Hypoglycemic and hepatoprotective activity of Rosmarinus officinalis extract in diabetic rats

The present study examined the effect of water extract (200 mg/kg body weight) of Rosmarinus officinalis L. in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats for 21 days. The hepatoprotective effects were investigated in the liver tissues sections. There was a significant increase in serum liver biochemical parameters (aspartate aminotransferase, alanine transaminase, and alkaline phosphatase), accompanied by a significant decrease in the level of total protein and albumin in the STZ-induced rats when compared with that of the normal group. The high-dose treatment group (200 mg/kg body wt) significantly restored the elevated liver function enzymes near to normal. This study revealed that rosemary extracts exerted a hepatoprotective effect. The results indicate that the extract exhibits the protective effect on tissues and prove its potentials as an antidiabetic agent.     

Efficacy of Saccharomyces cerevisiae on controlling the root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne javanica) infection and promoting cucumber growth and yield under laboratory and field conditions

Saccharomyces cerevisiae is a promising plant growth-promoting yeast for different crops. Applicability of S. cerevisiae as a biocontrol agent of the root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne javanica) was investigated on cucumber under growth-room and field conditions. The yeast S. cerevisiae similar to the nematicide, Ethoprophos, when applied as a rhizospheric soil drench treatment led to an obvious reduction of root galling caused by M. javanica and resulted in reducing the nematode reproduction ability on cucumber under growth room and field conditions. The yeast was more effective at 10 than at 5?g/l. Furthermore, the application of S. cerevisiae resulted in improving cucumber plant growth and increasing its fruit yield. High content of total phenolics in cucumber roots of S. cerevisiae-treated plants and hydrogen peroxide-treated plants gives a clue on the ability of the yeast to induced plant resistance in a similar way to exogenous hydrogen peroxide.     

Brief communication: Effect of nomadic subsistence practices on lactase persistence associated genetic variation in Kuwait

Lactase persistence (LP)—the ability to digest lactose in adulthood—is paradigmatic of Holocenic dietary change affecting the evolutionary trajectory of specific populations. Kuwait represents one location of high LP where the variation in associated genomic regions has not been examined. Here, we present new sequence data from a 427 bp amplicon 14 kb upstream of the LCT (lactase) gene for two Bedouin tribal populations, the Ajman and Mutran. We estimate the frequency of known LP associated alleles and discuss the impact of nomadic‐pastoralism on the associated genetic variation. We observe high frequency (56% on average) of the ?13,915*G allele in both tribes, which is consistent with the high prevalence of LP in Kuwait. Whilst LP associated alleles occur in Kuwait at a similar frequency to other regional populations, we suggest that the ?13,915*G allele frequency among the Kuwaiti Bedouin may be higher than among non‐Bedouin Kuwaitis, possibly due to greater historical reliance on milk consumption or genetic drift. Am J Phys Anthropol 152:140–144, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The anabolic action of intermittent parathyroid hormone on cortical bone depends partly on its ability to induce nitric oxide‐mediated vasorelaxation in BALB/c mice

There is strong evidence that vasodilatory nitric oxide (NO) donors have anabolic effects on bone in humans. Parathyroid hormone (PTH), the only osteoanabolic drug currently approved, is also a vasodilator. We investigated whether the NO synthase inhibitor L‐NAME might alter the effect of PTH on bone by blocking its vasodilatory effect. BALB/c mice received 28 daily injections of PTH[1–34] (80 µg/kg/day) or L‐NAME (30 mg/kg/day), alone or in combination. Hindlimb blood perfusion was measured by laser Doppler imaging. Bone architecture, turnover and mechanical properties in the femur were analysed respectively by micro‐CT, histomorphometry and three‐point bending. PTH increased hindlimb blood flow by >30% within 10 min of injection (P < 0.001). Co‐treatment with L‐NAME blocked the action of PTH on blood flow, whereas L‐NAME alone had no effect. PTH treatment increased femoral cortical bone volume and formation rate by 20% and 110%, respectively (P < 0.001). PTH had no effect on trabecular bone volume in the femoral metaphysis although trabecular thickness and number were increased and decreased by 25%, respectively. Co‐treatment with L‐NAME restricted the PTH‐stimulated increase in cortical bone formation but had no clear‐cut effects in trabecular bone. Co‐treatment with L‐NAME did not affect the mechanical strength in femurs induced by iPTH. These results suggest that NO‐mediated vasorelaxation plays partly a role in the anabolic action of PTH on cortical bone. © 2016 The Authors. Cell Biochemistry and Function published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Repeated immunostaining of the same tissue section using alkaline phosphatase as a reporter

One can determine the best dilution of a primary antibody for immunohistochemistry that uses horseradish peroxidase conjugated to a secondary antibody by testing increasing concentrations sequentially on the same tissue section. When the same tissue section is incubated repeatedly with increasing concentrations of primary antibodies to epithelial membrane antigen, smooth muscle α-actin, or vimentin using alkaline phosphatase conjugated to a secondary antibody as the reporter, the best staining was obtained with a less concentrated primary antibody than was optimal for a single staining test. The best concentration of primary antibody for single run staining using an alkaline phosphatase reporting system is usually four times the best concentration for staining with multiple runs. The optimal concentration can be determined by denaturing the residual alkaline phosphatase and extracting residual stain by incubating the section in 4:1 diglyme:phosphate buffered saline for 20 min at 80^o C between tests of primary antibody concentrations. I tested the method for four chromogens from one supplier and one chromogen from a different supplier.     

