Purification,Characterization and Antibacterial Properties of Peptide from Marine Ascidian Didemnum sp.

International Journal of Peptide Research and Therapeutics - Marine ecosystems are unique and a largely diverse chest of natural resources which are still to be explored for new marine species....     

Efficacy of microalgae for industrial wastewater treatment: a review on operating conditions,treatment efficiency and biomass productivity

Sustainable, clean, renewable energy without negotiating contiguous environment is a challenging task mainly comprises of natural resource management which involves operational efficiency, waste minimisation and energy recovery. Disposal of untreated industrial wastewater with chemical nutrients especially compounds containing nitrogen and phosphorous lead to eutrophication and related environmental issues that affect the recycling processes of bio system. Biotransformation of pollutants using microalgae has proven to be proficient and economic method of wastewater treatment due to their adaptability of growing in various wastewater streams and also useful in the process of CO₂ fixation. Moreover this technology has the competence of producing bio fuels as an alternative energy resource in the form of bio diesel, bio ethanol and biogas. In this review paper, the applicability of microalgae cultivation in industrial wastewater treatment has been discussed extensively including the processes involved, influencing operational parameters such as study mode, cultivation mode and time, method of aeration, pH and intensity of light. Further, the cultivation methods, harvesting techniques involved in the treatment process have been presented. In addition, the analysis on removal efficiency of algal treatment, biomass productivity and lipid content of the cultivated biomass has been discussed widely which possibly will be helpful in adopting the process integration in industrial wastewater treatment with bio energy production.     

Identification of potential Leptospira phosphoheptose isomerase inhibitors through virtual high-throughput screening

The hfe-threatening infections caused by Leptospira serovars demand the need for designing anti-leptospirosis drugs.The present study encompasses exploring inhibitors against phosphoheptose isomerase(GmhA)of Leptospira,which is vital for lipopolysaccharide(LPS)biosynthesis and is identified as a common drug target through the subtractive genomic approach.GmhA model was built in Modeller 9v7.Structural refinement and energy minimization of the predicted model was carried out using Maestro 9.0.The refined model reliability was assessed through Procheck,ProSA,ProQ and Profile 3D.The substrate-based virtual high-throughput screening(VHTS)in Ligand.Info Meta-Database tool generated an in-house library of 354 substrate structural analogs.Furthermore,structure-based VHTS from the in-house library with different conformations of each ligand provided 14 novel competitive inhibitors.The model together with insight gained from the VHTS would be a promising starting point for developing anti-leptospirosis competitive inhibitors targeting LPS biosynthesis pathway.     

Evaluation of antitumor effects of VEGFR-2 inhibitor F16 in a colorectal xenograft model

Biotechnology Letters - Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most prevalent type of cancer in the United States. The treatment options for cancer include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation,...     

Phenotyping of tianma-stimulated differentiated rat neuronal b104 cells by quantitative proteomics

Gastrodia elata blume (tianma) is a traditional Chinese herb often used in the treatment of convulsions, headaches, and hypertension. Although interest in neuronal-related actions of tianma is increasing, minimal studies have been conducted to determine its specific effects on neuronal cells. This study was designed to examine the effects of tianma on the metabolism in differentiated neuroblastoma cells using the isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ) technology. Stimulation of these cells with tianma caused changes in the expression of 38 proteins that were subsequently classified according to their physiological functions and association with neurodegenerative diseases. We identified six proteins with altered functional activities in neurodegenerative disease states that were modulated by tianma: triosephosphate isomerase (Tpi1), peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans isomerase A (Ppia), neural cell adhesion molecule 1 (Ncam1), ubiquitin carboxyl-terminal hydrolase isozyme L1 (Uchl1), septin-2 (Sept2) and heat shock protein 90 (Hsp90aa1). We postulate that tianma mediates its neuroprotective effects via upregulation of Ncam1, Hsp90aa1, Tpi1 and Ppia while downregulating Sept2 and Uchl1. These changes in protein expression aid in the restoration of the intracellular environment to a metabolically balanced state, promoting cell survival. Based on these observed data, we conclude that tianma has therapeutic potential, especially for neurodegenerative diseases.     

