and help the host brain function via the microbiota-gut-brain axis.

In this study, we first present a time-fractional L$\hat{e}$vy diffusion equation of the exponential option pricing models of European option pricing and the risk-neutral parameter. Then, we modify a particular L$\hat{e}$vy-time fractional diffusion equation of European-style options. Introduce a more general model from the models based on the L$\hat{e}$vy-time fractional diffusion equation and review some recent findings regarding of the Europe option pricing of risk-neutral free.

Soybean (Glycine max L.) is an important crop that serves as a source of edible oil and protein. However, little is known about its molecular mechanism of adaptation to extreme environmental conditions. Based on the Arabidopsis thaliana sequence database and Phytozome, a soybean gene that was highly homogenous with the reduced induction of the non-photochemical quenching2 (AtRIQ2) gene, GmRIQ2-like (accession NO.: Glyma.04G174400), was identified in this study. The gene structure analysis revealed that GmRIQ2-like encoded a transmembrane protein. Elements of the promoter analysis indicated that GmRIQ2-like participated in the photosynthesis and abiotic stress pathways. The subcellular localization results revealed that the protein encoded by GmRIQ2-like was located in chloroplasts. The quantitative real-time (qRT)-PCR results revealed that GmRIQ2-like-overexpression (OE) and -knock-out (KO) transgenic soybean seedlings were cultivated successfully. The relative chlorophyll (Chl) and zeaxanthin contents and Chl fluorescence kinetic parameters demonstrated that GmRIQ2-like dissipated excess light energy by enhancing the non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) and reduced plant photoinhibition. These results suggested that GmRIQ2-like was induced in response to strong light and depressed Chl production involved in soybean stress tolerance. These findings indicate that the transgenic seedlings of GmRIQ2-like could be used to enhance strong light stress tolerance and protect soybean plants from photoinhibition damage. This study will serve as a reference for studying crop photoprotection regulation mechanisms and benefits the research and development of new cultivars.

Nemaline myopathy (NM) is one of the most common forms of congenital myopathy and it is identified by the presence of "nemaline bodies" (rods) in muscle fibers by histopathological exam-ination. The most common forms of NM are caused by mutations in the ACTA1 (Actin Alpha 1) and NEB (Nebulin) genes. Clinical features include hypotonia and muscle weakness. Unfortunate-ly, there is no curative treatment and the pathogenetic mechanisms remains unclear. In this man-uscript, we examined the pathophysiological alterations in NM using dermal fibroblasts derived from patients with mutations in ACTA1 and NEB genes. Patients’ fibroblasts were stained with rhodamine phalloidin to analyze the polymerization of actin filaments by fluorescence microsco-py. We found that patients' fibroblasts showed incorrect actin filament polymerization compared to control fibroblasts. Actin filament polymerization defects was associated with mitochondrial dysfunction. Furthermore, we identified two mitochondrial boosting compounds, linoleic acid (LA) and L-carnitine (LCAR), that improved the formation of actin filaments in mutant fibro-blasts and corrected mitochondrial bioenergetics. Our results indicate that cellular models can be useful to study the pathophysiological mechanisms involved in NM and to find new potential therapies. Furthermore, targeting mitochondrial dysfunction with LA and LCAR can revert the pathological alterations in NM cellular models.

This study proposed a spatially and temporally improving methodology adopting the Regional Frequency Analysis with L-moments approach to estimate rainfall quantiles from 22787 grids of radar rainfall in Taiwan for a 24-hour duration. Due to limited radar coverage in the eastern region, significant discordant grids were found in the coastal area of the eastern region. A K-means cluster analysis using scaled at-site characteristics was used to group the QPESUMS grids in Taiwan into 22 clusters/sub-regions based on their characteristics. Spatially, homogeneous subregions with QPESUMS data produce more detailed homogeneous subregions with clear and continuous boundaries, especially in the mountain range area where the number of rain stations is still very limited. According to the results of z-values and L-moment ratio diagrams, the Wakeby (WAK), Generalized Extreme Value (GEV), and Generalized Pareto (GPA) distributions of rainfall extremes fitted well for the majority of subregions. The Wakeby distribution was the dominant best-fitted distribution, especially in the central and eastern regions. The east of the northern part and southern part of Taiwan had the highest extreme rainfall for each return period. Both areas were frequently struck by typhoons. By using grid-based (at-site) as the basis for assessing regional frequency analysis, the results show that the regional approach in determining extreme rainfall is very suitable for large-scale applications and even better for smaller scales such as watershed areas. The spatial investigation was performed by establishing regions of interest in small subregions across the northern part. It showed that regionalization was correct and consistent.

High resolution melting (HRM) analysis is a powerful detection method for fast, high-throughput post-PCR analysis. A two-step HRM marker system was developed for identification of the N-, S-, R- and T-cytoplasms of onion. In the first step for identification of N-, S-, and R-cytoplasms, one forward primer was designed to the identical sequences of both cox1 and orf725 genes and two reverse primers specific to the polymorphic sequences of cox1 and orf725 genes were used. For the second step breeding lines with N-cytoplasm were evaluated with primers developed from the orfA501 sequence to distinguish between N- and T-cytoplasms. An amplicon with primers to the mitocondrial atp9 gene was used as an internal control. The two-step HRM marker system was tested using 246 onion plants. HRM analysis showed that the most common source of CMS, often used by Russian breeders, is S-cytoplasm, the rarest type of CMS is R-cytoplasm, and the proportion of T-cytoplasm among the analyzed breeding lines was 20.5%.

The botanical species Ceratonia siliqua L., commonly referred to as the Carob tree, and locally as “L’Kharrûb”, holds significance as an agro-sylvo-pastoral species, and is traditionally utilized in Morocco for treating a variety of ailments. This current investigation aims to ascertain the antioxidant, antimicrobial, and cytotoxic properties of the ethanolic extract of C. siliqua leaves (CSEE). Initially, we analyzed the chemical composition of CSEE through high-performance liquid chromatography with Diode-Array Detection (HPLC-DAD). Subsequently, we conducted various assessments, including DPPH scavenging capacity, β-carotene bleaching assay, ABTS scavenging, and total antioxidant capacity assays, to evaluate the antioxidant activity of the extract. In this study, we investigated the antimicrobial properties of CSEE against five bacterial strains (two gram-positive, Staphylococcus aureus, and Enterococcus faecalis; and three gram-negative bacteria, Escherichia coli, Escherichia vekanda, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and two fungi (Candida albicans, and Geotrichum candidum). Additionally, we evaluated the cytotoxicity of CSEE on three human breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7, MDA-MB-231, and MDA-MB-436) and assessed the potential genotoxicity of the extract using the comet assay. Through HPLC-DAD analysis, we determined that phenolic acids and flavonoids were the primary constituents of the CSEE extract. The results of the DPPH test indicated a potent scavenging capacity of the extract with an IC50 of 302.78 ± 7.55 µg/mL, which was comparable to that of ascorbic acid with an IC50 of 260.24 ± 6.45 µg/mL. Similarly, the β-carotene test demonstrated an IC50 of 352.06 ± 12.16 µg/mL, signifying the extract's potential to inhibit oxidative damage. The ABTS assay revealed IC50 values of 48.13 ± 3.66 TE µmol/mL, indicating a strong ability of CSEE to scavenge ABTS radicals, and the TAC assay demonstrated an IC50 value of 165 ± 7.66 µg AAE/mg. The results suggest that the CSEE extract had potent antioxidant activity. Regarding its antimicrobial activity, the CSEE extract was effective against all five tested bacterial strains, indicating its broad-spectrum antibacterial properties. However, it only showed moderate activity against the two tested fungal strains, suggesting it may not be as effective against fungi. The CSEE exhibited a noteworthy dose-dependent inhibitory activity against all the tested tumor cell lines in vitro. The extract did not induce DNA damage at the concentrations of 6.25, 12.5, 25, and 50 µg/ml, as assessed by the comet assay. However, the 100 µg/ml concentration of CSEE resulted in a significant genotoxic effect compared to the negative control. A computational analysis was conducted to determine the physicochemical and pharmacokinetic characteristics of the constituent molecules present in the extract. The Prediction of Activity Spectra of Substances (PASS) test was employed to forecast the potential biological activities of these molecules. Additionally, the toxicity of the molecules was evaluated using the Protox II webserver.

Let b∈Cn∖{0} be a fixed direction. We consider slice holomorphic functions of several complex variables in the unit ball, i.e. we study functions which are analytic in intersection of every slice {z0+tb:t∈C} with the unit ball Bn={z∈C:|z|:=|z|12+…+|zn|2&lt;1} for any z0∈Bn. For this class of functions there is introduced a concept of boundedness of L-index in the direction b where L:Bn→R+ is a positive continuous function such that L(z)&gt;β|b|1−|z|, where β&gt;1 is some constant. For functions from this class we describe local behavior of modulus of directional derivatives on every ’circle’ {z+tb:|t|=r/L(z)} with r∈(0;β],t∈C,z∈Cn. It is estimated by value of the function at center of the circle. Other propositions concern a connection between boundedness of L-index in the direction b of the slice holomorphic function F and boundedness of lz-index of the slice function gz(t)=F(z+tb) with lz(t)=L(z+tb). Also we show that every slice holomorphic and joint continuous function in the unit ball has bounded L-index in direction in any domain compactly embedded in the unit ball and for any continuous function L:Bn→R+.

Plantago major L. is a worldwide available plant that has been used traditionally for several medical application due to its properties such as wound healing, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial etc. This work aimed to develop and evaluate nanostructured PCL electrospun dressing with P. major extract encapsulated in nanofibers for application in wound healing. The extract from leaves was obtained by extraction in a mixture of water:ethanol= 1:1 of the freeze-dried extract presented a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for Staphylococcus Aureus susceptible and resistant to methicillin of 5.3 mg/mL, a high antioxidant capacity, but a low content of total flavonoids. Electrospun mats without defects were successfully produced using two P. major extract concentrations based on MIC value. The extract incorporation in PCL nanofibers was confirmed by FTIR and contact angle measurements. The PCL/P. major extract was evaluated by DSC and TGA demonstrating that incorporation of the extract decreases the thermal stability of the mats as well as the degree of crystallinity of PCL-based fibers. The P. major extract incorporation on electrospun mats produced a significant swelling degree (more than 400%) and increased the capacity of adsorbing wound exudates and moisture, important characteristics for skin healing. The extract-controlled release evaluated by in vitro study in PBS (pH, 7.4) shows that P. major extract delivery from the mats occurs in the first 24 h, demonstrating their potential capacity to be used in wound healing.

Weaning is a critical period in the pig’s life. Piglets are confronted with abrupt changes to their physical and social environment, as well as management and nutritional changes. Weaning was always associated with a growth check and was frequently accompanied by post-weaning diarrhea in piglets. However, rapid increases in litter size, in the last decade, has increased within-litter piglet weight variation, with piglets now generally lighter at weaning, making the challenges associated with weaning even greater. Many interventions can be employed during the suckling period to ease the weaning transition for piglets. Pre-weaning strategies such as supervised farrowing (assistance with suckling, oxytocin provision), provision of pain relief to sows around farrowing, split-suckling, early oral supplementation with glucose, bovine colostrum, fecal microbiota transplantation, feed additives, solid and liquid creep feeding (milk and liquid feed) have all been investigated. The objective of these strategies is to stimulate earlier maturation of the digestive tract, improve immunity, reduce latency to the first feed post-weaning and increase early post-weaning feed intake and growth. This review focuses in particular on: 1) pain relief provision to sows around farrowing, 2) split-suckling of piglets, 3) pre-weaning provision of supplementary milk and/or liquid feed, 4) other strategies to stimulate earlier enzyme production (e.g. enzyme supplementation) and 5) other nutritional strategies to promote improved gut structure and function (e.g. L-glutamine supplementation). Correctly implementing these strategies can not only increase post-weaning growth and reduce mortality but also maximize lifetime growth in pigs.

The genetic engineering of plants often relies on the use of antibiotic or herbicide resistance genes for initial selection of primary transgenic events. Nevertheless, the commercial release of genetically modified crops containing any marker gene encounters several challenges stemming from the lack of consumer acceptance. Development of strategies enabled the generation of marker-free transgenic plants is a possible alternative to deal with public concerns over the safety of biotech crops. Leveraging the high in vitro regeneration and transformation capabilities of potato, this study examined the factors associated with the development of transgenic plants without presence of selective substances in medium. To compare the antibiotic-assisted with the antibiotic-free transformation, nodal explants from five highly regenerative potato cultivars were inoculated with the Agrobacterium strain AGL0 carrying the pBIN-mGFP5-ER (35SGFP/nosNPTII) plasmid. The efficiency of transient expression and the formation of chimeric and completely transgenic shoots were assessed through vital GFP observations. Under non selective conditions, the regeneration efficiency of stable non-chimeric transgenic shoots varied from 0.9 (‘Chicago’) to 2.7% (#12-36-42). In order to streamline transformation protocol, a specific timeline for collecting transgenic plantlets was established for each analyzed cultivar. This timeline strategy was implemented to generate transgenic potato plants, which demonstrated the suppression of homologous SteIF4Es family genes as a result of the successful introduction of the marker-free hpRNAi construct.

