CDK1 (cyclin dependent kinase 1) is a key regulator of the cell cycle and is frequently dysregula... more CDK1 (cyclin dependent kinase 1) is a key regulator of the cell cycle and is frequently dysregulated in cancer, making it a promising target for anticancer therapy. Securigera securidaca L. (S. securidaca) seeds, traditionally used in folk medicine for various ailments including cancer, were examined for their potential as CDK1/Cks2 inhibitors using in silico approaches. A total of 14 phytocompounds was identified in the GC/MS chromatogram, with gingerone being the most abundant at 25.67% and hippeastrine the least at 2%. Major constituents of the essential extract, including gingerol, eugenol, α-curcumene, and gingerol, showed high values and made up 52% of the total content of the volatile extract. Molecular docking and ADMET studies suggested that hippeastrine and naringenin are potential hit candidates against CDK1, exhibiting good drug-like properties and molecular interactions with desirable pharmacokinetic and toxicological characteristics close to dinaciclib. Furthermore, mo...
Huanglongbing (HLB) is the most destructive disease to the citrus industry. In North America, HLB... more Huanglongbing (HLB) is the most destructive disease to the citrus industry. In North America, HLB is caused by Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas) and is transmitted by the Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri. Recent studies showed that antibiotics such as oxytetracycline and streptomycin were effective against the CLas pathogen in planta. The objectives of this study were to investigate the uptake, translocation, and stability of oxytetracycline in citrus seedlings. Oxytetracycline was delivered via root or stem. The level of oxytetracycline in treated plants was monitored using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and/or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The HPLC and the ELISA methods showed similar results at high concentrations; however, the ELISA was more sensitive than the HPLC method. The highest level of oxytetracycline after root incubation was found in roots, followed by stem-xylem, stem-phloem, and in leaves. On the other hand, the level of oxyte...
African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines, 2016
Background: Eucalyptus spp. and Pistascia lentiscus are among the Palestinian trees that are trad... more Background: Eucalyptus spp. and Pistascia lentiscus are among the Palestinian trees that are traditionally used in folkloric medicine in treating many diseases; leaves of which are thought to have anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antioxidant effects. The goal of this study is to evaluate the in vitro inhibitory effect of Eucalyptus spp. and Pistascia lentiscus extracts on Lipopolysacaride (LPS)-induced Interlukin-6 (Il-6) and Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α) by polymorphonuclear Cells (PMNCs). Materials and Methods: Polymorphonuclear cells were isolated from the whole blood using Histopaque (Ficol-1077) method and then cultured in an enriched Roswell Park Memorial Institute (RBMI) medium. Supernatants’ Interlukin-6 (IL-6) and Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF-α) levels were determined 24 hour after LPS stimulation. HPLC was employed to determine the concentration of phenolic compounds in the extracts. The concentrations of TNF-α and IL-6 were compared using paired-samples t test. Result...
Cough is a common symptom of bronchial asthma, a chronic inflammatory airway disease. Recently, t... more Cough is a common symptom of bronchial asthma, a chronic inflammatory airway disease. Recently, the therapeutic effects of selective phosphodiesterase (PDE) inhibitors have been focused on bronchial asthma. This study was designed to investigate the clinical effect of PDE 3 inhibition on cough reflex sensitivity in elderly patients with bronchial asthma. Effects of cilostazol, a PDE 3 inhibitor, on cough response to inhaled capsaicin were examined in 11 patients over 70 years with stable asthma in a randomized, placebo-controlled cross over study. Capsaicin cough threshold, defined as the lowest concentration of capsaicin eliciting five or more coughs, was measured as an index of airway cough reflex sensitivity. The cough threshold was significantly (p < 0.05) increased after two-week treatment with cilostazol (100 mg twice a day orally) compared with placebo [48.8 (GSEM 1.4) vs. 29.2 (GSEM 1.3) muM]. These findings indicate that PDE 3 inhibition may be a novel therapeutic option...
Atanas G. Atanasov and Dongdong Wang acknowledge the support by the Polish KNOW (Leading National... more Atanas G. Atanasov and Dongdong Wang acknowledge the support by the Polish KNOW (Leading National Research Centre) Scientific Consortium “Healthy Animal - Safe Food,” decision of Ministry of Science and Higher Education No. 05-1/KNOW2/2015 and the European Union under the European Regional Development Fund (Homing/2017-4/41). Antoni Sureda was supported by the Institute of Health Carlos III (Project CIBEROBN CB12/03/30038).