Tianma modulates proteins with various neuro-regenerative modalities in differentiated human neuronal SH-SY5Y cells

Tianma (Rhizoma gastrodiae) is the dried rhizome of the plant Gastrodia elata Blume (Orchidaceae family). As a medicinal herb in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) its functions are to control convulsions, pain, headache, dizziness, vertigo, seizure, epilepsy and others. In addition, tianma is frequently used for the treatment of neurodegenerative disorders though the mechanism of action is widely unknown. Accordingly, this study was designed to examine the effects of tianma on the proteome metabolism in differentiated human neuronal SH-SY5Y cells to explore its specific effects on neuronal signaling pathways. Using an iTRAQ (isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation)-based proteomics research approach, we identified 2390 modulated proteins, out of which 406 were found to be altered by tianma in differentiated human neuronal SH-SY5Y cells. Based on the observed data, we hypothesize that tianma promotes neuro-regenerative signaling cascades by controlling chaperone/proteasomal degradation pathways (e.g. CALR, FKBP3/4, HSP70/90) and mobilizing neuro-protective genes (such as AIP5) as well as modulating other proteins (RTN1/4, NCAM, PACSIN2, and PDLIM1/5) with various regenerative modalities and capacities related to neuro-synaptic plasticity.     

Antioxidant activity of Arthritin--a polyherbal formulation

In complete freund's adjuvant induced arthritis in male albino rats, a significant increase in serum lipid peroxidase besides increase in paw swelling and a significant decrease in superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and total reduced glutathione levels were observed. Arthritin produced a marked reversal of these enzyme levels, besides a significant reduction in paw swelling. The results suggest that, the polyherbal formulation 'Arthritin' exerts its effects by modulating lipid peroxidation and enhancing anti-oxidant and detoxifying enzyme systems.     

161 Discovery of potent KdsA inhibitors of Leptospira interrogans through homology modeling,docking, and molecular dynamics simulations

Leptospira interrogans is the foremost cause of human leptospirosis. Discovery of novel lead molecules for common drug targets of more than 250 Leptospira serovars is of significant research interest. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) layer prevent entry of hydrophobic agents into the cell and protect structural integrity of the bacterium. KDO-8-phosphate synthase (KdsA) catalyzes the first step of KDO biosynthesis that leads to formation of inner core of LPS. KdsA was identified as a potential drug target against Leptospira interrogans through subtractive genomic approach, metabolic pathway analysis, and comparative analysis (Amineni et al., 2010). The present study rationalizes a systematic implementation of homology modeling, docking, and molecular dynamics simulations to discover potent KdsA inhibitors (Pradhan et al., 2013; Umamaheswari et al., 2010). A reliable tertiary structure of KdsA in complex with substrate PEP was constructed based on co-crystal structure of Aquifex aeolicus KdsA synthase with PEP using Modeller9v10. Geometry-based analog search for PEP was performed from LigandInfo database to generate an in house library of 352 ligands. The ligand data-set was docked into KdsA active site through three-stage docking technique (HTVS, SP, and XP) using Glidev5.7. Thirteen lead molecules were found to have better binding affinity compared to PEP (XP Gscore?=??7.38?kcal/mol; Figure 1). The best lead molecule (KdsA- lead1 docking complex) showed XP Gscore of ?10.26?kcal/mol and the binding interactions (Figure 2) were correlated favorably with PEP–KdsA interactions (Figure 1). Molecular dynamics simulations of KdsA– lead1 docking complex for 10?ns had revealed that the complex (Figure 3) remained stable in closer to physiological environmental condition. The predicted pharmacological properties of lead1 were well within the range of a drug molecule with good ADME profile, hence, would be intriguing towards development of potent inhibitor molecule against KdsA of Leptospira.