The theory of electron spin has been proposed for a century, but the study of quantum effects in biological molecules is still in its infancy. Chirality-induced spin selectivity (CISS) is a very modern theory that can explain many biochemical phenomena. In this paper, we propose a new theoretical model based on CISS theory and quantum chemistry theory, which can well explain the theoretical explanation of the chiral selectivity of chiral proteins. Moreover, this theory can predict the spin state of corresponding chiral molecules. Taking L-DOPA and AADC enzyme as examples, this theoretical model solves the theoretical explanation of AADC enzyme's chiral catalysis selectivity problem and successfully predicts the spin state of L-DOPA and D-DOPA's valence electrons.

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is one of the most commercially essential vegetable crops cultivated worldwide. In addition to the nutritional value, tomato is an excellent model for studying climacteric fruits' ripening process. Despite this, the available natural pool of genes that allows expanding phenotypic diversity is limited, and the difficulties of crossing using classical selection methods when stacking traits increase proportionally with each additional feature. Genetic engineering makes it possible to introduce changes in genes of interest without changing the allelic combinations characteristic of successful commercial varieties, to enhance the expression of existing genes, to create and transfer artificial and heterologous genes, and much more. However, this requires understanding the fundamental principles of the molecular interaction. Although the leading candidate genes for these components have been identified, a complete picture of their relationship has yet to be formed. The review summarizes the latest (2017-2023) achievements related to studying the ripening processes of tomato fruits. In this work, an attempt is made to systematize the results of various research and display the interaction pattern of genes regulating the process of tomato fruit ripening.

Over the last decade, Psidium guajava L. (guava) leaves have demonstrated their in vitro and in vivo effect against Diabetes mellitus (DM). However, there is a lack of literature concerning the effect of the individual phenolic compounds present in the leaves in DM disease. For this reason, the aim of the present work was the in silico evaluation of each phenolic compound. The identification of an 80% ethanol extract of guava leaves revealed the presence of 73 compounds. The in silico study carried out with the DIA-DB web server revealed that aldose reductase was the target protein with heterogeneous affinity. Naringenin exhibited the highest number of interactions with target proteins, and compounds like catechin, quercetin, naringenin and morin displayed similarities with known antidiabetic drugs. In conclusion, the computational workflow showed that guava leaves contain several compounds that can play a therapeutic role in the treatment of DM.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of dietary supplementation with Olea europaea L. extract on the animal welfare and milk quality of lactating Italian Holstein-Friesian dairy cows at different calving orders. Cows in mid lactation phase received, for 60 days, the natural olive extract Phenofeed Dry® (500 mg/cow/day) with high antioxidant power. Hormonal and metabolic parameters were determined through ELISA assays, the milk fatty acid profile through gas chromatography, chemical-nutritional and hygienic-sanitary parameters through ultrasonic analyses. The milk lysozyme content was measured through a specific ELISA assay. The administration of the enriched feed did not alter the hormonal balance. Primiparous cows were more sensitive to the treatment and showed a better general health status compared to other calving orders. The enriched feed resulted in a reduction of saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and an increase of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), ensuring an adequate nutritional content and, above all, a significantly higher content of the antibacterial protein, lysozyme. Overall, our study demonstrate that the inclusion of natural bioactive molecules such as Olea europaea L. polyphenols contributes to improving the welfare status of dairy cows and ensuring high nutritional and functional quality of animal productions.

Background: Combinatorial therapy- “nano antibiotics” is an emerging field in nanoscience. In this present investigation, we attempted to combine the green synthesized noble metal nanoparticle and the antibiotic Streptomycin to form bio-conjugated nanoparticles. The newly synthesized Nano antibiotics acted as the antibiotic carrier, functioned as cargo, and delivered the antibiotic. Methods: Comparative studies between the noble metal nanoparticles were attempted for the first time on the grounds of their antibacterial activity. The antibacterial activity of the three noble metal nanoparticles was assessed against Streptomycin-resistant Bacillus sp.; the results obtained proved that silver nanoparticles were a potent antibacterial agent. Still, no antibacterial activity was exerted by gold, and platinum nanoparticles were for the Streptomycin-resistant strain Bacillus sp. To our surprise, the gold and platinum fabricated/bio-conjugated nanoparticle with the antibiotic showed 100% antibacterial activity, whose antibacterial activity was zero when functioning as a nanoparticle alone. Results: The combinatorial therapy of two different clauses of drugs majorly increased antibacterial activity. It enhanced the antibiotic to overcome the resistance exhibited by the bacterial pathogen, and the possible mechanism is elucidated in the present study. Also, an attempt has been made to assess the nanotoxicity of the nano-bioconjugates on RBC and compare their hemocompatibility. The results obtained in the current investigation demonstrate the enhanced antibacterial activity of the green synthesized nanoparticles conjugated with the streptomycin; their efficacy for combinational therapy against resistance in pathogenic organisms highlights the novelty of the work and the comparative study of three different noble metals nanoparticles (Ag, Au, Pt) from single agro-waste for the first time.

The demand for dietary supplements containing collagen has been growing for years. The speciality and uniqueness of the dietary supplement (DS) examined in our study is the presence of L-arginine and hyaluronic acid alongside collagen and vitamin C. The individual mechanisms of action and physiological role of these compounds are understood, but they have not yet been tested in the combination and amounts of the dietary supplement used in this study. In this study, we investigated the effectiveness of the DS in elderly patients with musculoskeletal complaints. Somatometric, body composition, physiotherapy and laboratory tests were performed at the beginning and at the end of the study. The two-month study involved 30 people, randomly divided into two groups: a control group (CG) and an experimental group (EG). All subjects consumed 25 ml DS per day and EG members also participated in physiotherapy 3 times a week. Alongside the DS, blood lipid levels changed: LDL decreased, HDL increased, LDL/HDL ratio significantly decreased in both groups. For EG, the results improved more markedly. In 3 items of the body composition test, there was a significant improvement in both groups, which was attributed to the use of the dietary supplement. For the EG, there were significant changes in 5 additional test items, which we attribute to the addition of regular physical activity. Knee and hip joint range of motion (ROM) showed significant improvements in the study group, while in the CG the DS can cause significant improvements in joint range of motion in a passive condition as well.

In the context of sustainable and eco-friendly agriculture, current scientific researches are focusing on plant-based bioproducts to remedy the toxicity caused by chemical fertilizers and pesticides. This study was conducted on cladodes of Opuntia ficus-indicato screen the bioactive molecules and to evaluate the activity againstfungal agentsisolated from tomato fruits. Quantitative analysis of the methanolic extractrevealed its richeness in total polyphenols (86.6 mg GAE/100 g FW), flavonoids (13.4 mg QE/100 g FW), condensed tannins (08.9 mg TAE/100 g FW), and carotenoids(0.9 mg β-CE/100 g FW). DPPH test revealed that the cladodes extract had a high antioxidant potential (0.6 mg/ml). On the other hand, 7 fungal agents were isolated from infected tomato fruits and identifyed asbelonging to the following genera: Rhizoctonia (EC2), Fusarium (EC1 and EC3), Alternaria (EC4), Mucor (EC5), Aspergillus (EC6) and Penicillium (EC7). At a concentration 0.02% of cladodehydro-ethanolic extract, results of the antifungal activity showed aninhibition of mycelial growth up to70% for the isolates ofAlternariaspEC4 (70.91%), Rhizoctonia solaniEC2 (58.49%), Fusarium oxysporiumEC3 (57.63%) and Fusarium solaniEC1 (53.13%). While,inhibitory activities lower than 50% were obtained for fungal isolates MucorspEC6 (31.08%), Aspergillus sp EC5 (35.14%) and Penicillium sp EC7 (28.38%).At 0.04%all thecladode hydro-ethanolic extractwere able to inhibit mycelium growth in more than 50%.Similarly, maximum spore inhibition development were obtained with 0.04 cladode hydro-ethanolicreaching more than 60%. Inhibition percentages of 83.02%, 85.96%, 87.76% and 90.20% were obtained for fungal isolates Fusarium oxysporium EC3, Fusarium solani EC1, Rhizoctonia solani EC2 and Alternaria sp EC4, respectively. All together, the results show that Opuntia ficus-indica extract has potential tobe used effectively as a biopesticide against fungal agents of tomato fruits.

Estimating the parameters of statistical distributions generally involves solving a system of nonlinear equations or a nonlinear equation, being a technical difficulty in their usual application in hydrology. This article presents improved approximations and, in some cases, new approximations for the estimation with the method of ordinary moments and the method of linear moments, which are useful for the direct calculation of the parameters, because the errors in the approximate estimation are similar to the use of iterative numerical methods. Thirteen statistical distributions of two and three parameters frequently used in hydrology are presented, for which parameter estimation was laborious. Thus, the approximate estimation of the parameters by the two methods is simple but also precise and easily applicable by hydrology researchers. The approximate forms characterized by very small errors are the result of the research conducted within the Faculty of Hydrotechnics to update the romanian normative standards in the hydrotechnical field.

Amino acid efflux and influx transport systems play vital roles in industrial microorganisms’ cell growth and metabolism. However, although biochemically characterized, most amino acid transporters remain unknown at the molecular level in Bacillus licheniformis. This study focuses on the molecular and functional characterizations of three transporters, YdgF, YvbW, and YveA, mainly when catalyzing the cross-membrane flux of L-Aspartate. When growing in the minimal medium with L-Asp as the only carbon and nitrogen source, the growth of strains lacking proteins YdgF, YvbW, and YveA was significantly inhibited compared with wild-type strains, while supplementing the expression of the corresponding proteins in the single-gene knockout strains can alleviate the inhibition to some extent. Upon overexpression, the recombinant proteins mediate the accumulation of L-aspartate to varying degrees. Compared with wild-type strains, the single knockout strains of the three protein genes exhibited reduced absorption of L-aspartate. In addition, this paper focuses on the effects of these three proteins on the absorption of β-alanine, L-glutamate, D-serine, D-alanine, and glycine.

Anastatica hierochuntica L. (Brassicaceae) has been claimed to treat various conditions including complicated childbirth. The principal objective of this research was to provide scientific evidence on the contractile effect of the aqueous and hydroethanolic extracts of the whole plant from A. hierochuntica during labor. Qualitative and quantitative methods helped identify and quantify the phytoconstituents in both extracts. The antioxidant activity was studied using four standard methods. The inhibitory power of the extracts on pro-inflammatory enzymes such as 15-lipoxygenase and phospholipase A2 was determined. The contractile effects of the extracts were evaluated using isolated pregnant mice uteri. Steroids, triterpenoids, flavonoids, tannins, coumarins, and reduced compounds were identified in both extracts. The extracts demonstrated the ability to reduce oxidative stress. The hydroethanolic extract displayed the most significant anti-lipoxygenase activity with an IC50 value of 55.82 ± 1.15 µg/mL. The lethal dose (LD50) of extracts was estimated to be superior to 2000 mg/kg bw. The ability of the samples to produce one cm amplitude of contraction at 50% effective concentrations (EC50) was 1.51 ± 0.08 mg/mL for aqueous extract and 3.57 ± 0.61 mg/mL for hydroethanolic extract. These findings could provide evidence for using Anastatica hierochuntica to augment labor.

Drought and salinity are among the most important abiotic stress factors that limit the productivity in economically important plants. Although genes from wild relatives or unadapted germplasm have often been used for stress tolerance breeding, only few studies have examined wild relatives to understand the genetic and molecular basis of stress tolerance. In this study, we monitored the changes in gene expression profiles of leaf and root tissues of two wild barleys (Hordeum spontaneum L.) accessions from Israel after treatment with salt (NaCl) and drought (PEG) stress. We identified a total of 641 differentially expressed genes across 24 conditions (2 accessions, 2 stress conditions, 2 tissues and 3 time points). Our gene expression analyses revealed large numbers of differentially expressed genes in different accessions by different stress treatments. In addition, the number of genes altered in the leaves of stress-exposed plants of both genotypes was higher than those altered in the roots. Interestingly, there was a relatively little overlap between the leaf and the root stress-responsive gene expression patterns, suggesting that different stress-associated processes might be operating in these tissues during stress adaptation. Overall, our results revealed a number of candidate genes and plant processes associated with stress tolerance in wild barley. Wild barley would be a useful source of new genetic variation for drought and salt stress tolerance. Our results could provide new insights into the mechanisms of drought and salt stress tolerance in wild barley and should be useful for genetic improvement of salt-drought tolerance in cultivated barley.