This study aims to explore the potential use of treated wastewater in irrigating fodder crops and... more This study aims to explore the potential use of treated wastewater in irrigating fodder crops and its effects on protein contents. A comparison of the protein contents in intercropped fodder plants irrigated with fresh water, and rainfall water, against those irrigated with treated grey water was performed under Palestinian climate conditions. Field experiments with different intercropping mixing ratios were carried out in 2017–2019 at the National Agricultural Research Centre in Palestine (NARC). Measurements of the nutritional value of each mixture specifically the protein contents were carried out to get the optimal and best conditions for preparing animal feed crops with three different water sources used. For alfalfa with vetch, the best result for protein percentages was (on average) obtained from the rain-fed experiment (17.1% protein) followed by the freshwater experiment (12.9% protein) and then by the treated grey-water experiment (12.6% protein). It appears that the best ...
Curcuma longa and Cinnamon are used in folkloric medicine and thought to have different pharmacol... more Curcuma longa and Cinnamon are used in folkloric medicine and thought to have different pharmacological activities including anti-inflammatory effects. The objective of this work is to evaluate the in vitro inhibitory effect of Curcuma longa and Cinnamon ethanolic extracts on Lipopolysacaride (LPS)-induced Interlukin-6 (IL-6) and Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α) by polymorphonuclear Cells (PMNCs). Polymorphonuclear cells were isolated from the whole blood using Histopaque (Ficol-1077) method and then cultured in an enriched Roswell Park Memorial Institute (RBMI) medium. The concentrations of TNF-α and IL-6 in the supernatant were measured after 24 h and compared using paired-samples t test. The Curcuma longa and Cinnamon extracts have shown significant reduction in the levels of both Il-6 and TNF-α. HPLC analysis of Curcuma longa extract revealed that it contains curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin while the major compound in the extract of cinnamon was found to be ...
Oxidation is one of the major problems that cause hamburger deterioration. Antioxidants are used ... more Oxidation is one of the major problems that cause hamburger deterioration. Antioxidants are used to prevent or delay oxidation process. The chemical preservatives or antioxidants are not safe and have harmful effects to human health. Currently there is a trend to use natural antioxidants in industry since they are considered as safe compared to chemical ones. The objective of this study was to evaluate the usage of olive leaf extract as well as oleuropein as natural antioxidant additives in fresh hamburger stored at 4°C. Results proved the activity of oleuropein and olive leaves extract as natural antioxidants retarded oxidation of hamburger compared to control samples (without antioxidants). 0.5% of oleuropein and 1.5% of olive leaves extract is the best concentration to be used in fresh hamburger.
Universal Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, 2018
Plant chemicals abound in different parts of plants, in different compositions. Thus, the compara... more Plant chemicals abound in different parts of plants, in different compositions. Thus, the comparative screening of the leaf, stem-bark and root of Azadirachta Indica becomes imperative. The presence of nine phytochemicals which include; Alkaloids, Flavonoids, Saponins, Glycosides, Phenols, Steroids, Tannins, Reducing sugars and Anthraquinones, and the quantity of alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins and glycoside in the leaf, stem-bark and root of Azadirachta indica were investigated. The plant parts were collected from a plantation grown in Okpotegu Echara, Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, Nigeria. Plant samples were air dried at room temperature, ground into uniform powder, sieved, bottled and labeled, ready for physico – chemical analysis. Results of the investigation revealed that anthraquinones were beyond detection limits in all the plant parts tested in both ethanol and aqueous extracts. Alkaloids were not detectable in leaf, stem-bark and root samples of aque...
Aims: This study aims to investigate antioxidant and antibacterial activities of borage (seeds an... more Aims: This study aims to investigate antioxidant and antibacterial activities of borage (seeds and leaves) extracts, and to prepare different topical microemulsion formulations using borage oil. Study Design: Borage seeds and leaves were collected from Hebron -Palestine, then the borage leaves and seeds were prepared for extraction and then extracted with Soxhlet using ethanol. The antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of the extracts were studied, and then Ternary Phase Diagram was constructed using the borage extracts (from seeds and leaves). Methodology: The seeds were cultivated upon their ripening season in April of 2016 from the Halhul mountains in Hebron/Palestine. Soxhlet method was used to extract borage seeds and leaves oil by using ethanol 95%. A ternary phase diagram was constructed by determining appropriate nonionic surfactant to assess the ability for microemulsion formulation and durability of each system. Tween 80 was found to be more suitable to solubilize each of...
