Antioxidant and Antidiabetic Properties of Extracts from Three Underutilized Food Plants of North East India

Three underutilized leafy vegetables Sarcochlamys pulcherrima (Roxb.) Gaudich (SP), Ipomoea aquatica Forssk. (IA) and Zanthoxylum rhetsa (Roxb.) DC (ZR) were extracted with different solvents viz. 95 % ethyl alcohol, methanol and hot water. The extracts were evaluated for their antioxidant potential via DPPH, ABTS and FRAP assay along with electroanalytical studies using cyclic voltammetry. The antidiabetic potential was determined by recording their α-amylase and α-glucosidase inhibitory assay. The total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC) and the liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC/MS) based phytochemical profiles of the extracts were also determined. All three extracts of SP exhibited significant antioxidant capacity. The antidiabetic potential of the IA and ZR extracts was found to be higher than or at par with that of standard acarbose. LC/MS studies reveal the presence of hitherto reported antioxidant and antidiabetic compounds like gamma-aminobutyric acid, cinnamic acid, caffeic acid, α-viniferin, piperlonguminine, niacin, kaempferol, etc., in the extracts.     

Optimization of dilution rate for the production of value added product and simultaneous reduction of organic load from pineapple cannery waste

Candida utiilis NRRL Y-900 was grown on pineapple cannery waste as the sole carbon and energy source in a chemostat at dilution rates ranging between 0.05 and 0.65 h⁻¹ to determine the growth kinetics. The cell yield coefficient varied with dilution rate and a maximum value of 0.662 ± 0.002 g_x/g_carb was obtained at a dilution rate of 0.4 h⁻¹. At steady state, the concentrations of carbohydrate, reducing sugar, and chemical oxygen demand (COD) appeared to follow Monod kinetics. At maximum specific growth rate (μ_max) 0.65 h⁻¹, the saturation constants for carbohydrate, reducing sugar and COD were 0.51 ± 0.02 g_carb/1, 0.046 ± 0.003 g_rs/1, and 1.036 ± 0.001 g_COD/1, respectively. Maximum biomass productivity (Q _{x max}) 2.8 ± 0.03 g_x/1 h was obtained at a dilution rate of 0.5 h⁻¹. At this dilution rate, only 71.0 ± 0.41% COD was removed whereas at a dilution rate of 0.1 h⁻¹, 98.2 ± 0.35% reduction in COD was achieved. At a dilution rate of 0.4 h⁻¹, the optimal yeast productivity and reduction in COD were 2.7 ± 0.13 g_p/1 h, and 84.2 ± 0.42%, respectively. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

C- and G-bands of the opossum chromosomes: terminal sequences of DNA replication.

The sex chromosomes of the opossum, Didelphys virginiana, are the only elements that exhibit C-banding. In contrast, the sex chromosomes as well as the autosomes bear specific G-Bands. However, unlike other mammalian species different types of G-banding are observed if the chromosomes are pretreated with trypsin and SSC solution The SSC-pretreated chromosomes show discrete bands only when stained with Giemsa at certain pH values. An asynchronous pattern of terminal DNA replication is observed among the three C-banding regions of the X-chromosome. The inter- and intrapositive G-banding areas of the chromosomes are not always late in DNA replication in comparison to those negatively stained G-banding areas.     

Heat tolerance as a function of membrane lipid remodeling in the major US oilseed crops (soybean and peanut)

With a steadily increasing population, the demand for crops to feed the world population and satisfy the energy needs is also increasing. The diminishing land resources and changing environmental conditions, specifically global warming, have further exacerbated these problems. Developing heat-tolerant crops that maintain yield under stress is one way to keep pace with future demands. Heat stress tolerance is a complex trait; hence it is vital to identify major contributors to heat stress tolerance and develop molecular markers to breed for them. The present communication reviews the recent progress made in this direction in oilseed crops soybean and peanuts, where heat-induced membrane lipid unsaturation was identified as an indicator of heat tolerance and the heat-induced changes in the expression pattern of the fatty acid desaturase gene as a marker to select for this trait. The further efforts underway and the future research needed in this direction are discussed.

     

Oxidative stress and deregulations in base excision repair pathway as contributors to gallbladder anomalies and carcinoma – a study involving North-East Indian population

Gallbladder cancer (GBC) is a fatal condition with dismal prognosis and aggressive local invasiveness; and with uncharacterised molecular pathology relating to non-specific therapeutic modalities. Given the importance of oxidative stress in chronic diseases and carcinogenesis, and the lacunae in literature regarding its role in gallbladder diseases, this study aimed to study the involvement of oxidative stress and deregulation in the base excision repair (BER) pathway in the pathogenesis of gallbladder diseases including GBC. This study involved patients from the North-East Indian population, where the numbers of reported cases are increasing rapidly and alarmingly. Oxidative stress, based on 8-OH-dG levels, was found to be significantly higher in gallbladder anomalies (cholelithiasis [CL] and cholecystitis [CS]) and GBC at the plasma and DNA level, and was associated with GBC severity. The expressions of key BER pathway genes were downregulated in gallbladder anomalies and GBC compared to controls, and in GBC compared to both non-neoplastic controls and gallbladder anomalies. Expression of XRCC1 and hOGG1 was significantly associated with both susceptibility and severity of GBC. The XRCC1 codon280 polymorphism was associated with disease susceptibility; and significantly higher oxidative stress was observed in hOGG1 genotypic variants. The genomes of GBC patients were found to be more hypermethylated compared to controls, with the promoters of XRCC1 and hOGG1 being hypermethylated and, therefore, being silenced. This study underlined the prognostic significance of the oxidative stress marker 8-OH-dG and BER pathway genes, especially hOGG1 and XRCC1, in gallbladder anomalies and GBC, as well as stated their potential for therapeutic targeting.     

A method to generate microcells from human lymphoblasts for use in microcell mediated chromosome transfer

Summary A method is described to generate microcells from human lymphobalsts for use in microcell-mediated chromosome transfer (MMCT). Micronuclei were induced in cells from a human lymphoblastic cell line by prolonged colcemid treatment, and were separated from these lymphoblasts by: (a) attaching the cells to Concanvalin A coated plastic slides designed for enucleation, and (b) centrifuging the slides in medium containing cytochalasin B. Microcells of less than 3 μm in diameter were fused with thymidine kinase negative mouse fibroblast (LMTK⁻). HAT medium (hypoxanthine, aminopterin and thymidine) was used to select microcell hybrids expressing thymidine kinase activity. Positive clones were isolated and Q-banded for chromosome analysis. Unlike previous methods this procedure permits microcells to be easily generated from lymphoid cells. This methodology of enucleation of microcells may be extended to a variety of other donor cell types which can be micronucleated but which do not adhere tightly to enucleation slides and do not exhibit extrusion subdivision. This feature makes our methodology particularly useful for constructing a library of hybrid clones containing one or a few human chromosomes.     

Length–weight and length–length relationship of two endemic snakehead fish species from Brahmaputra river basin,Assam, India

Length–weight relationships (LWRs) and length–length relationships (LLRs) of two endemic Channid fish species, Channa aurantimaculata Musikasinthorn, 2000 and C. stewartii (Playfair, 1867) were studied from Brahmaputra River basin in Assam, India. Sampling was done from May to December, 2017 and a total of 81 fish specimens were collected using bamboo traps. In the LWRs, b value for C. aurantimaculata and C. stewartii were 3.0456 and 2.9172 respectively. Maximum size recorded for C. aurantimaculata in the present study (34.1 cm) was higher than previous record in FishBase (19.1 cm).