Age-related macular degeneration is one of the most common causes of blindness, and the incidence exhibits profound racial bias, occurring most frequently in Caucasians. A primary cell type affected in the disease is the retinal pigment epithelium, but the etiology is unclear. The end 10% of the photoreceptor outer segments are shed each day, and the underlying retinal pigment epithelium engulfs, digests, and recycles molecules back to the sensory retina. In previous work, we showed that GPR143 signaling in response to L-DOPA may be effective in the prevention or delay of age-related macular degeneration. In this study, we explore a novel potential effector of GPR143 signaling, that of outer segment uptake and digestion. Using isolated outer segments, labelled with a pH-sensitive marker to fluoresce in lysosomes, we show that GPR143 signaling does not impact outer segment uptake, but does have a significant effect on subsequent degradation. Interestingly, GPR143 signaling did not affect the digestive capacity of the cells, marked by total proteolytic capacity and cathepsin D activity. Rather, our data suggest GPR143 improved endosomal trafficking efficiency of the phagocytosed outer segments to the lysosome. This result is similar to the effect we previously reported for GPR143 on exosome release from the endosomal compartment. Our data illustrate that GPR143 is active in endosomal traffic A single paragraph of about 200 words maximum. For research articles, abstracts should give a pertinent overview of the work. We strongly encourage authors to use the following style of structured abstracts, but without headings: (1) Background: Place the question addressed in a broad context and highlight the purpose of the study; (2) Methods: briefly describe the main methods or treatments applied; (3) Results: summarize the article’s main findings; (4) Conclusions: indicate the main conclusions or interpretations. The abstract should be an objective representation of the article and it must not contain results that are not presented and substantiated in the main text and should not exaggerate the main conclusions.

The nutraceutical value of pomegranate in the treatment of many neoplastic, cardiovascular, viral, inflammatory, metabolic, microbial, intestinal, reproductive and skin diseases is well-documented and is linked to its richness in phenolic compounds. This study aims to evaluate nutraceutical and genetic diversity of novel pomegranate genotypes (G1-G5) in comparison to leading commercial pomegranate varieties i.e. ‘Wonderful’, ‘Primosole’, ‘Dente di Cavallo’ and ‘Valenciana’. Morphometric measurements were carried out on fruits, accompanied by chemical characterization and the development of four new polymorphic SSR markers involved in the flavonoid pathway. The cultivars displayed a marked variability in the weight and shape of fruits, as well as in the weight of arils and juice yield. The highest level of total phenolic content and antioxidant activity was found in ‘Wonderful’ and G4, while the lowest was in ‘Dente di Cavallo’. Furthermore, the results showed that the pomegranate juice, is an excellent source of minerals, especially potassium, which plays a key role in organ functioning. The new flavonoid-related markers effectively differentiated the cultivars with the same diversity pattern as morpho-chemical characterization, so the SSRs developed in the present study can be used as a rapid tool for the identification of pomegranate cultivars with relevant nutraceutical traits.

Background: Newer personalized medicine including targeted therapies such as PARP inhibitors and CDK 4/6 inhibitors have shown to improve survival of breast and gynaecological cancer patients. However, efficacy outcomes may be hampered by treatment discontinuation due to targeted therapy-related adverse drug reactions or resistance. Studies suggest that add-on mistletoe (Viscum album L., VA) improves quality of life and ameliorates cytotoxic side effects of standard oncological therapy in cancer patients. The primary objective of this real-world data study was to determine the safety profile of targeted therapy in combination with add-on Helixor® VA therapy in breast and gynecological cancer patients. Methods: The present study is a real-world data study utilizing demographic and treatment data from the accredited national Network Oncology (NO) registry. The study has received ethics approval. The safety profile of targeted with or without Helixor® VA therapy as well as safety - associated variables were evaluated by univariate and adjusted multivariable regression analyses. Results: All stage breast or gynecological cancer patients (n = 242) were on average 54.5±14.2 years old. One hundred and sixty patients (66.1%) were in the control (CTRL, targeted therapy) and 82 patients (33.9%) in the combinational (COMB, targeted plus Helixor® VA therapy) group. The addition of Helixor® VA did not hamper the safety profile (χ2 = 0.107, p-value = 0.99) of targeted therapy. Furthermore, no adverse events and a trend towards an improved targeted therapy adherence were observed in the COMB group. Conclusions: The present study is the first of its kind showing the applicability of Helixor® VA in combination with targeted therapies. The results indicate that add-on Helixor® VA does not negatively alter the safety profile of targeted therapies in breast and gynaecological cancer patients.

Genetic enhancement of grain production and quality is a priority in wheat breeding projects. In this study, we assessed two key agronomic traits - grain protein content (GPC) and thousand kernel weight (TKW) - across 179 Bulgarian contemporary and historic varieties, and landraces in three growing seasons. Significant phenotypic variation existed for both traits among genotypes and seasons, and no discernible difference was evident between the old and modern accessions. To understand the genetic basis of the traits, we conducted a genome-wide association study with MLM using phenotypic data from the crop seasons, best linear unbiased estimators, genotypic data from the 25K Infinium iSelect array, and a Bonferroni-adjusted p-value. As a result, 776 significant quantitative trait nucleotides (QTNs) organized into quantitative trait loci were discovered, including 25 loci associated with GPC, and 35 loci linked to TKW. Additionally, 14 environmentally stable QTNs were identified for TKW. Certain loci on chromosomes 2A, 3A, and 6B favorably in-fluenced GPC, while the locus on chromosome 6D impacted TKW positively. These loci may reflect novel associations to the two traits. Annotations for proteins involved in the remobilization of carbon and nitrogen from vegetative tissues to developing grain during senescence, as well as in the following buildup of resources required for seed germination, have been found for selected pu-tative candidate genes. These include genes coding for 11S globulin seed storage protein, glutamine synthetase, metalloendopeptidase, components of the ubiquitin/proteasome system, sucrose transporter, alpha-amylase, NAC and bZIP transcription factors. Our findings highlight promising genomic regions for targeted breeding programs aimed at improving grain yield and protein content.

Pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) is the second most important cereal grown in Eritrea after sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L.) grown under low input systems by small scale farmers. The crop utilizes soil moisture efficiently and has ability to tolerate soil toxicity and extreme temperatures than other cereals. It is a sustenance and food security crop important for its nutritive and cultural value and provides dietary energy and nutrition. However, despite the positive attributes and qualities of pearl millets for the present and future agriculture, production has been low. We attribute this to inadequate rainfall distribution, poor crop management by poorly resourced farmers, unavailability and high prices of farm inputs such as fertilizer and pesticides and low adoption of improved varieties by the farmers. This review outlines the constraints, interventions the government/ farmers have and can implement and the prospects of actions that can improve pearl millet production. As much as there have been efforts by the government and stakeholders to address these challenges and improve productivity of pearl millet, more needs to be done to meet the increasing demand of the increasing populations. This will enable farmers to intensify and diversify their agricultural systems and improve food security situation in the country. Unless a combined effort in soil fertility improvement, policies to promote use of modern varieties and conservation of and promotion of this crop biodiversity, the potential of this crop as famine and poverty alleviation among the rural poor will not be realized.

The crystal structure of a polymorph of Glycyl-L-alanine HI.H2O was synthesized from chiral cyclic Glycyl-L-alanine dipeptide, known to show molecular flexibility in different environments. The space group is polar (P21) and therefore pyroelectricity and optical second harmonic generation properties are allowed by symmetry. We report a pyroelectric coefficient as high as 45 µC/m2K occurring at 345 K, one order of magnitude smaller than the semi-organic ferroelectric Triglycine Sulphate (TGS) crystal. Furthermore, the polymorph displays a nonlinear optical effective coefficient of 0.14 pm/V, around 14 times smaller than the value from a phase-matched inorganic Barium Borate (BBO) single crystal.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common cancer among children worldwide, characterized by an overproduction of undifferentiated lymphoblasts in the bone marrow. The treatment of choice for this disease is the enzyme L-asparaginase (ASNase) from bacterial sources. ASNase hydrolyzes circulating L-asparagine in plasma, leading to starvation of leukemic cells. The ASNase formulations of E. coli and E. chrysanthemi present notorious adverse effects, especially the immunogenicity they generate, which undermines both their effectiveness as drugs and patient safety. In this study, we developed a humanized chimeric enzyme from E. coli L-asparaginase, which would reduce the immunological problems associated with current L-asparaginase therapy. For these, the immunogenic epitopes of E. coli L-asparaginase (PDB: 3ECA) were determined and replaced with those of the less immunogenic Homo sapiens asparaginase (PDB:4O0H). The structures were modeled using the Pymol software and the chimeric enzyme was modeled using the SWISS MODEL service. A humanized chimeric enzyme with four subunits similar to the template structure was obtained, and the presence of asparaginase enzymatic activity was predicted by protein-ligand docking.

In addition to its use as a food additive, sesame is also very popular in conventional drugs because of its antifungal, anticancer, analgesic, antioxidant, and antiproliferative, vitamin B and E supplier, serum cholesterol and blood pressure-lowering, wound healing potential. In this study, the cytotoxicity, wound healing, and anticancer (antiproliferation) properties of the ex-tract obtained from in vitro cultures of Sesamum orientale L. cv. "Gökova" were investigated using in L929 fibroblast, MCF-7 breast, and A549 lung epithelial cell lines. In our study, the cisplatin was also used as a control group to compare the anticancer efficacy of our plant extract. The IC50 values obtained from cell treatments were 922.73 µg.ml-1 (plant extract) and 33.09 µg.ml-1 (cispla-tin) for A549 µg.ml-1, 1837.07 µg.ml-1 (plant extract) and 19.27 µg.ml-1 (cisplatin) for MCF-7, and 154.70 µg.ml-1 (plant extract) for L929, respectively. The subcytotoxic doses of the treated plant extract provided the healing of artificially created wounds on L929 fibroblast cell cultures within 48 hours. For the evaluation of the anticancer activity, it was also determined that transcriptomic analyzes of BCL-XL gene, which is negatively correlated with apoptotic pathway, and Cas3 and Cas9 genes, which are positively correlated with apoptotic pathway, showed a statistically sig-nificant increase in A549 and MCF-7 cell lines treated with plant extract or cisplatin. In the light of the results obtained from the present study, it was seen that sesame plant extract may have wound healing potential at decreasing doses and anticancer activity potential at increasing dos-es. The present study can be a useful resource for the development of a drug with wound healing and/or antiproliferative potential, with applications to be made in different cell lines in the future.

Plant-based extracts have been recently employed as sustainable tools to improve biotic and abiotic stress tolerance and increase grape quality. However, knowledge about the effect of these extracts on secondary metabolism compounds, that are fundamental for grape and wine quality, is still scarce. In this study, a trial was installed in an experimental vineyard with the variety Touriga Franca located at University of Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Baixo Corgo sub-region of the Douro Demarcated Region, in two growing seasons: 2019 and 2020. Foliar sprayings with the natural products, nettle extract (NE) and Japanese knotweed extract (JKE), were tested to evaluate their effect on downy mildew incidence and severity, on grapevines bioactive compounds contents and antioxidant activity, at veraison and harvest. NE and JKE have stimulated an improvement in the concentration of total carotenoids in leaves and the concentration of total phenolics in berries along with an improved concentration of total phenolics and flavonoids in leaves and berries. Thus, it was verified that these extracts enhance grapevines bioactive compounds and antioxidant capacity and, consequently, the physiological performance of the plant and the quality of the berries. Considering the challenges posed by climate change in the Mediterranean basin viticulture sector, the use of plant extracts might represent a sustainable tool to mitigate the increasing severity of drought, often associated to heatwaves and high irradiation. Moreover, downy mildew incidence results suggest that an integrated disease management approach combining conventional control with alternative fungicides can be used in the future for a more sustainable viticulture.

L-Theanine, a unique non-protein amino acid, is an important bioactive component of green tea. Previous studies have shown that L-theanine has many potent health benefits, such as anti-anxiety effect, regulation of immune response, relaxing neural tension, reducing oxidative damage. However, little is known concerning whether L-theanine can improve the clearance of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) damage in organisms. Here, we reported that L-theanine treatment increased ATP production and improved mitochondrial morphology to extend the lifespan of UVC-exposed nematodes. Mechanistic investigations showed that L-theanine treatment enhanced the removal of mtDNA damage and extended lifespan by activating autophagy, mitophagy, mitochondrial dynamics, and mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPRmt) in UVC-exposed nematodes. In addition, L-theanine treatment also up-regulated the expression of genes related to mitochondrial energy metabolism in UVC-exposed nematodes. Our study provided a theoretical basis for the possibility that tea drinking may prevent mitochondrial related diseases.

Coffee Coffea arabica L. depends on abundantly distributed rainfall and drought impacts their development, fruit production, bean quality, and ultimately, beverage quality. Plant Biotechnology by means of genetic manipulation and plant regeneration by the somatic embryogenic process is an alternative technology to overcome these prob-lems. In the present work we used the molecular approach of the trehalose/trehalase role in plant surviving in extreme drought/salt environments. We used a cassette containing the antisense C. arabica L. trehalase gene under the RD29 promoter from A. thaliana and the NOS terminator to genetically modified an em-bryogenic coffee C. arabica L. cv typica line under osmotic stress supplemented with mannitol (0.3M) and sorbitol (0.3M) containing medium. Drought resistant SE lines were recovered and regenerate plants. Resistant SE lines showed a higher rate of competence to induce secondary SE capacity. A transcrip-tome analysis was performed from high competent SE lines to understand the acquired molecular mechanisms to developed SE. From the up-regulated genes, a PPI network made by STRING v12.0 with high confidence (0.700) revealed the presence of the 10 modules. The cell cycle, chromatin remodeling, somatic embryogenesis, oxidative stress, generic transcription pathway, carbon metabolism, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, trehalose biosynthesis, proline bio-synthesis and glycerolipid metabolism.

