The effect of Meloidogyne incognita on the histopathology of Momordica charantia roots

Bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.) was inoculated with root-knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita to investigate the anatomical abnormalities in the affected roots. Soon after inoculation the second-stage juveniles (J2) entered at or near the root caps and migrated intercellularly towards the zone of vascular differentiation. Discrete giant cells were observed after three days of inoculation. The nematode induced hypertrophy and hyperplasia near the giant cells. After six days, the juveniles moulted to their third stage (J3). At the same, time giant cell size and density of giant cell cytoplasm increased. The continuity of vascular strands remained unaffected. Between 12 and 24 days of inoculation the giant cells enlarged several times and became multinucleate and enclosed dense and granular cytoplasm. The nematodes became almost pyriform 18 days after inoculation. The orientation of vascular strands changed, due to hypertrophy, hyperplasia and enlargement of the nematode. After 30 days of inoculation the nematodes developed into mature females and started egg laying. A large amount of parenchyma transformed into abnormal xylem.     

Multiple locus genome-wide association studies for important economic traits of oil palm

Palm oil has a balanced fatty acid composition and has no trans fat. As a result, its use in food has increased as food-labeling laws have changed to specify trans fat content. Increasing oil production is the main goal in oil palm breeding. Genetic mapping and genomic studies in palm trees are necessary to understand the genetic architecture of economic traits of importance for palm oil production. To help achieve this, we sampled 422 oil palms from MPOB (Malaysian Palm Oil Board)­Angola germplasm collection and measured 13 economic traits from these palms. Multi-locus genome-wide association studies (GWAS) were conducted using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) and genome-wide efficient mixed model analysis. We identified 19 quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for 8 traits. Of these, four Angola-specific QTLs associated with bunch components were detected on chromosomes 4, 8, and 11. These QTLs are potentially useful for introgression of desirable genes from the Angola palms to advanced breeding populations for improvement of bunch and oil yield traits. The majority of the QTLs were detected by LASSO-A, in which the p values of individual markers were calculated based on bootstrapped standard errors. Many of the detected QTLs are nearby known QTLs detected from linkage studies reported by other research groups. We also conducted genomic selection (GS) for the 13 traits and concluded that GS can be an effective tool for oil palm breeding. This is the first GWAS and GS study conducted on oil palm germplasm from Angola, and the results can be very useful in oil palm genetic studies and breeding.     

Pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interaction of Rosuvastatin calcium with guggulipid extract in rats

Background & objectivesRosuvastatin calcium (RC) is a potent and competitive synthetic inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase used for the treatment of dyslipidemia. Guggulipid obtained from Commiphora mukul is used in the treatment of a wide variety of diseases such as atherosclerosis, hypercholesterolemia, rheumatism, and obesity. The present study evaluates the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic interactions between RC and the standardized guggulipid extract in rats.Materials and methodsThe guggulipid extract was standardized for the presence of guggulsterones. The pharmacokinetic interaction was determined after a single dose administration of RC alone or in combination with the guggulipid extract or after multiple-dose administration of RC alone or RC along with the guggulipid extract for 14 days. To determine the pharmacodynamic interaction, RC and guggulipid extract were administered to hyperlipidemic rats for 14 days. The level of significance was determined using unpaired student’s t-test, one way ANOVA, the post-ANOVA Tukey test.ResultsStandardization of guggulipid extract showed it contains 7.5%w/w of guggulsterones. Guggulipid extract increased the bioavailability of RC in both single-dose and multiple-dose studies. Guggulipid extract reduced the rate of absorption (Ka) of RC but showed an increase in maximum serum concentration (Cmax). An in-vitro study using isolated rat intestine revealed that guggulipid extract decreased the rate of absorption of RC in the intestinal lumen. The hypolipidemic activity of RC was augmented by the guggulipid extract in hyperlipidemic rats.Interpretation & conclusionTherefore it is concluded that guggulipid extract increases the bioavailability of RC by delaying its Ka and augments its hypolipidemic action. However, it is recommended that a combination of RC with guggulipid extract should be used only after an adverse effect(s) of this combination are determined.     

Pistagremic acid a new leishmanicidal triterpene isolated from Pistacia integerrima Stewart

The present study was designed to investigate the whole plant of Pistacia integerrima Stewart in order to examine the pharmacological basis of the use of the plant in folk medicine for the treatment of infectious diseases and disorder. Phytochemical and pharmacological studies led to the isolation of a new triterpene pistagremic acid (3-methyl-7-(4,4,10,13,14-pentamethyl-3-2,3,4,5,6,7,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17-tetradecahydro-1H-cyclopenta[a]phenanthren-17-yl)-oct-3-enoic). Pistagremic acid showed significant leishmanicidal activity (IC(50): 6.71 ± 0.09 μM) against Leishmania major (DESTO) promastigotes in comparison to standard compound amphotericin B (IC(50): 0.21 ± 0.06 μM).     

