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Artemisinin (AN) and artemisinic acid (AA), valuable phyto-pharmaceutical molecules, are well known anti-malarials, but their activities against diseases like cancer, schistosomiasis, HIV, hepatitis-B and leishmaniasis are also being... more
Artemisinin (AN) and artemisinic acid (AA), valuable phyto-pharmaceutical molecules, are well known anti-malarials, but their activities against diseases like cancer, schistosomiasis, HIV, hepatitis-B and leishmaniasis are also being reported. For the simultaneous estimation of AN and AA in the callus and leaf extracts of A. annua L. plants, we embarked upon a simple, rapid, selective, reliable and fairly economical high performance thin layer chromatography (HPTLC) method. Experimental conditions such as band size, chamber saturation time, migration of solvent front and slit width were critically studied and the optimum conditions were selected. The separations were achieved using toluene-ethyl acetate, 9:1 (v/v) as mobile phase on pre-coated silica gel plates, G 60F254 . Good resolution was achieved with Rf values of 0.35 ± 0.02 and 0.26 ± 0.02 at 536 nm for AN and 626 nm for AA, respectively, in absorption-reflectance mode. The method displayed a linear relationship with r(2) val...
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It is becoming increasingly evident that the formation of arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) enhances secondary metabolite production in shoots. Despite mounting evidence, relatively little is known about the underlying mechanisms. This study... more
It is becoming increasingly evident that the formation of arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) enhances secondary metabolite production in shoots. Despite mounting evidence, relatively little is known about the underlying mechanisms. This study suggests that increase in artemisinin concentration in Artemisia annua colonized by Rhizophagus intraradices is due to altered trichome density as well as transcriptional patterns that are mediated via enhanced jasmonic acid (JA) levels. Mycorrhizal (M) plants had higher JA levels in leaf tissue that may be due to induction of an allene oxidase synthase gene (AOS), encoding one of the key enzymes for JA production. Non-mycorrhizal (NM) plants were exogenously supplied with a range of methyl jasmonic acid concentrations. When leaves of NM and M plants with similar levels of endogenous JA were compared, these matched closely in terms of shoot trichome density, artemisinin concentration, and transcript profile of artemisinin biosynthesis genes. Mycorrhization increased artemisinin levels by increasing glandular trichome density and transcriptional activation of artemisinin biosynthesis genes. Transcriptional analysis of some rate-limiting enzymes of mevalonate and methyl erythritol phosphate (MEP) pathways revealed that AM increases isoprenoids by induction of the MEP pathway. A decline in artemisinin concentration in shoots of NM and M plants treated with ibuprofen (an inhibitor of JA biosynthesis) further confirmed the implication of JA in the mechanism of artemisinin production.
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ABSTRACT Key massage Approaches involved in production of Artemisinin in different hosts. Abstract Artemisinin, a potent antimalarial natural compound, is obtained from aerial parts of Artemisia annua L. plants. The demand (101–119 MT)... more
ABSTRACT Key massage Approaches involved in production of Artemisinin in different hosts. Abstract Artemisinin, a potent antimalarial natural compound, is obtained from aerial parts of Artemisia annua L. plants. The demand (101–119 MT) for artemisinin is exponentially increasing every year because of increased incidence of drug-resistant malaria throughout the world, especially in Africa and Asia. However, the presence of low concentrations (0.01–1.1 %) of the compound in A. annua L. plants poses a major constraint in the commercialization of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) recommended by WHO for the treatment of multidrug-resistant and cerebral malaria. Further, the improvement in the yield of artemisinin through conventional breeding, in vitro culture, cell suspension culture and total organic synthesis still poses a challenge. However, possibilities are there to enhance the artemisinin biosynthesis either by overexpression of the genes encoding enzymes associated with the rate-limiting steps of the mevalonate and artemisinin biosynthetic pathways or by the suppression of genes encoding enzymes of other competing pathways. Based on the current understanding of the pathway and cloning of the related genes, efforts have been made for the past few years to increase the artemisinin content in A. annua L., Cichorium intybus L. and microbes through metabolic engineering. In the present review, we have discussed the metabolic engineering strategies in both plant and microbial systems for artemisinin accumulation in bioengineered hosts.
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Autophagy is a lysosomal degradative pathway that has diverse physiological functions and plays crucial roles in several viral infections. Here we examine the role of autophagy in the life cycle of JEV, a neurotropic flavivirus. JEV... more
Autophagy is a lysosomal degradative pathway that has diverse physiological functions and plays crucial roles in several viral infections. Here we examine the role of autophagy in the life cycle of JEV, a neurotropic flavivirus. JEV infection leads to induction of autophagy in several cell types. JEV replication was significantly enhanced in neuronal cells where autophagy was rendered dysfunctional by ATG7 depletion, and in Atg5-deficient mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs), resulting in higher viral titers. Autophagy was functional during early stages of infection however it becomes dysfunctional as infection progressed resulting in accumulation of misfolded proteins. Autophagy-deficient cells were highly susceptible to virus-induced cell death. We also observed JEV replication complexes that are marked by nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) and dsRNA colocalized with endogenous LC3 but not with GFP-LC3. Colocalization of NS1 and LC3 was also observed in Atg5 deficient MEFs, which contain only the nonlipidated form of LC3. Viral replication complexes furthermore show association with a marker of the ER-associated degradation (ERAD) pathway, EDEM1 (ER degradation enhancer, mannosidase α-like 1). Our data suggest that virus replication occurs on ERAD-derived EDEM1 and LC3-I-positive structures referred to as EDEMosomes. While silencing of ERAD regulators EDEM1 and SEL1L suppressed JEV replication, LC3 depletion exerted a profound inhibition with significantly reduced RNA levels and virus titers. Our study suggests that while autophagy is primarily antiviral for JEV and might have implications for disease progression and pathogenesis of JEV, nonlipidated LC3 plays an important autophagy independent function in the virus life cycle.