Production and antioxidant activity of secondary metabolites in Hassawi rice (Oryza sativa L.) cell suspension under salicylic acid,yeast extract,and pectin elicitation

In Vitro Cellular & Developmental Biology - Plant - Plants that produce bioactive chemicals provide a viable in vitro method for producing key nutraceutical substances, especially in the...     

Barley microgreen incorporation in diet-controlled diabetes and counteracted aflatoxicosis in rats

Increased environmental pollution and unhealthy lifestyle are blamed for escalated chronic diseases. Exposure to aflatoxins was recently suggested to have a role in the increased incidence of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Diet modification and consumption of different functional food are now gaining attention, especially in diabetes management. This study investigates the effect of a diet containing barley microgreen against diabetes induced by streptozotocin with or without aflatoxin administration in rats. Barley microgreen was rich in 3′-Benzyloxy-5,6,7,4′-tetramethoxyflavone (48.8% of total) followed by 5β,7βH,10α-Eudesm-11-en-1α-ol (18.46%). Streptozotocin injection and/or aflatoxin administration significantly elevated glucose level, decreased insulin level, decreased β-cell function, deteriorated liver and kidney function parameters, and induced oxidative stress in the liver. Histopathology revealed irregular small-sized islets and decreased area % of insulin-positive beta cells in the pancreas, hepatic degeneration, nephropathy, and neuropathy in diabetic and/or aflatoxin administered rats compared to control. Barley microgreen diet fed to diabetic rats with or without aflatoxin alleviated all evaluated parameters. Barley microgreen diet also ameliorated the toxic effect of aflatoxin. In conclusion, exposure to aflatoxin aggravated diabetes and its complication. The incorporation of barley microgreen in the diet was able to control type 2 diabetes mellitus and the improved outcomes observed with barley microgreen treatments involved or occurred in conjunction with improved biomarkers of oxidative stress.     

The combined effect of water deficit stress and TiO2 nanoparticles on cell membrane and antioxidant enzymes in Helianthus annuus L.

Nanotechnology has become one of the several approaches attempting to ameliorate the severe effect of drought on plant''s production and to increase the plants tolerance against water deficit for the water economy. In this research, the effect of foliar application of TiO₂, nanoparticles or ordinary TiO₂, on Helianthus annuus subjected to different levels of water deficit was studied. Cell membrane injury increased by increasing the level of water deficit and TiO₂ concentration, and both types of TiO₂ affected the leaves in analogous manner. Ord-TiO₂ increased H₂O₂ generation by 67–240% and lipid peroxidation by 4–67% in leaves. These increases were more than that induced by Nano-TiO₂ and the effect was concentration dependent. Proline significantly increased in leaves by water deficit stress, reaching at 25% field capacity (FC) to more than fivefold compared to that in plants grown on full FC. Spraying plants with water significantly decreased the activities of enzymes in the water deficit stressed roots. The water deficit stress exerted the highest magnitude of effect on the changes of cell membrane injury, MDA, proline content, and activities of CAT and GPX. Nano-TiO₂ was having the highest effect on contents of H₂O₂ and GPX activity. In roots, the level of water deficit causes highest effect on enzyme activities, but TiO₂ influenced more on the changes of MDA and H₂O₂ contents. GPX activity increased by 283% in leaves of plants treated with 50 and 150 ppm Nano-TiO₂, while increased by 170% in those treated with Ord-TiO₂, but APX and CAT activities increased by 17–197%, in average, with Ord-TiO₂. This study concluded that Nano-TiO₂ didn’t ameliorate the effects of drought stress on H. annuus but additively increased the stress, so its use in nano-phytotechnology mustn’t be expanded without extensive studies.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12298-022-01153-z.     

Natural inspired piperine-based ureas and amides as novel antitumor agents towards breast cancer

In this work, the natural piperine moiety was utilised to develop two sets of piperine-based amides (5a–i) and ureas (8a–y) as potential anticancer agents. The anticancer action was assessed against triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) MDA-MB-231, ovarian A2780CP and hepatocellular HepG2 cancer cell lines. In particular, 8q stood out as the most potent anti-proliferative analogue against TNBC MDA-MB-231 cells with IC₅₀ equals 18.7 µM, which is better than that of piperine (IC₅₀ = 47.8 µM) and 5-FU (IC₅₀ = 38.5 µM). Furthermore, 8q was investigated for its possible mechanism of action in MDA-MB-231 cells via Annexin V-FITC apoptosis assay and cell cycle analysis. Moreover, an in-silico analysis has proposed VEGFR-2 as a probable enzymatic target for piperine-based derivatives, and then has explored the binding interactions within VEGFR-2 active site (PDB:4ASD). Finally, an in vitro VEGFR-2 inhibition assay was performed to validate the in silico findings, where 8q showed good VEGFR-2 inhibitory activity with IC₅₀ = 231 nM.