The authors gratefully thank the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) and Zamallah progr... more The authors gratefully thank the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) and Zamallah program for providing travel grant. IMIB - Institute for Molecular Infection Biology, for providing support to validate this work at Wurzburg University, financial support by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (SFB 630) given To HM is gratefully acknowledged
CDK1 (cyclin dependent kinase 1) is a key regulator of the cell cycle and is frequently dysregula... more CDK1 (cyclin dependent kinase 1) is a key regulator of the cell cycle and is frequently dysregulated in cancer, making it a promising target for anticancer therapy. Securigera securidaca L. (S. securidaca) seeds, traditionally used in folk medicine for various ailments including cancer, were examined for their potential as CDK1/Cks2 inhibitors using in silico approaches. A total of 14 phytocompounds was identified in the GC/MS chromatogram, with gingerone being the most abundant at 25.67% and hippeastrine the least at 2%. Major constituents of the essential extract, including gingerol, eugenol, α-curcumene, and gingerol, showed high values and made up 52% of the total content of the volatile extract. Molecular docking and ADMET studies suggested that hippeastrine and naringenin are potential hit candidates against CDK1, exhibiting good drug-like properties and molecular interactions with desirable pharmacokinetic and toxicological characteristics close to dinaciclib. Furthermore, mo...
Huanglongbing (HLB) is the most destructive disease to the citrus industry. In North America, HLB... more Huanglongbing (HLB) is the most destructive disease to the citrus industry. In North America, HLB is caused by Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas) and is transmitted by the Asian citrus psyllid, Diaphorina citri. Recent studies showed that antibiotics such as oxytetracycline and streptomycin were effective against the CLas pathogen in planta. The objectives of this study were to investigate the uptake, translocation, and stability of oxytetracycline in citrus seedlings. Oxytetracycline was delivered via root or stem. The level of oxytetracycline in treated plants was monitored using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and/or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The HPLC and the ELISA methods showed similar results at high concentrations; however, the ELISA was more sensitive than the HPLC method. The highest level of oxytetracycline after root incubation was found in roots, followed by stem-xylem, stem-phloem, and in leaves. On the other hand, the level of oxyte...
African Journal of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicines, 2016
Background: Eucalyptus spp. and Pistascia lentiscus are among the Palestinian trees that are trad... more Background: Eucalyptus spp. and Pistascia lentiscus are among the Palestinian trees that are traditionally used in folkloric medicine in treating many diseases; leaves of which are thought to have anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antioxidant effects. The goal of this study is to evaluate the in vitro inhibitory effect of Eucalyptus spp. and Pistascia lentiscus extracts on Lipopolysacaride (LPS)-induced Interlukin-6 (Il-6) and Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α) by polymorphonuclear Cells (PMNCs). Materials and Methods: Polymorphonuclear cells were isolated from the whole blood using Histopaque (Ficol-1077) method and then cultured in an enriched Roswell Park Memorial Institute (RBMI) medium. Supernatants’ Interlukin-6 (IL-6) and Tumor Necrosis Factor (TNF-α) levels were determined 24 hour after LPS stimulation. HPLC was employed to determine the concentration of phenolic compounds in the extracts. The concentrations of TNF-α and IL-6 were compared using paired-samples t test. Result...
Cough is a common symptom of bronchial asthma, a chronic inflammatory airway disease. Recently, t... more Cough is a common symptom of bronchial asthma, a chronic inflammatory airway disease. Recently, the therapeutic effects of selective phosphodiesterase (PDE) inhibitors have been focused on bronchial asthma. This study was designed to investigate the clinical effect of PDE 3 inhibition on cough reflex sensitivity in elderly patients with bronchial asthma. Effects of cilostazol, a PDE 3 inhibitor, on cough response to inhaled capsaicin were examined in 11 patients over 70 years with stable asthma in a randomized, placebo-controlled cross over study. Capsaicin cough threshold, defined as the lowest concentration of capsaicin eliciting five or more coughs, was measured as an index of airway cough reflex sensitivity. The cough threshold was significantly (p < 0.05) increased after two-week treatment with cilostazol (100 mg twice a day orally) compared with placebo [48.8 (GSEM 1.4) vs. 29.2 (GSEM 1.3) muM]. These findings indicate that PDE 3 inhibition may be a novel therapeutic option...
Atanas G. Atanasov and Dongdong Wang acknowledge the support by the Polish KNOW (Leading National... more Atanas G. Atanasov and Dongdong Wang acknowledge the support by the Polish KNOW (Leading National Research Centre) Scientific Consortium “Healthy Animal - Safe Food,” decision of Ministry of Science and Higher Education No. 05-1/KNOW2/2015 and the European Union under the European Regional Development Fund (Homing/2017-4/41). Antoni Sureda was supported by the Institute of Health Carlos III (Project CIBEROBN CB12/03/30038).