We present synthetic experiments of lactic acid (LA) polycondensation to produce poly(lactic acid) (PLA), as well as kinetic modeling calculations that capture the polymer molecular weight increase with time, given the initial concentrations. Tin-octoate-catalyzed polycondensation of (D,L)- or L-lactic acid, was carried out in pre-dried toluene after azeotropic dehydration for 48-120 hours at 130-137 °C. The polymerization was optimized by varying lactic acid and catalyst concentrations as well as the temperature. Gel Permeation Chromatography was used to experimentally follow the evolution of molecular weights and the products were characterized by NMR, TGA, DSC and IR. Under optimal conditions, PLLA with weight-average molecular weight (Mw) of 161 kDa could be obtained. The rate equations that describe polycondensation kinetics were recast in a condensed form that allowed very fast numerical solution and calculation of the number-average molecular weight with time. Deviations with respect to the experiment were minimized in a least-squares fashion, to determine rate constants. The optimized kinetics parameters are shown to reproduce the experimental data accurately

Ferroptosis is a unique variety of non-apoptotic cell death, driven by massive lipid oxidation in an iron-dependent manner. Since Ferroptosis was introduced as a concept in 2012, it was shown it's essential role in the pathogenesis in neurodegenerative diseases and an important role in therapy-resistant cancer cells. Thus, a detailed molecular understanding of both canonical and alternative ferroptosis pathways are required. There is a set of widely used chemical agents to modulate ferroptosis using different pathway targets: Erastin blocks cystine-glutamate antiporter, system xc-; ML210 directly inactivate GPX4; L-buthionine sulfoximine (BSO) inhibits γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase, an essential enzyme for glutathione synthesis de novo. Most studies were focused on lipidomic profiling of model systems undergoing death in a ferroptotic modality.

The broad bean plant contains L-DOPA, a compound that is essential for patients with Parkin-son’s disease. However, little has been reported on other broad bean compounds that have bene-ficial effects on health. The objective was to evaluate plants of four Mexican broad bean varieties to determine the content and yield of total phenolic compounds (TPC), total flavonoids (TF), and L-DOPA, as well as to analyze the flavonoid profile and antioxidant (AA) and anti-inflammatory (AANTI) activity in vitro. Broad bean seeds were sown in the field and plants were harvested 20 days after emergence. The analyses were performed with visible UV spectrophotometry and HPLC. The variety José María produced the highest yield of TPC (9.30 g m-2), TF (8.08 g m-2) and L-DOPA (5.64 g m-2) per unit of area. The highest yields per plant were obtained with the Rojita variety: TPC (0.25 g plant-1), TF (0.21 g plant-1) and L-DOPA (0.17 g plant-1). This variety also had the highest antioxidant (CI50= 87.68 µg mL-¹) and anti-inflammatory (CI50= 74.40 mg mL-1) activi-ty, which was attributed to the L-DOPA compounds and to rutin and isoorientins, respectively. The flavonoid profile revealed the presence of rutin and isoorientins, which had not been previ-ously detected in the broad bean plant.

Abstract: Sickle cell disease (SCD) is an autosomal recessive monogenic disorder caused by a homozygous mutation in the β-globin gene, which leads to erythrocyte sickling, hemolysis, vaso-occlusion and sterile inflammation. Oral l-glutamine administration has been shown to reduce the frequency of pain crisis in SCD patients, however, the long-term effect of l-glutamine in SCD remains to be determined. To understand the long-term effect of l-glutamine administration in SCD liver we used quantitative liver intravital microscopy and biochemical analysis in humanized SCD mice. We here show that chronic l-glutamine administration reduces hepatic hemoglobin-heme-iron level, but fails to ameliorate ischemic liver injury. Remarkably, we find that this failure in resolution of hepatobiliary injury and persistent liver fibrosis is associated with reduced expression of hepatic Kupffer cells post l-glutamine treatment. These findings establish the importance to investigate the long-term effects of l-glutamine therapy on liver pathophysiology in SCD patients.

Utilization of medicine derived from plants has been documented in various traditional systems of medicines throughout the world for different diseases. Therefore, the current research work was carried out to evaluate the phytochemical and biological potential of Ficus carica L ethanolic leaf extract. For this purpose, physicochemical and phytochemical analysis, total phenolic and flavonoids contents was performed. Antioxidant potential was determined by FRAP, DPPH and H2O2 assay. Proteinase inhibition, heat induced hemolysis and BSA denaturation assay was carried out for inflammation. Antiglycation potential was assessed by fructosamine assay, Congo-red assay and estimation of free carbonyl groups. In-vivo antidiabetic, anti-obesity, effect on liver and kidney were investigated by high fat high sugar diet model. FTIR, HPLC and LCMS/MS analysis was performed to find out the compounds. Tablet based formulation was developed using wet granulation method and tested for physicochemical parameters. Results shows that total phenolic and flavonoids content was (333 mg GAE/g) and (123 mg RE/g) respectively, H2O2 assay shows 35.6% free radical inhibition potential, DPPH assay shows (IC50) inhibitory concentration at 0.58 mg/mL, and 88.769 µg/g Fe2SO4 solution FRAP values. Proteinase inhibition assay, Heat induced hemolysis and BSA-denaturation assay shows percentage inhibition of 28 ± 0.01, 55 ± 0.03 and 51.2 ± 0.05 respectively. In Antiglycation activity β-amyloid formation assay shows absorption of 0.017, Fructosamine assay shows inhibition of 19.4±0.06 and free carbonyl group estimation shows inhibition of 17.0±0.03. In in-vivo study FLE at (500 mg/kg) significantly decreased total bilirubin (p ≤ 0.001), decreased (p ≤ 0.05) alanine transferase, aspartate aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, decreased blood glucose, triglycerides and total cholesterol (p ≤ 0.01) while HDL (p ≤ 0.01) was significantly increased in comparison to obesity and diabetic-obesity groups. Different functional groups presence was confirmed by FTIR spectrum. HPLC analysis revealed the existence of ferulic acid, rutin, chlorogenic acid, coumarin and thymoquinone and these results are corelated by LC-MS/MS. Pre-compression characterization showed angle of repose (33.04°), bulk density (0.54 g/cm3), tapped density (0.73 g/cm3), compressibility index (35.179 %) and Hausner’s ratio (1.35), while the post-compression characterization showed weight variation 826±4.17 mg, thickness 10.50±0.25 kg/cm2, friability 0.57 %, and disintegration time 8.19 min. From the above results it is concluded that F. carica L. leaves extract has strong antioxidant, antidiabetic and hypolipidemic potential and can be used for an obesity and diabetes treatment.

In the present study the effects of Origanum onites L. extract and essential oil of O. onites L. on the antioxidant status of the liver and brain of mice were investigated. Due to certain disadvantages of essential oils, such as poor solubility, high volatility, sensitivity to UV light and heat, formulation of liposomes with Oregano essentials (OE) was optimized and used in this study. The results demonstrated that the best composition of the lipid carriers and Oregano essentials were conducted in terms of the PDI, mean particle size and EE. The LE4 formulation contained Lipoid S100 of 45 mg, Lipoid S75 of 45 mg and 90 mg of EO. The administration of O. onites L. extract to mice for 21 days significantly decreased glutathione (GSH) level in the liver and brain of mouse as well as malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration in the liver. In the brain of mice MDA level significantly increased after this extract consumption. Whereas liposomes with OE significantly decreased GSH concentration in mouse brain and MDA concentration in mouse liver but increased (p&gt;0.05) GSH level in liver and MDA concentration in brain of mice compared with the control group. It was investigated that both, O. onites L. extract as well as liposomes with OE of this plant material make changes in the antioxidant status in the liver and brain of mice.

Water stress is one of the main factors affecting the development of agricultural crops. An inno-vative alternative to improve tolerance to water stress is the application of biostimulants. In the present study, the efficacy and physiological and biochemical responses of different biostimulants were evaluated in beans under moderate and severe stress. The treatments consisted of three types of irrigation: FC100, without water stress, FC75, irrigation reduced by 25% (moderate water stress) and FC50, irrigation reduced by 50% (severe water stress). In the treatments with water deficit, foliar biostimulants were applied: zinc oxide nanoparticles plus chitosan, Codasil®, Osmoplant®, Stimplex® and salicylic acid. Foliar application of ZnO + chitosan nanoparticles benefited biomass accumulation and yield under moderate water stress (FC75) and Codasil® and Osmoplant® under severe water stress (FC50). Proline, free sugars and gas exchange were higher under the application of ZnO + chitosan nanoparticles under moderate water stress and under Codasil® and Osmoplant® under severe water stress. Depending on the severity of water stress, ZnO + chitosan nanoparticles, Codasil® and Osmoplant® are viable products to increase tolerance in green bean cv. Strike plants.

A dendrochronological investigation was undertaken on subfossil Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) stumps following their discovered during conservation management activities at Wem Moss, a small (28ha) former raised mire in Shropshire, UK. Two ring-width chronologies were constructed from 14 of the 17 trees investigated spanning 198 and 208 years respectively. Whilst absolute dating was not possible, radiocarbon assays provided an estimated age for this mire-rooting woodland of between 3015 – 2505 years Cal BC, coinciding with the age traditionally associated with the widespread mortality of pine trees throughout much of the UK and Ireland, The Pine Decline (circa 4 ka radiocarbon years BP). Placed in a wider geographical context, the Wem Moss pines are located within the wider lowland area of the Meres and Mosses Region, where previous studies on subfossil pine have demonstrated protracted declines in mire-rooting trees. These have included tree mortality significantly post-dating The Pine Decline, notably at larger peatland sites exceeding 5.5 km2. This macrofossil evidence for the presence of Scots pine into the late Holocene is supported by continuous Pinus pollen representation at peatland sites in the Welsh Marches (English-Welsh border) suggesting the possible survival of native Scots pine trees in this area up to the present-day. This research highlights the incomplete and patchy nature of palaeo-vegetational records and also the potential for genetic research on living Scots pine in possible refugial areas in the UK and Ireland.

Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) is a globally important oilseed crop with various uses, including consumption of its succulent stems as a seasonal vegetable, but its uniaxial branching habit limits the stem yield. Therefore, developing a multi-stem rapeseed variety has become increasingly crucial. In this study, a nature mutant of wild type from germplasm resources with stable inheritance of the multi-stem trait (MS) was obtained and showed abnormal shoot apical meristem (SAM) development and increased main stem number compared to WT. Histological and scanning electron microscopy analyses revealed multiple SAMs in the MS mutant, while only a single SAM was found in WT. Compared to WT, the mutant exhibited increased accumulation of cytokinins (CKs), transcriptome and RT-qPCR analyses showed the expression of genes involved in CK biosynthesis and metabolism pathways were altered in MS mutant. These findings provide insight into the mechanism of multiple main stems formation in Brassica napus L. and lay a theoretical foundation for breeding multi-main stem rapeseed vegetable varieties.

Overuse and misuse of antibiotics can pose the risks of spreading mutant strains that show antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with negative impact on management of bacterial infections and economic implications on healthcare systems. Research and development of natural antibacterial agents could be a priority in the next years to improve number of effective antibacterial molecules and to reduce AMR phenomenon and its development. The present study identified the most effective concentration and contact time of Thymus vulgaris L. essential oil (TEO) to obtain bactericidal effect in vitro against different Gram + and Gram – bacterial strains. Six clinically isolated (wild types) bacterial strains, (Citrobacter freundii, Enterococcus feciorum, Proteus mirabilis, Acinetobacter cioffi, Pasteurella putrefaciens, Klebsiella pneumoniae) and two ATCC (Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus mutans) were tested after 1min, 3min and 5min of contact with TEO. Preliminary results on S. aureus after 24h incubation revealed a TEO concentration of 9.28mg/mL (w/v) that completely inhibited bacteria growth keeping cell viability. Total suppression of bacterial growth at all tested contact times was observed for all tested bacterial strains and the results were confirmed after 48h incubation. Bacterial growth suppression was confirmed even with presence of organic component. These preliminary results showed in vitro antimicrobial efficacy of TEO against different Gram+ and Gram- bacterial strains. Future studies are necessary to confirm the reproducibility of these results even on other strains and to define exactly the molecular mechanisms of EOs, in order to consider TEO as a valid alternative of classic antibiotic therapies and subsequently to reduce the occurrence of AMR.

In recent decades, given the important role of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) in human health, scientists have paid great attention to the enrichment of this chemical compound in food using various methods, including microbial fermentation. Moreover, GABA or GABA-rich products have been successfully commercialized as food additives or functional dietary supplements. Several microorganisms can produce GABA, including bacteria, fungi, and yeasts. Among GABA-producing bacteria, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are commonly used in the production of many fermented foods. Lactiplantibacillus plantarum (previously Lactobacillus plantarum) has a long history of natural occurrence and safe use in a variety of food products. This LAB species provides functional properties to various fermented foods by producing a variety of bioactive compounds, including GABA. The present review aims, after a preliminary excursus on the function and biosynthesis of GABA, to provide an overview on the current uses of microorganisms and in particular of L. plantarum in the production of GABA, with a detailed focus on fermented foods.