Piperine suppresses cerebral ischemia–reperfusion-induced inflammation through the repression of COX-2, NOS-2, and NF-κB in middle cerebral artery occlusion rat model

The pathophysiological mechanisms leading to neuronal injury in middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) model of cerebral stroke are complex and multifactorial that form the bases of behavioral deficits and inflammation mediated damage. The present study demonstrates the effect of piperine pretreatment (10 mg/kg b wt, once daily p.o. for 15 days) on cerebral ischemia-induced inflammation in male Wistar rats. The right middle cerebral artery was occluded for 2 h followed by reperfusion for 22 h. A maximum infarct volume (57.80 %) was observed in ischemic MCAO group. However, piperine administration prior to ischemia showed a significant reduction in infarct volume (28.29 %; p < 0.05) and neuronal loss (12.72 %; p < 0.01). As a result of piperine pretreatment, a significant improvement in behavioral outputs of MCAO rats (p < 0.05-0.01) was observed. Piperine successfully reduced the level of proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α, in ischemic group (p < 0.01). Ischemic group brain has shown edematous morphology with vacuolated architecture and pyknotic nuclei in H & E staining which was successfully ameliorated by piperine administration. Moreover, piperine also succeeded in lowering the expression of COX-2, NOS-2, and NF-κB (p < 0.01). Both cytosolic and nuclear NF-κB were down-regulated in ischemic group pre-administered with piperine (p < 0.01). The present study suggests that piperine is able to salvage the ischemic penumbral zone neurons by virtue of its anti-inflammatory property, thereby limiting ischemic cell death.     

Depolymerised carrageenan enhances physiological activities and menthol production in Mentha arvensis L.

Irradiated carrageenan (IC) could elicit plant growth promoting activities in plants. The effect of foliar spray of five concentrations of IC (20, 40, 60_, 80 and 100 mg L⁻¹) was studied on Mentha arvensis L. in terms of plant growth, physiological attributes, herbage yield and the content and yield of essential oil and its components. Un-irradiated carrageenan and deionized water had no effect on the attributes studied. GPC study revealed formation of low molecular weight fractions in irradiated samples containing less than 20,000 molecular weight oligomers which are responsible for plant growth promotion in this study. 80 mg L⁻¹ of IC was the most effective concentration which resulted in the highest values of growth attributes, herbage yield and the content and yield of essential oil and menthol content of the oil. It also improved the leaf-nutrient contents, photosynthetic rate and other physiological parameters. 100 mg L⁻¹ of IC did not further improve the attributes studied, but it was always better than the control.     

Silba capsicarum (Diptera: Lonchaeidae), a newly recognized pest of chilli pepper in Java

The lonchaeid fly Silba capsicarum is recorded for the first time from the island of Java where it is considered a potential pest of chilli pepper. The taxonomy and ecology of the species is reviewed and comparisons are drawn with Lonchaeidae attacking Capsicum spp. in the Neotropics. Initial results on the level of infestation in Java are provided.     

Genome-Wide Analysis of Copy Number Variation Identifies Candidate Gene Loci Associated with the Progression of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Between 10 and 25% of individuals with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) develop hepatic fibrosis leading to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). To investigate the molecular basis of disease progression, we performed a genome-wide analysis of copy number variation (CNV) in a total of 49 patients with NAFLD [10 simple steatosis and 39 non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)] and 49 matched controls using high-density comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) microarrays. A total of 11 CNVs were found to be unique to individuals with simple steatosis, whilst 22 were common between simple steatosis and NASH, and 224 were unique to NASH. We postulated that these CNVs could be involved in the pathogenesis of NAFLD progression. After stringent filtering, we identified four rare and/or novel CNVs that may influence the pathogenesis of NASH. Two of these CNVs, located at 13q12.11 and 12q13.2 respectively, harbour the exportin 4 (XPO4) and phosphodiesterase 1B (PDE1B) genes which are already known to be involved in the etiology of liver cirrhosis and HCC. Cross-comparison of the genes located at these four CNV loci with genes already known to be associated with NAFLD yielded a set of genes associated with shared biological processes including cell death, the key process involved in ‘second hit’ hepatic injury. To our knowledge, this pilot study is the first to provide CNV information of potential relevance to the NAFLD spectrum. These data could prove invaluable in predicting patients at risk of developing NAFLD and more importantly, those who will subsequently progress to NASH.     

Purification,characterization and kinetics of thiol protease inhibitor from goat (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Capra hircus</Emphasis>) lung

In the present study, two molecular forms of goat lung cystatin (GLC), I and II, were purified to homogeneity by a two-step procedure including ammonium sulfate precipitation (40–60%) and ion exchange chromatography. The inhibitor forms migrated as single bands under native and SDS-PAGE with and without reducing agent giving molecular mass of 66.4 and 76.4 kDa, respectively. GLC-I possesses 0.07% and GLC-II 2.3% carbohydrate content and no -SH groups. GLC-I showed greater affinity for papain than for ficin and bromelain. Immunological studies showed that the inhibitor was pure and there was cross reactivity between anti-GLC-I serum and goat brain cystatin. Both inhibitor forms were stable in the pH range of 3–10 and up to 75°C. GLC-I was found to possess 49% α-helical structure by CD spectroscopy. The inhibitor-papain complexes showed conformational changes as invoked by UV and fluorescence spectroscopic studies. Published in Russian in Biokhimiya, 2009, Vol. 74, No. 7, pp. 963–971.