This study aims to explore the potential use of treated wastewater in irrigating fodder crops and... more This study aims to explore the potential use of treated wastewater in irrigating fodder crops and its effects on protein contents. A comparison of the protein contents in intercropped fodder plants irrigated with fresh water, and rainfall water, against those irrigated with treated grey water was performed under Palestinian climate conditions. Field experiments with different intercropping mixing ratios were carried out in 2017–2019 at the National Agricultural Research Centre in Palestine (NARC). Measurements of the nutritional value of each mixture specifically the protein contents were carried out to get the optimal and best conditions for preparing animal feed crops with three different water sources used. For alfalfa with vetch, the best result for protein percentages was (on average) obtained from the rain-fed experiment (17.1% protein) followed by the freshwater experiment (12.9% protein) and then by the treated grey-water experiment (12.6% protein). It appears that the best ...
Curcuma longa and Cinnamon are used in folkloric medicine and thought to have different pharmacol... more Curcuma longa and Cinnamon are used in folkloric medicine and thought to have different pharmacological activities including anti-inflammatory effects. The objective of this work is to evaluate the in vitro inhibitory effect of Curcuma longa and Cinnamon ethanolic extracts on Lipopolysacaride (LPS)-induced Interlukin-6 (IL-6) and Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α) by polymorphonuclear Cells (PMNCs). Polymorphonuclear cells were isolated from the whole blood using Histopaque (Ficol-1077) method and then cultured in an enriched Roswell Park Memorial Institute (RBMI) medium. The concentrations of TNF-α and IL-6 in the supernatant were measured after 24 h and compared using paired-samples t test. The Curcuma longa and Cinnamon extracts have shown significant reduction in the levels of both Il-6 and TNF-α. HPLC analysis of Curcuma longa extract revealed that it contains curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin while the major compound in the extract of cinnamon was found to be ...
Oxidation is one of the major problems that cause hamburger deterioration. Antioxidants are used ... more Oxidation is one of the major problems that cause hamburger deterioration. Antioxidants are used to prevent or delay oxidation process. The chemical preservatives or antioxidants are not safe and have harmful effects to human health. Currently there is a trend to use natural antioxidants in industry since they are considered as safe compared to chemical ones. The objective of this study was to evaluate the usage of olive leaf extract as well as oleuropein as natural antioxidant additives in fresh hamburger stored at 4°C. Results proved the activity of oleuropein and olive leaves extract as natural antioxidants retarded oxidation of hamburger compared to control samples (without antioxidants). 0.5% of oleuropein and 1.5% of olive leaves extract is the best concentration to be used in fresh hamburger.
Universal Journal of Pharmaceutical Research, 2018
Plant chemicals abound in different parts of plants, in different compositions. Thus, the compara... more Plant chemicals abound in different parts of plants, in different compositions. Thus, the comparative screening of the leaf, stem-bark and root of Azadirachta Indica becomes imperative. The presence of nine phytochemicals which include; Alkaloids, Flavonoids, Saponins, Glycosides, Phenols, Steroids, Tannins, Reducing sugars and Anthraquinones, and the quantity of alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins and glycoside in the leaf, stem-bark and root of Azadirachta indica were investigated. The plant parts were collected from a plantation grown in Okpotegu Echara, Ikwo Local Government Area of Ebonyi State, Nigeria. Plant samples were air dried at room temperature, ground into uniform powder, sieved, bottled and labeled, ready for physico – chemical analysis. Results of the investigation revealed that anthraquinones were beyond detection limits in all the plant parts tested in both ethanol and aqueous extracts. Alkaloids were not detectable in leaf, stem-bark and root samples of aque...
Aims: This study aims to investigate antioxidant and antibacterial activities of borage (seeds an... more Aims: This study aims to investigate antioxidant and antibacterial activities of borage (seeds and leaves) extracts, and to prepare different topical microemulsion formulations using borage oil. Study Design: Borage seeds and leaves were collected from Hebron -Palestine, then the borage leaves and seeds were prepared for extraction and then extracted with Soxhlet using ethanol. The antimicrobial and antioxidant activity of the extracts were studied, and then Ternary Phase Diagram was constructed using the borage extracts (from seeds and leaves). Methodology: The seeds were cultivated upon their ripening season in April of 2016 from the Halhul mountains in Hebron/Palestine. Soxhlet method was used to extract borage seeds and leaves oil by using ethanol 95%. A ternary phase diagram was constructed by determining appropriate nonionic surfactant to assess the ability for microemulsion formulation and durability of each system. Tween 80 was found to be more suitable to solubilize each of...
The authors gratefully thank the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) and Zamallah progr... more The authors gratefully thank the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD) and Zamallah program for providing travel grant. IMIB - Institute for Molecular Infection Biology, for providing support to validate this work at Wurzburg University, financial support by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (SFB 630) given To HM is gratefully acknowledged
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