Many factors affect the quality of red meat. The aim of the study, carried out on 44 Polish Merino lambs, was analysis of physicochemical traits (pH, meat color, expressed juice, content of moisture, protein, fat, total collagen and fatty acid ) and content of carnosine, taurine, L-carnitine on fresh and meat aged for 7 and 14 d in the longissimus lumborum (LL) and gluteus medius (GM) muscles., Higher (p&lt;0.05) redness value (a*), lower yellowness (b*) were recorded in meat after of aging in gluteus medius muscle. A lower value (p&lt;0.05) of expressed juice was found in both LL and GM after 7 days of aging. The increase (p&lt;0.05) in protein and fat content in both muscle and collagen content in LL was observed in aged meat. There was no difference in fatty acid groups and C18:2 c9, t11 content between GM and LL muscle and fresh and aging meat. A higher TBARS content (p&lt;0.05) was recorded in meat after aging in both GM and LL. The meat aging process increased (p&lt;0.05) the content of carnitine and taurine, while the content of carnosine decreased. In summary the processes that turn muscles into meat in different types of muscles affect the physicochemical characteristics and the content of bioactive ingredients.

The purported cognitive benefits associated with nicotine and its metabolites in the brain are a matter of debate. In this review, the impact of the pharmacologically active metabolite of a nicotine derivative produced by bacteria (6-hydroxy-L-nicotine) on memory, oxidative stress, and the activity of the cholinergic system in the brain was examined. A search in the PubMed, Science Direct, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases, limiting entries to those no later than July 2023, was conducted. The search focused specifically on articles pertaining to nicotine metabolites, memory, oxidative stress, cholinergic system activity, as well as enzymes or pathways related to nicotine degradation in bacteria. The preliminary search resulted in 696 articles, and following the application of exclusion criteria, 185 articles were deemed eligible for inclusion. This review focuses on experimental studies supporting nicotine catabolism in bacteria, and the chemical and pharmacological activities of nicotine and its metabolite 6-hydroxy-L-nicotine.

N-Acetyl-L-glutamate kinase (NAGK) catalyzes the rate-limiting step in the ornithine/arginine biosynthesis pathway in eukaryotic and bacterial oxygenic phototrophs. NAGK is the most highly conserved target of the PII signal transduction protein in Cyanobacteria and Archaeplastida (red algae and Chlorophyta). However, yet there is still much to be learnt on how NAGK is regulated in vivo. The use of unicellular green Chlamydomonas reinhardtii as a model system has already been instrumental in identifying several key regulation mechanisms that control nitrogen (N) metabolism. With a combination of molecular-genetic and biochemical approaches, we show the existence of the complex CrNAGK control at transcriptional level, which is dependent on N source and N availability. In growing cells, CrNAGK requires CrPII to properly sense the feedback inhibitor arginine. Moreover, we provided primary evidence that CrPII is only partly responsible for regulating CrNAGK activity to adapt to changing nutritional conditions. Collectively, our results suggest that in vivo CrNAGK is tuned at transcriptional and post-translational levels, and CrPII and additional as yet unknown factor(s) are integral parts of this regulation.

Advanced MRI methods and PET using radiolabeled amino acids provide valuable information in addition to conventional MR imaging for brain tumor diagnostics. These methods are particularly helpful in challenging situations such as the differentiation of malignant processes from benign lesions, the identification of non-enhancing glioma subregions, the differentiation of tumor progression from treatment-related changes, and the early assessment of response to anticancer therapy. The debate over which of the methods is preferable in which situation is ongoing and has been addressed in numerous studies. Currently, most radiology and nuclear medicine departments perform these examinations independently of each other leading to multiple examinations for the patient. The advent of hybrid PET/MRI allowed a convergence of the methods but to date simultaneous imaging has reached little relevance in clinical neuro-oncology. This is partly due to the limited availability of hybrid PET/MRI scanners, but is also due to the fact that PET is a second-line examination in brain tumors. PET is only required in equivocal situations, and spatial co-registration of PET examinations of the brain to previous MRI is possible without disadvantage. A key factor for the benefit of PET/MRI in neuro-oncology is a multimodal approach that provides decisive improvements in the diagnostics of brain tumors compared with a single modality. This systematic review focuses on studies that were able to demonstrate the additive value of amino acid PET and ‘advanced’ MRI in the diagnosis of brain tumors. Available studies suggest that the combination of amino acid PET and advanced MRI improves grading and the histomolecular characterization of newly diagnosed tumors. However, data concerning the delineation of tumor extent and biopsy guidance are of limited value. A clear additive diagnostic value of amino acid PET and advanced MRI can be achieved regarding the differentiation of tumor recurrence from treatment-related changes. Here, PET-guided evaluation of advanced MR methods seems to be helpful. In summary, there is growing evidence that a multimodal approach can achieve decisive improvements in the diagnostics of brain tumors, for which hybrid PET/MRI offers optimal conditions.

The olive wide genetic variability can be used to overcome some of the challenges faced by olive growing, including climate warming. One effect of climate warming in olive is the difficulty to fulfill the chilling requirements for flowering due to high winter temperatures. In the present work, we evaluate seven olive cultivars for their adaptation to high winter temperatures by comparing their flowering phenology in the standard Mediterranean climate of Cordoba, Southern Iberian Peninsula, with the Subtropical climate of Tenerife, Canary Islands. Flowering phenology in Tenerife was significantly earlier and longer than in Cordoba. However, genotype seems to have little influence on the effects of lack of winter chilling temperatures as in Tenerife. This even though the cultivars studied have a high genetic distance between them. In fact, all the cultivars tested in Tenerife flowered the three years under study but showing asynchronous flowering bud burst. Only ‘Arbequina’ showed an earlier day of full flowering than the rest of cultivars. The results observed here could be of interest to refine the phenological simulation models and including of the length of the flowering period. More genetic variability should be evaluated in warm winter conditions to look for adaptation to climate warming.

Virgin Argan Oil (VAO) is extracted from the fruits of the Moroccan endemic species argan [Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels]. It is known for its richness in polyunsaturated fatty acids and its unique composition in tocopherols conferring a panoply of pharmacological properties, documented in several studies. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential protective effect of VAO against oxidative and nitrosative stress induced in cells of the model species Tetrahymena pyriformis. As a comparison, well-known Virgin Olive Oil (VOO) from Olea europaea L. was used instead. Both oils were subjected to a preliminary analysis of phytochemicals and properties of interest. Oxidative stress in T. pyriformis cells was induced by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) at 350µM, whereas sodium nitroprusside (SNP) nitrosative stress was induced using a 1mM concentration. Neither of these concentrations caused relevant changes in cell viability. The level of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was evaluated in the cell cultures by using H2-DCFDA dye. The activity and cell localization of the antioxidant enzymes catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) was evaluated as well as the levels of glutathione (GSH) and the malondialdehyde (MDA) generated after lipid peroxidation. Finally, the presence and localization of intracellular lipid droplets was assessed by using Nile red. The treatment of cultures with H2O2 produced significant increases in the activity of CAT, SOD and GPX and in the level of GSH, as also did the SNP treatment. MDA level was increased by both the treatments. VAO and VOO treatment were found to protect T. pyriformis from oxidative stress and increased cells defense in nitrosative stress. In another hand VAO and VOO decreased significantly MDA level increased by H2O2 treatment and failed after SNP treatment. The quantification of fluorescence signal obtained from immunolocalization of antioxidant enzymes confirmed the results obtained after the evaluation of their activities. Interestingly the level of ROS and the number of lipid droplets increased by H2O2 treatment was significantly decreased by VAO and VOO co-treatments. VAO and VOO represent strong antioxidants, playing an important role in protecting cells against oxidative stress.

The largest gene families in plants were found to be Glutathione transferase (GSTs), which played significant roles in regulating plant growth, development, and stress response. Within the GSTs gene family, members were found to play a crucial role in the low-temperature response process of plants. A comprehensive study identified a total of 70 BraGSTs genes. Cluster analysis results demonstrated that the BraGSTs in Brassica rapa(B.rapa) could be categorized into eight sub-families and were unevenly distributed across ten chromosomes. The 39 BraGSTs genes were found to be organized into 15 tandem gene clusters, with the promoters containing multiple cis-elements associated with low-temperature response. Cold stress was observed to stimulate the expression of 15 genes, with the BraGSTF2 gene exhibiting the highest level of expression, sug-gesting its significant involvement in winter B.rapa's response to low-temperature stress. Sub-cellular localization analysis of the BraGSTF2 protein indicated its potential expression in both the cell membrane and nucleus. The analysis of stress resistance in BraGSTF2 transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana lines emon-strated that the over-expression of this gene resulted in significantly elevated levels of SOD, POD activity, and SP content compared to the wild type following exposure to low temperatures. These levels reached their peak after 24 hours of treatment. Conversely, the MDA content was lower in the transgenic plants compared to the wild type. Additionally, the survival rate of BraGSTF2 transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana was higher than that of the wild type, suggesting that the BraG-STF2 gene may play a crucial role in enhancing the cold stress tolerance of winter B. rapa. This study lay a foundation for further study on the role of BraGSTs gene in the molecular regulation of cold resistance in winter B.rapa.

Abstract: This comprehensive review seeks to deepen our comprehension of the African plant Momordica balsamina L. by elucidating its therapeutically important molecules and micronutrient composition. Commonly referred to as the balsam apple, this plant species is extensively harnessed for its diverse therapeutic potentials across its various organs including leaves, fruits, roots, and stems. Numerous bioactive molecules have been isolated or identified within this plant, notably encompassing polyphenols, flavonoids, terpenes, and carotenoids. These compounds exhibit a wide array of biological activities, ranging from antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, anti-carcinogenic, to anti-malarial properties, among others. Furthermore, the leaves of Momordica balsamina L. stand out for their abundant micronutrients, proteins, and amino acids. This investigation aims to shed light not only on the botanical characteristics of the Momordica balsamina plant and its potential applications in traditional medicine, but also on its chemical composition, biological functionalities, and physicochemical attributes, thus accentuating its nutritional advantages. Nonetheless, an intriguing avenue presents itself for the exploration of strategies to conserve this species, delve deeper into its potential within the cosmetics industry, and innovate methodologies for the synthesis or biosynthesis of these bioactive molecules.

Achieving high-yield potential is always the ultimate objective of any breeding program. However, various abiotic stresses like salinity, drought, cold, flood, and heat hampered rice productivity tremendously. Salinity is one of the most important abiotic stresses that adversely affect rice grain yield. The present investigation was undertaken to dissect new genetic loci, which are responsible for salt tolerance at the early seedling stage in rice. A bi-parental mapping population (F2:3) was developed from the cross between BRRI dhan28/Akundi, where BRRI dhan28 (BR28) is a salt-sensitive irrigated (boro) rice mega variety and Akundi is a highly salinity tolerant Bangladeshi origin indica rice landrace that is utilized as a donor parent. We report stable QTLs for salt tolerance from a common donor (Akundi) irrespective of two different genetic backgrounds (BRRI dhan49/Akundi and BRRI dhan28/Akundi). A robust 1k-Rice Custom Amplicon (1k-RiCA) SNP marker genotyping platform was used to genotype this bi-parental population. After eliminating markers with high segregation distortion, 886 polymorphic SNPs built a genetic linkage map covering 1526.5 cM of whole rice genome with an average SNP density of 1.72 cM for the 12 genetic linkage groups. A total of 12 QTLs for nine different salt tolerance-related traits were identified using QGene and inclusive composite interval mapping of additive and dominant QTL (ICIM-ADD) under salt stress on seven different chromosomes. All of these 12 new QTLs found unique, as no other map from the previous study has reported these QTLs in the similar chromosomal location and found them different from extensively studied Saltol, SKC1, OsSalT and salT locus. Twenty-eight significant digenic/epistatic interactions identified between chromosomal regions linked to or unlinked to QTLs. Akundi acts like a new alternate donor source of salt tolerance except for other usually known donors like Nona Bokra, Pokkali, Capsule, and Hasawi used in salt tolerance genetic analysis and breeding programs worldwide, including Bangladesh. Integration of the seven novel and stable QTLs (qSES1, qSL1, qRL1, qSUR1, qSL8, qK8, qK1) reported in this investigation will expedite the cultivar development that is highly tolerant to salt stress.

Pruning is an important part in controlling the branching, good fruit size, and prodctivity of fruit trees. and consequently, ‘Valencia’ orange trees were grown many years ago, the trees were suffering from a decline in productivity in the newly reclaimed lands after certain years of plantation. This study elucidated the effect of pruning severity on growth, yield and fruit quality of ‘Valencia’ orange trees. Four levels of pruning were applied on 35 years old ‘Valencia’ orange trees as follows: T1: Control (un-pruned), T2: Light pruning ( 25% of main branches were removed); T3: Moderate pruning (50% of main branches were removed) and T4: Heavy pruning: 75% of main branches were removed. The treatments were done in February 15th (for each season). The results indicated that pruning severity increased vegetative growth paraments such as shoot length and leaf area and decreased canopy volume of Valencia orange trees in comparison to control. Maximum yield was gained from 75% followed by 50% and 25% pruning severity treatment. The pruning treatments improve in fruit weight, size, firmness, juice content, TSS%, TSS/acid ratio and vitamin C content. In addition, pruning produced an increasing in fruit yield per tree as well as yield increasing %. Hence, it might be concluded that pruning at different severity applied in February can be used effectively on ‘Valencia’ orange trees to improve vegetative growth, fruit physical and chemical properties. Besides, increasing fruit yield by nearly 20% in comparison to control.