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Research Interests: Engineering, India, Fatty acids, The, Acacia, and 6 moreSeeds, Oleic Acid, Species Specificity, Plant Oils, Linoleic Acid, and Dietary fats
... View all references; Ahmad et al., 2007b10. Ahmad, S., Jamal, A., Fazili, IS, Alam, T., Khan, MA, Kamaluddin, Iqbal, M. and Abdin, MZ 2007b. ... Ahmad, S., Jamal, A., Fazili, IS, Alam, T., Khan, MA, Kamaluddin, Iqbal, M. and Abdin, MZ... more
... View all references; Ahmad et al., 2007b10. Ahmad, S., Jamal, A., Fazili, IS, Alam, T., Khan, MA, Kamaluddin, Iqbal, M. and Abdin, MZ 2007b. ... Ahmad, S., Jamal, A., Fazili, IS, Alam, T., Khan, MA, Kamaluddin, Iqbal, M. and Abdin, MZ 2007b. ...
Research Interests: Plant Biology, Plant Nutrition, Forest Growth and Yield, Nutrient Management, Plant, and 13 moreField Experiment, Nitrogen, Leaf Area Index, Soil sciences, Interaction effect, Harvest Index, Photosynthetic Rate, Genetic Variability, Leaf Area, Candy Crush saga cheat, Candy Crush Saga Hack android, Yield potential, and Seed Yield
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The archaeal diversity in salt pan sediment from Mumbai, India, was investigated by 16S rDNA-dependent molecular phylogeny. Small-subunit rRNA (16S rDNA) from salt pan sediment metagenome were amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)... more
The archaeal diversity in salt pan sediment from Mumbai, India, was investigated by 16S rDNA-dependent molecular phylogeny. Small-subunit rRNA (16S rDNA) from salt pan sediment metagenome were amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) using primers specific to the domain archaea. Thirty-two unique phylotypes were obtained by PCR-based RFLP of 16S rRNA genes using endonucleases Hae111 and Msp1, which were most suitable to score the genetic diversity. These phylotypes spanned a wide range within the domain Archaea including both Crenarchaeota and Euryarcheaota. However, none of the retrieved Crenarchaeota sequences could be grouped with previously cultured Crenarchaeota. Of all the Euryarcheaota sequences, three sequences were related to Haloarchaea, two were related to cultured Methanosarcina sp., and the remaining sequences were affiliated with uncultured Methanosarcina sp., Methanogenium sp., and Methanolobus sp. Most of the sequences determined were closely related to the sequences that had been previously obtained from metagenome of a variety of marine environments. The phylogenetic study of a site investigated for the first time revealed the presence of a highly diverse archaeal population and may represent novel sequences and organisms specially adapted to the salt pan sediment of Mumbai. These findings are of fundamental value for understanding the complexity of salt pan ecosystems.
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Hepatology research has focused on developing traditional therapies as pharmacological medicines to treat liver cirrhosis. Thus, this study evaluated mechanisms of the hepatoprotective activity of Curcuma longa rhizome ethanolic extract... more
Hepatology research has focused on developing traditional therapies as pharmacological medicines to treat liver cirrhosis. Thus, this study evaluated mechanisms of the hepatoprotective activity of Curcuma longa rhizome ethanolic extract (CLRE) on thioacetamide-induced liver cirrhosis in rats. The hepatoprotective effect of CLRE was measured in a rat model of thioacetamide-induced liver cirrhosis over 8 weeks. Hepatic cytochrome P450 2E1 and serum levels of TGF-β1 and TNF-α were evaluated. Oxidative stress was measured by malondialdehyde, urinary 8-hydroxyguanosine and nitrotyrosine levels. The protective activity of CLRE free-radical scavenging mechanisms were evaluated through antioxidant enzymes. Protein expression of pro-apoptotic Bax and anti-apoptotic Bcl-2 proteins in animal blood sera was studied and confirmed by immunohistochemistry of Bax, Bcl2 proteins and proliferating cell nuclear antigen. Histopathology, immunohistochemistry and liver biochemistry were significantly lower in the Curcuma longa-treated groups compared with controls. CLRE induced apoptosis, inhibited hepatocytes proliferation but had no effect on hepatic CYP2E1 levels. The progression of liver cirrhosis could be inhibited by the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of CLRE and the normal status of the liver could be preserved.
Research Interests: Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Oxidative Stress, Apoptosis, Antioxidants, Phytotherapy, and 14 moreLiver, Animals, Anti-inflammatory agents, Plant extracts, Rats, Hepatocytes, Tumor necrosis factor-alpha, Transforming Growth Factor Beta, Rhizome, Curcuma, Cell Proliferation, Thioacetamide, Drug Induced Liver Injury, and Malondialdehyde
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Genetic diversity among and within 10 populations of Podophyllum hexandrum was analyzed for precise assessments of genetic structure for conservation planning of wild Indian May apple (Podophyllum hexandrum) in the Central region of... more
Genetic diversity among and within 10 populations of Podophyllum hexandrum was analyzed for precise assessments of genetic structure for conservation planning of wild Indian May apple (Podophyllum hexandrum) in the Central region of Himalayas. Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) studies revealed variability among and within population. Twenty primer sets were evaluated, 18 primers resulted in low and poor polymorphism, where as two gave better results which were counted for final analysis. We ...