Many children and adults who have suffered prenatal hypoxia at an early age develop many serious diseases. This disease is an actual problem of pediatric cardiology and little studied. The aim was to analyze the cardioprotective effect of L-arginine, Thiotriazoline, Angioline and Mildronate on the cardiovascular system of rats after prenatal hypoxia. Methods: The experiments were carried out on 50 female white rats; intraperitoneal sodium nitrite solution was administered daily to pregnant female rats after 16 days at a dose of 50 mg/kg. Control pregnant rats received saline. The offspring were divided into groups: 1 – intact; 2 – the control group of rat pups after PH, daily treated with physiological saline; 3 – 6 groups of rat pups after PH, treated daily from the 1st to the 30th day after birth. Heat shock protein HSP70 was determined by enzyme immunoassay, ST2 Nitrotyrosine, eNOS was observed by ELISA. Results: Angiolin showed a high cardioprotective effect even a month after discontinuation of the drug, and after introduction, the highest decrease in ST2, nitrotyrosine was revealed. Thiotriazoline and L-arginine have an antioxidant effect and a positive effect on eNOS expression. increased the concentration of HSP70. Mildronate increased the expression of eNOS and the concentration of HSP70 in the blood of experimental rats after a course of administration, but did not show an antioxidant effect and did not reduce the concentration of nitrotyrosine. The results obtained indicate the cardioprotective effect of modulators of the NO system with different mechanisms of action of drugs after experienced prenatal hypoxia.

Natural products from medicinal plants, either as pure compounds or as standardized extracts, provide unlimited opportunities for new drug leads because of the unmatched availability of chemical diversity. The objects of the study are medicinal plant raw materials Saussurea sordida Kar&Kir and Saussurea alpina DC. collected from South Kazakhstan during the flowering period in the spring-summer months of 2021. The present study was aimed to investigate the toxic effects acute administration of ethanol extracts from plants S. sordida and S. alpina in male Wistar rats. The ethanol extract by subjected to Phytochemical Screening, Fourier transform infrared spec-troscopy (FTIR) analysis. Phytochemical screening of the extract revealed the presence of phenolic compounds. FT-IR spectroscopic analysis revealed various characteristic band values with various functional groups in the formulation extract such as amines, alcohol, phenol, alkane, alkene, and conjugated acid groups. FT-IR analysis of peak values with various functional compounds such as alcohols, phenols, carboxylic acids, aldehydes, amides, amino acids, anhydrides, esters, ketones, unsaturated aliphatic, aromatics, unsaturated heterocycles, amines, nitro compound, alkanes, al-kenes and sugars. Histological examination of organ samples after studying the chronic toxicity of ex-tracts of two plant species (S. sordida . and S. alpina) revealed no pathological changes. The acute toxicity study revealed no lethal effects and behavioral signs of toxicity at the tested doses indicating that LD50 is greater than 2000 mg/kg. These results show low toxicity of on short-term use and liver toxicity on long-term use. This study helps to predict the formula and structure of active molecules which can be used as medicinal drugs. This result also enhances the traditional usage of S. sordida and S. alpina , which possesses a number of bioactive compounds.

The DnaA protein has long been considered to play the key role in the initiation of chromosome replication in modern bacteria. Many questions about this role, however, remain unanswered. Here, we raise these questions within a framework based on the dynamics of hyperstructures alias large assemblies of molecules and macromolecules that perform a function. In this dynamics, hyperstructures can (1) emit and receive signals or (2) fuse and separate from one another. We ask whether the DnaA-based initiation hyperstructure acts as a logic gate receiving information from the membrane, the chromosome and metabolism to trigger replication; we try to phrase some of these questions in terms of DNA supercoiling, strand opening, glycolytic enzymes, SeqA, ribonucleotide reductase, the Macromolecular Synthesis operon, post-translational modifications and metabolic pools. Finally, we ask whether, underpinning the regulation of the cell cycle, there is a physico-chemical clock inherited from the first protocells, and whether this clock emits a single signal that triggers both chromosome replication and cell division.

Pigmented corn is a gramineae food of great biological, cultural and nutritional importance for many Latin American countries, with more than 250 breeds in the American continent. It confers a large number of health benefits due to its diverse and abundant bioactive compounds. In this narrative review we decided to organize the information on the nutrients, bioactive compounds and phytochemicals present in pigmented corn, as well as their effects on human health. Phenolic compounds and anthocyanins are some of the most studied and representative compounds in these grasses, with a wide range of health properties, mainly the reduction of prooxidant molecules. Carotenoids are a group of molecules belonging to the terpenic compounds, present in a large number of pigmented corn breeds, mainly the yellow ones, whose biological activity incorporates a wide spectrum. Bioactive peptides can be found in abundance in corn, having very diverse biological effects that include analgesic, opioid, antihypertensive, etc. activity. Other compounds with biological activity found in pigmented corn are resistant starches, some fatty acids, phytosterols, policosanols, phospholipids, ferulic acid and phlobaphenes, as well as a great variety of vitamins, elements, and fibers. This review aims to disseminate and integrate the existing knowledge on compounds with biological activity in pigmented corn, in order to promote their research, interest and use by scientists, nutrition professionals, physicians, industries and the general population.

Sperm morphology can predict the reproductive male fertilizing potential. This study aimed to determine the morphological and morphometric spermatozoa characteristics from guinea pigs subjected to different photoperiodic stimulation. Thirty F1 guinea pigs were randomly assigned to three photoperiodic treatments: FT1 (photoperiod with 10L/14D LED light), FT2 (photoperiod with 10L/14D sunlight), and FT0 (room without direct light source). At 107 ± 9.8 days of age, sperm concentration and motility were higher in FT0 and FT1 (p<0.05); furthermore, there were no differences in nucleus length and ellipticity between FT0 and FT1, but FT1 was higher in perimeter and nuclear area, while FT0 was higher in roughness, regularity, midpiece length and tail (p<0.01). Expanding acrosome (Type 2) was more frequent in FT2, but there was variation in head measurements between all morphological categories. Pregnancy rate, calving age and mating age were higher in FT0, meanwhile FT1 initiated successful matings earlier (p<0.01). FT0 had a higher fertility rate, and FT1 age of mating and first calving were earlier than FT0 but no pregnancies were reported for FT2. The photoperiodic stimulation can increase the morphometric dimensions of guinea pig spermatozoa, favoring the reproductive characteristics, but sunlight could reduce their size due to heat stress.

Cervical cancer is caused by a persistent and high-grade infection, caused by the Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), which, when entering cervical cells, alters their physiology and generates serious lesions. HPV 18 - is among those most involved in carcinogenesis in this region, but there are still no drug treatments that cause cure or total remission of lesions caused by HPV. Knowing that L-Asparaginase is an amidohydrolase, which plays a significant role in the pharmaceutical industry, particularly in the treatment of specific cancers, due to its antitumor properties, some studies have demonstrated its cytotoxic effect against cervical cancer cells. However, the commercial version of this enzyme has side effects, such as hypersensitivity, allergic reactions and silent inactivation due to the formation of antibodies. To mitigate these adverse effects, several alternatives have been explored, including the use of L-asparaginase from other microbiological sources, which is the case with the use of the fungus Aspergillus niger, a high producer of L-asparaginase. The study investigated the influence of the type of fermentation, precipitant, purification, characterization and in vitro cytotoxicity of L-asparaginase. The results revealed that semisolid fermentation produced higher enzymatic activity and protein concentration of A. niger. The characterized enzyme showed excellent stability at pH 9.0, temperature of 50ºC, resistance to surfactants and metallic ions, and an increase in enzymatic activity was also noted with the organic solvent ethanol. Furthermore, it exhibited low cytotoxicity in GM and RAW cells, and significant cytotoxicity in HeLa cells. These findings indicate that L-asparaginase derived from Aspergillus niger may be a promising alternative for pharmaceutical production. Its attributes, including stability, activity and low toxicity in healthy cells, suggest that this modified enzyme could overcome challenges associated with antitumor therapy.

Cadmium Sulfide nanoparticle (CdS-LA hybrid nanoparticles) was synthesized here by a green approach using the precursor cadmium acetate and sodium sulphide along with the extract of a plant Lathyrus aphaca L. containing the phytochemicals which were responsible for surface modification of nanoparticles. The nanoparticle was used to evaluate their inhibition potential against species of bacteria and fungi. The nanoparticles were characterized by XRD which demonstrates the hexagonal crystal structure. SEM confirms the homogenous surface appearance of the CdS-LA hybrid crystalline structure. EDX analysis confirms surface modification of nanoparticles by phytochemicals. FTIR confirmed the Cd-S linkage laterally with the related functional groups and the presence of metabolites on the surface of nanoparticles. The UV-visible spectroscopy confirmed the peak at the characteristic wavelength range but a slight shift occurred in the peak of the CdS nanoparticles due to the presence of the phytochemicals. This study particularly provides an environment-friendly strategy to synthesize the CdS nanoparticles capped by Lathyrus Aphaca L. extract that are biologically active due to the mediation of the plant extract. CdS-LA hybrid nanoparticles have shown inhibition potential against various species of bacteria and fungi and realize the biological importance of the green synthesis of nanoparticles especially mediated with the plant extract.

Tomato is considered the most important vegetable crop worldwide. Improving the nutritional value of fruits must be based on sustainable production in terms of varieties and fertilization management. This study aimed to improve the nutritional value (total soluble solids, acidity, lycopene, β-carotene, polyphenols, macro and microelements) of two tomato varieties (‘Cristal’ and ‘Siriana’) under three fertilization types (NPK chemical fertilizer, chicken manure and biological fertilizer with microorganisms) for the greenhouse. Primary metabolism compounds do not vary significantly according to the type of fertilizer used. The results for the antioxidant compounds showed a better effect of biological fertilization compared to chemical fertilizer and control unfertilized. The tomato fruits from the local cultivar (‘Siriana’) are richer in nutritional compounds such as rutin, regardless of the type of fertilization, which denotes a good ability to adapt to crop conditions. Tomato cultivars reacted positively to microbiological fertilization compare to chemical, thus producing nutritious fruits under sustainable management. Tomato fruits were richer in the quality of microelement contents.

The rye (Secale cereale L.) crop shows a high potential to collaborate in the sustainability of high Andean livestock because it supports the agroclimatic conditions and acid soils in the Peruvian Andes. The production of green forage, hay, and grain of the rye crop in acid soils was studied with the use of different levels of phosphorus and potassium fertilization in four local rye ecotypes (CBI-001, CSM-001, CJS-001, and CCE-001). The green forage yield (FV) ranged from 32.35 to 53.62 t ha-1, dry matter from 6.05 to 8.56 t ha-1, and hay from 7.0 to 10.36 t ha-1; nutritional levels ranged from 9.02 % to 13.56 % protein and 6.50 to 7.75 % ash levels, mainly with differences between ecotypes (p&lt;0.05). No differences existed between fertilization levels for the number of stems per plant, and flowering stems per plant, and grains per ear (p&gt;0.05). Also, CBI-001 and CCE-001 were superior with 1868.4 and 1797.8 kg ha-1 of grain, respectively (p=0.0072); the use of 60 kg ha of Nitrogen, 120 kg ha-1 of P2O5 and 80 kg ha-1 of K2O gave higher grain and residue yields. The high nutritional value and yield of the rye ecotypes studied in acid soil conditions and without irrigation can be an alternative for livestock feeding and grain production in the rainy season in the Andes as a dual-purpose crop.

L-asparaginase from bacterial sources have been used in antineoplastic treatments and the food industry. A novel type II L-a sparaginase encoded by the N-truncated gene ansZP21 of halotolerant Bacillus subtilis CH11 isolated from Chilca salterns in Peru was expressed using a heterologous system in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3)pLysS. The recombinant protein was purified using one-step nickel affinity chromatography and exhibited activity of 234.38 U mg-1 and a maximum catalytic activity at pH 9.0 and 60 °C. The enzyme shows a homotetrameric form with an estimated molecular weight of 155 kDa by gel filtration chromatography. The enzyme half-life at 60 °C was 3 h 48 min, and L-asparaginase retained 50% of initial activity for 24 h at 37 °C. The activity was considerably enhanced by KCl, CaCl2, MgCl2, mercaptoethanol, and DL-dithiothreitol (p-value &lt; 0.01). Moreover, the Vmax and Km were 145.2 µmol mL-1 min-1 and 4.752 mM, respectively. These findings evidence a promising novel type II L-asparaginase for future industrial applications.

Lactobacilli are considered an inexhaustible source of potentially bioactive substances; indeed, several products from their metabolism are known to have immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory activity. Recently, we demonstrated that cell-free supernatants (CFS) obtained from Lactobacillus (L.) acidophilus, L. plantarum, L. rhamnosus and L. reuteri can impair Candida pathogenic potential in an in vitro model of epithelial vaginal infection. This effect could be ascribed to a direct effect of living lactobacilli on Candida virulence and to the production of metabolites which are able to impair fungal virulence. In the present work, stemming from those data, we deepened our knowledge on the CFS from these 4 lactobacilli by performing a metabolomic analysis to better characterize their composition. By using an untargeted metabolomic approach, we detected consistent differences in the metabolites produced by these four different lactobacilli. Interestingly, L. rhamnosus showed the most peculiar metabolic profile. Specifically, after a hierarchical clustering analysis in positive and negative ionization mode, L. rhamnosus showed a specific area of significant overexpressed metabolites that strongly differed from the same area in other lactobacilli. In this area, inosine was identified among the overexpressed metabolites of L. rhamnosus. This molecule has been described to have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-infective and neuroprotective properties. The biological significance of its overproduction by L. rhamnosus might be important in its probiotic and/or postbiotic activity.

Water deficit (drought) is still one of the most important stress factors affecting not only yields, but also production quality. Breeders are focusing on breeding cultivars and crop lines that are more resistant to water shortages. In addition to breeding, for example, for the size of the roots and changes in the color of the leaves, focus on changing the morphotype i.e. long chaff, multirowed ear. It is predicted that wheat genotypes with a morphotype change should be more drought tolerant. Therefore, our research focused on the study of changes in the physiological parameters of wheat (cv. ´Bohemia´) with a changed morphotype (genotypes ´284-17´ [long chaff] and genotype ´29-17´ [multirowed ear]) in relation to exposure to drought. Pigment content, photosynthesis and transpiration rate, water potential were measured in plants irrigated and affected by water deficit. Water deficit was shown to have a statistically significant effect on transpiration rate, photosynthetic rate, water potential and total chlorophyll content. Furthermore, the influence of the genotype on the observed parameters and on the effect of water deficit was demonstrated. Due to the fact that cv. ´Bohemia´, increases during such periods of transpiration, so for this reason it is not suitable for dry areas. Genotype ́29-17 ́ appears promising with respect to drought resistance.

Honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) express complex behavioral patterns (aggressiveness) to exhibit defensive mechanisms for their survival. Their phenotypic expression of aggressive behavior is influenced by internal and external stimuli. Knowledge of this behavior is recently important though beekeepers are still faced with the challenges of selecting aggressive and less-aggressive bred lines. Field evaluation of aggressiveness among bred lines of honey bees is required to overcome the challenges. Chemical cues (alarm pheromone and isopentyl acetate mixed with paraffin oil), physical and visual stimuli (dark leather suede, colony marbling and suede jiggling) were used to evaluate aggressiveness and orientation among five bred lines of honeybee colonies. Our results showed that both chemical assays recruited bees but the time of recruitment was significantly lower for alarm pheromone. Honeybees’ response to both assays culminated to stings which differed among bred lines for alarm pheromone and paraffin when colonies were marbled. Honeybee aggression varied among bred lines and was higher in more aggressive bred lines compared to less-aggressive bred lines. Our findings suggest that it is crucial to repeatedly evaluate orientation aggressiveness at the colony level and among bred lines when selecting breeding colonies.

Biofilm formation and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) are implicated in the pathogenesis of gastrointestinal (GI) diseases caused by Gram-negative such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium. Grape seeds, wine industry by-products, have antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammatory activities. In the present study, the protective effect of procyanidin-rich grape seed extract (prGSE), from unfermented pomace of Vitis vinifera cv Bellone, on bacterial LPS-induced oxidative stress and epithelial barrier integrity damages has been studied in a model of Caco-2 cells. The in vitro activity of prGSE against formation of biofilm of S. Typhimurium and E. coli, has been investigated. In vivo, prGSE activity using infected Galleria mellonella larvae has been evaluated. The results showed that the prGSE, if administered with LPS, can significantly reduce the LPS-induced permeability alteration. Moreover, the ability of the extract to prevent Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) production induced by LPS treatment of Caco-2 cells has been demonstrated. prGSE inhibited the biofilm formation of E. coli and S. Typhimurium. In in vivo activity, increased survival of infected G. mellonella larvae after treatment with prGSE has been demonstrated. In conclusion, grape seed extracts could be used in the reduction of GI damage caused by bacterial endotoxin and biofilm of Gram-negative bacteria.

Modern research achievements support health-promoting effects of natural products and diets rich in polyphenols. Pomegranate (PG) (Punica granatum L.) contain a considerable number of bioactive compounds that exert a broad spectrum of beneficial biological activities, including antimicrobial, antidiabetic, antiobesity, and atheroprotective properties. In this view, the reviewed literature shows that PG intake might reduce insulin resistance, cytokine levels, redox gene expression, blood pressure elevation, vascular injuries and lipoprotein oxidative modifications. Lipid parameters corrective capabilities of PG-ellagitannins are also sufficiently reported to be significantly effective in reducing hyperlipidemia (TC, LDL-C, VLDL-C, and TAGs), plasma HDL-C concentrations, TC/HDL-C and LDL-C/HDL-C ratio. The health benevolent effects of pomegranate consumption appear to be produced through the amelioration of adipose tissue endocrine function, fatty acid utilization, GLUT receptor expression, paraoxonase activity enhancement, PPAR and NFκB modulation. Although the results from animal experiments are encouraging, human findings published in this field are inconsistent and still limited in many points of view. The present review discusses and provides a critical analysis of PG's bioeffects on metabolic syndrome components, type-2 diabetes, obesity, and dyslipidemia, as well as on some cardiovascular-related diseases. A brief overview of the pharmacokinetic properties, safety, and bioavailability of PG-ellagitannins is also included.

Current environmental conditions have prompted agri-food systems to explore new strategies for improving the production of crops in a sustainable manner. The use of omeprazole (OMP) and melatonin (MEL) have been proposed as innovative strategy for crop improvement when applied as biostimulants. However, although their role in the growth of several species has been studied, the results in photosynthetic efficiency parameters are still scarce. Therefore, the objec-tive of the present study was to evaluate the effect of foliar application of OMP and MEL on bi-omass, yield, SPAD values, leaf chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm), photochemical quenching (qP), Non-photochemical quenching (NPQ), quantum yield of photosystem II (PhiPSII) and elec-tron transport rate (ETR) in bean plants. Treatments were applied separately at doses of 1, 10, and 100 µM, plus a control without application. The results obtained indicate that OMP and MEL were able to increase biomass, yield, SPAD values, as well as photochemical quenching, fluores-cence, and PhiPSII coefficients. Finally, it is concluded that foliar application of OMP and MEL at a dose of 1 and 10 µM can increase photosynthetic efficiency and decrease photoinhibition, which is reflected in higher biomass accumulation and yield in green bean plants cv. Strike.

In vitro glucose uptake in yeast cell facilitated by Abelmoschus esculentus L. (okra seed) for management of type 2 diabetes was studied. Plant material was collected, identified, processed, and stored for further use. 80% methanol was employed for extraction and sonicated to release antidiabetic-bioactive component in solution and was filtered, concentrated, freeze-dried, and fractionated using standard techniques. Glucose uptake at an initial concentration of 5mM/L and 10mM/L by the crude extract was consistent to that of the known standard drug while at 25mM/L glucose concentration was equivalent with the crude extract. Also, at 0.625 mg/mL the linear equations, and R2 demonstrations that the crude extract was higher in dose predictability than the standard drug as presented by the equation; y = 35.754x - 57.822, and R² = 0.9502 (95%). The extract-fractions were employed to evaluate the ability of yeast cell line culture to take up glucose from the system through DPPH, FRAP, lipid peroxidation and anti-diabetes effect of extract-fraction assays. Extract-fractions were found to poses antioxidant activity high enough to inhibit stress-related diseases. The extract fractions were active as drug candidates both at low and high concentrations and were better compared with the standard drug and standard antioxidant was comparable. The high bioactive extract fractions require encapsulation with a nanoparticle as a drug candidate for type 2 diabetes patients. And an animal trial of the drug candidate may be necessary to monitor the in vivo performances of the extract fractions and subsequent human volunteered trial.

N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC), a sulfhydryl-containing compound, is mainly used as a mucolytic and as an antidote for acetaminophen overdose. Flow injection and sequential injection systems were designed and optimized with the aim of providing precise, accurate and reliable flow methods for NAC determination in pharmaceuticals with very low sample and reagent consumption. Proposed methods are based on a redox reaction wherein NAC reduces a complex of Cu(II) and bathocuproine disulfonate (BCS) to orange [Cu(BCS)2]3– complex, which absorption was measured at λmax = 483 nm. The optimized FIA and SIA configuration yielded a linear calibration curve with correlation coefficients (R2 = 0.9999 and R2 = 0.9996) in the concentration range of 3.0 × 10–7 – 3.0 × 10–5 mol L–1 and analytical frequency of 120 h–1 for the FIA method and 4.0 × 10–7 – 4.0 × 10–5 mol L–1, at sampling rate 60 h–1 for the SIA method. The proposed flow methods were successfully applied for the determination of NAC in pharmaceutical products, as the results showed good agreement with the standard method prescribed by Pharmacopoeia. Recoveries were in the range from 98.4% to 101.9% for the FIA method and from 97.2% to 101.8% for the SIA method.

Human societies demand sustainable alternatives for goods and services. Plants are sustainable sources of important metabolites with beneficial impacts on human health. There are many reported methodologies and commercial suppliers for extract preparations from the plant Mucuna sp. They usually claim to be enriched in L-dopa, their distinctive metabolite. However, there are poor characterizations of the metabolite's components in that extracts. Here, we present the metabolite characterization of a Mucuna seed extract, emphasizing the L-dopa identification and quantification. To obtain the extracts, we follow a green and sustainable extraction protocol. The lyophilized extract was subject to liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry to identify its primary metabolites. Additionally, we follow thin-layer chromatography to identify some carbohydrates in the sample. The resultant extract has a 56% L-dopa. Other main components in the extract were arginine, stizolamine, and the fructooligosaccharides sucrose and nystose. The characterized Mucuna extract can be easily standardized as powder presentation and used in several biomedical applications.

The therapeutic effectiveness of current neurodegenerative diseases treatments is still under debate because of problems with bioavailability and a range of side effects. Fungi, which are increasingly recognized as sources of natural antioxidants and AChE enzyme inhibitors, may thus serve as potent neuroprotective agents. Previous studies have associated the anti-AChE and antioxidant activities of fungi mostly with polysaccharides and phenolic compounds, while other secondary metabolites such as polyamines (PAs) have been neglected. This study aimed to investigate eight edible and medicinal fungi from Serbia, marking the initial investigation into the neuroprotective capabilities of Postia caesia, Clitocybe odora, Clitopilus prunulus, and Morchella elata. Neuroprotective activity was examined using Ellman assay, while antioxidant capacity was tested by conducting DPPH, NO, ABTS and FRAP tests. PAs levels were determined by HPLC coupled with fluorescent detection. Ganoderma applanatum and Lepista nuda exhibited the most robust anti-AChE (98.05 ± 0.83% and 99.94 ± 3.10%, respectively) and antioxidant activities attributed to the synergistic effects of total protein, total phenolic and PAs levels. Furthermore, P. caesia displayed significant AChE inhibition (88.21 ± 4.76%), primarily linked to elevated SPD (62.98 ± 3.19%) and PUT levels (55.87 ± 3.16%). Our results highlight the need of thorough research to comprehend the intricate relationships between distinct fungus species and AChE inhibition. However, it's important to recognize that more research is required to identify the precise substances causing the reported inhibitory effects.

The term neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA) brings together a broad set of progressive and disabling neurological genetic disorders in which iron is deposited preferentially in certain areas of the brain. Among NBIA disorders, the most frequent subtype is pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration (PKAN) caused by pathologic variants in the PANK2 gene codifying the enzyme pantothenate kinase 2 (PANK2). Nowadays, there are no effective treatments to stop the progression of these diseases. This review discusses the utility of patient-derived cell models as a valuable tool for the identification of commercial pharmacological or natural compounds for implementing polytarget precision medicine in PKAN. In the last years, several studies have described that PKAN patient-derived fibroblasts manifest the main pathological changes associated with the disease including intracellular iron overload. Interestingly, treatment of mutant cell cultures with various supplements such as pantothenate, pantethine, thiamine, L-carnitine, vitamin E, omega 3, and -lipoic acid improved all pathophysiological alterations in PKAN fibroblasts with residual expression of the PANK2 enzyme. The information provided by pharmacological screenings in patient-derived cellular models can help to optimize therapeutic strategies in individual PKAN patients.

The present study focuses on the yield, chemical composition, and antioxidant activity of essential oils from the leaves and fruit of wild-grown bay laurel (Laurus nobilis L.) in Montenegro. The chemical composition of isolated essential oils was determined by GC/MS and GC/FID. Antioxidant activity was determined using the DPPH assay. The laurel bay essential oil (LEO) yield was 0.88% in fruits and 2.65% in the leaves. The results obtained from this study indicate that the LEOs obtained from the different plant parts (leaves, fruit) display different compositions. Fifty components were identified in LEO leaves, with 1,8-cineole (39.4%), linalool (13.9%), α-terpinyl acetate (11.2%), sabinene (6.7%), methyl eugenol (5.7%), β-pinene (3.2%), and α-pinene (3.1%) being the most abundant ones. Fifty-five components were isolated in LEO fruits with 1,8-cineole (34.2%), α-pinene (6.6%), sabinene (6.1%), β-bisabolene (5.8%), β-pinene (4.8), α-terpinyl acetate (4.5%), and α-terpineol (4.3%) as the main components. However, this study is the first to present the chemical composition of the LEO fruits from Montenegro. The results indicate that the composition of LEO is similar to recent studies from Balkan and Mediterranean areas. The degree of DPPH radical neutralization increased with the incubation time. The LEO isolated from leaves showed better antioxidant activity (EC50 value of 1.43 mg/mL) in comparison to the LEO isolated from fruits (EC50 value of 3.74 mg/mL) during the incubation time of 120 min. Taken together, this study indicates that the LEO from leaves and fruits possesses significant antioxidant activities (possibly due to the high level of 1,8-cineole) and is an important component in the food and pharmaceutical industries. All plant parts of L. nobilis can be successfully used in LEO extraction and isolation.

Many cancers utilize L-glutamine as a major energy source. This “L-glutamine addiction” involves a well-characterized pathway whereby L-glutamine is hydrolyzed by a glutaminase (GLS) to L-glutamate, which is then converted to α-ketoglutarate, the carbons of which enter the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. However, mammalian tissues/cancers possess a rarely mentioned alternative pathway (the glutaminase II pathway): L-Glutamine is transaminated to α-ketoglutaramate (KGM), followed by ω-amidase (ωA)-catalyzed hydrolysis of KGM to α-ketoglutarate. Uncertainty may prevail over the name glutaminase II which may be confused with the enzyme named glutaminase 2 (GLS2). Thus, we recently suggested a new name for the glutaminase II pathway, namely the glutamine transaminase-ω-amidase (GTωA) pathway. Herein, we 1) evaluate three recent articles that mention L-glutamine addiction, but not the GTωA pathway, 2) summarize the metabolic importance of the GTωA pathway, including its role in closing the methionine salvage pathway, and 3) as a source of anaplerotic α-ketoglutarate. An advantage of the GTωA pathway [i.e., L-glutamine + α-keto acid + H2O α-ketoglutarate + L-amino acid + +NH4] is that it is irreversible and that there is no net change in redox status, permitting α-ketoglutarate production during hypoxia. Finally, we discuss possible clinical benefits of GTωA pathway inhibitors.

The genus Fusarium includes several agronomically important and toxin-producing species, that are worldwide distributed and can cause a wide range of diseases. Crown and stalk rots and grain infections are among the most severe symptoms that Fusarium spp. can cause on maize. The disease development usually occurs during germination, but it may also affect the later phases of plant growth. The purpose of this study was to investigate the diversity and the patho-genicity of 41 isolates recovered from symptomatic seedlings collected in Northern Italy, and from seeds with five different geographical origins during 2019 and 2020. The pathogenicity was tested and confirmed on 23 isolates causing rotting on maize seedlings. A multi-locus phylogeny analysis, based on four genomic loci (tef1-α, rpb2, calm and tub2), was performed for 23 repre-sentative isolates. Representative isolates were identified as species belonging to three species complexes (SC). Fusarium verticillioides and F. annulatum in the F. fujikuroi SC. Fusarium commune was identified in the F. nisikadoi SC, and three different lineages were found in the Fusarium ox-ysporum SC. This study reports F. annulatum, and two lineages of the Fusarium oxysporum SC as maize pathogens for the first time in Italy.

Malaria remains an important and challenging infectious disease, and novel antimalarials are required. Benzyl isothiocyanate (BITC), the main breakdown product of benzyl glucosinolate, is present in all parts of Tropaeolum majus L. (T. majus) and has antibacterial and antiparasitic activities. To our knowledge, there is no information on the effects of BITC against malaria. The present study evaluates the antimalarial activity of BITC and T. majus seeds, leaves, and stems aqueous extracts. We used flow cytometry to calculate the growth inhibition (GI) percentage of the extracts and BITC against unsynchronized cultures of chloroquine-susceptible Plasmodium falciparum (P. falciparum) 3D7-GFP strain. Extracts and/or compounds with at least 70% GI were validated by IC50 estimation against P. falciparum 3D7-GFP and Dd2 (chloroquine-resistant strain) unsynchronized cultures by flow cytometry, and the resistance index (RI) was determined. T. majus aqueous extracts showed some antimalarial activity higher in seeds than in leaves or stems. BITC’s GI was comparable to chloroquine’s. BITC’s IC50 was similar in both strains, thus a cross-resistance absence with aminoquinolines was found (RI < 1). BITC presented features that could open new avenues for malaria drug discovery.

The precise mathematical description of gaze patterns is still an unsettled matter of debate. This can, consequently, affect the analysis of this type of data in its practical applications. In this scope, we show evidence that a Lévy-flight description of eye-gaze trajectories is not only appropriate but its scale invariant properties are remarkably useful to assist in diagnosing children with Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), alongside with the usual cognitive tests. Using this picture, we find that the distribution of the characteristic exponent of Lévy-flights statistically is different in children with ADHD. Furthermore, we observe that these children deviate from a strategy that is considered optimal for searching processes, in contrast to non-ADHD children. We focus on the case where both eye-tracking data and data from a cognitive test are present and show that the study of gaze patterns in children with ADHD can help in identifying this condition. Since eye-tracking data can be gathered during cognitive tests without needing extra time-consuming specific tasks, we argue that it is in prime position to provide assistance in the arduous task of ADHD diagnosing.

In the last decades, cultivation of chia (Salvia hispanica L.) has expanded around the world and the seeds have become well known due to their rich composition in nutrients and bioactive compounds. The aim of this work was to evaluate the physical, chemical and nutritional profile of eight chia seeds grown in different Latin-American countries (Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay and Peru). The results showed that several nutritional parameters such as the protein content and amino acid profile, dietary fiber content, lipid content, mineral composition and phytate present in the seeds depend on the location they were grown in. Other parameters such as ash content, fatty acid profile or physical parameters were uniform across locations (except for color parameters). The results support the notion that nutritional characteristics of seeds are determined by the seed's origin, further analysis is needed to define the exact mechanisms that control the changes in the seeds nutritional properties.

The use of covers to protect blueberry orchards from adverse weather events has increased due to the variability in climate patterns, but the effects of rain cover and netting materials on yield and fruit quality have not been studied yet. This research evaluated the simultaneous effect of LDPE plastic cover, woven cover and netting materials on environmental components (UV light, PAR, NIR and growing degree days, GDD), plant performance (light interception, leaf area index, LAI, yield and flower development), and fruit quality traits (firmness, total soluble solids and acidity) in two blueberry cultivars. On average, UV transmission under netting was 11% and 43% higher compared to that under woven and LDPE plastic covers, while NIR was 8 -13% higher with both types of rain covers, with an increase in fruit air temperature and GDD. Yield was 27% higher under woven cover with respect to netting, but fruit firmness values under netting were 12% higher than those of LDPE plastic cover. Light interception, LAI and flower development explained 64% (p=0.0052) of the yield variation due to the cover material effect. The obtained results suggest that the type of cover differentially affects yield and fruit quality in blueberries due to the specific light and temperature conditions generated under these materials.

Berberis vulgaris (L.) has remarkable ethnopharmacological properties and is widely used in traditional medicine. The present study investigates B. vulgaris stem bark (Berberidis cortex) by extraction with 50% ethanol. The main secondary metabolites were quantified, resulting in a polyphenols content of 17.6780 ± 3.9320 mg Eq Tannic acid / 100 g extract, phenolic acids amount of 3.3886 ± 0.3481 mg Eq Chlorogenic acid / 100 g extract and 78.95 µg/g berberine. The dried hydro-ethanolic extract (BVE) was thoroughly analyzed using Ultra-High Performance Liquid Chromatography coupled with High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry (UHPLC–HRMS/MS) and HPLC and 40 bioactive phenolic constituents were identified. Then, the antioxidant potential of BVE was evaluated using three methods; our results could explain the protective effects of Berberidis cortex EC50FRAP = 0.1398 mg/mL, IC50ABTS = 0.0442 mg/mL, IC50DPPH = 0.2610 mg/mL compared to ascorbic acid (IC50 = 0.0165 mg/mL). Next, the acute toxicity and teratogenicity of BVE and Berberine - Berberine sulfate hydrate (BS) - investigated on Daphnia sp reported significant BS toxicity after 24 h; BVE revealed considerable toxicity after 48 hours and induced embryonic developmental delays. Finally, the anticancer effects of BVE and BS were evaluated on different tumor cell lines after 24 and 48 hours of treatments. The MTS assay evidenced a dose- and time-dependent antiproliferative activity, higher on BS than BVE. The strongest diminution of tumor cell viability was recorded on breast (MDA-MB-231), colon (LoVo) cancer, and OSCC (PE/CA-PJ49) cell lines after 48 h of exposure (IC50 &lt; 100 µg/mL). However, no cytotoxicity was reported on normal epithelial cells (HUVEC) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HT-29) cell lines. Extensive data analysis supports our results, showing a significant correlation between the BVE's concentration, phenolic compounds content, antioxidant activity, exposure time, and the viability rate of various normal cells and cancer cell lines.

The study aims to evaluate the Quorum Sensing (QS) system inhibition against some Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria detected by molecular modeling of R. cathartica L. plant extract. R. cathartica L. methanol extract was evaluated in vitro. The research was carried out for the possible role and mechanism of R. cathartica L. The antibacterial activity of R. cathartica L. seed extract on some Gram-positive and Gram-negative strains was evaluated using culture-based and computational analysis. Gentamicin (CN; 30 µg/ml, Bioanalyse) was used as an antibacterial control of the extract on the production potential of QS-dependent virulence factors on Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO1 was investigated. Phytochemical analysis resulted in the identification of 23 phenolic phytochemicals. R. cathartica L. extract was observed to have antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria at different rates (11.3 mm-16 mm). The inhibitory effect of R. cathartica L. extract on P. aeruginosa PAO1 (elastase 61%, pyocyanin 18%, and biofilm 61%) was recorded moderately. Phytochemical analysis revealed that the main component of the extract is kaempferol. Therefore, the binding potential of kaempferol on QS system receptors was investigated via molecular docking. Computational analysis showed that kaempferol can inhibit the QS system by preventing competitive ligands from connecting to LasR. This study explored the activity and mechanism of action for a new green alternative against resistance. might provide a mechanism for R. cathartica L. seed extract components and thus provide a new avenue for using R. cathartica L. seed extract as a green antibacterial agent.

To follow the growth and development of each tree (N = 1200) Pinus sylvestris L., var. Negorelskaya starting from the seed and continuing at the juvenile (or even generative) stage is the goal of an ambitious project to create a plant passport if possible. Five datasets of replenished empirical (tab-ular and file) and systematic data reflect the early results of a unique ongoing experiment conducted with families moved along a climatic gradient from the collection area (1731 degree days, 722 mm) to the experimental area (2326 degree days; 786 mm). Datasets of morphometric, VIS-spectrometric, and germination seed data, combined with the first results of biometric data (including the Dickson quality index) of seedlings produced from these seeds, will allow scientists in the future to conduct correlation and other statistical analysis, or train a neural network to determine the presence of connections between a seed and a plant. These data contribute to the early non-destructive diag-nosis and grading of seeds according to VIS-spectrometric properties. This dataset structure can complement the FLR-Library. In the future, by tracing seedlings in their early growth (for example, over three growing seasons at the site being restored), it will be possible to determine the degree of intensification of FRM production depending on the initial properties of the seed.

This study aims to clarify the influence of photographic environments under different light sources on image-based SPAD value prediction. Radish leaf patches of 1.5 cm diameter were photographed under halogen or LED light. The input variables for the SPAD value prediction using random forests were RGB values, HSL values, and HSV values. Additionally, the light color temperature (LCT) and illuminance (ILL) were used as the input variables. Model performance was assessed using Pearson’s correlation coefficient (COR), Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE), and root mean squared error (RMSE). SPAD value prediction resulted in high accuracy in a stable light environment; CORRGB+ILL+LCT and CORHSL+ILL+LCT were 0.929 and 0.922, respectively. Image-based SPAD value prediction was effective under halogen light with a similar color temperature at dusk; CORRGB+ILL and CORHSL+ILL were 0.895 and 0.876, respectively. The HSL value under LED could be used to predict the SPAD value with high accuracy; COR, NSE, and RMSE were 0.972, 0.944, and 2.07, respectively. The partial dependence plots of the H value indicate a change from blue to green with increasing SPAD values. Further studies are required to examine this method under outdoor conditions in spatiotemporally dynamic light environments.