Transcriptome characterization of Larrea tridentata and identification of genes associated with phenylpropanoid metabolic pathways.

Larrea tridentata (Sesse and Moc. ex DC.) Coville (family: Zygophyllaceae) is an aromatic evergreen shrub with resin-covered leaves, known to use in traditional medicine for diverse ailments. It also has immense pharmacological significance due to presence of powerful phenylpropanoids antioxidant, nordihydroguaiaretic acid (NDGA). The RNA sequence/transcriptome analyses connect the genomic information into the discovery of gene function. Hence, the acquaint analysis of L. tridentata is in lieu to characterize the transcriptome, and to identify the candidate genes involved in the phenylpropanoid biosynthetic pathway. To gain molecular insight, the bioinformatics analysis of transcriptome was performed. The total bases covered 48,630 contigs of length greater than 200 bp and above came out to 21,590,549 with an average GC content of 45% and an abundance of mononucleotide, SSR, including C3H, FAR1, and MADS transcription gene families. The best enzyme commission (EC) classification obtained from the assembled sequences represented major abundant enzyme classes e.g., RING-type E3 ubiquitin transferase and non-specific serine/threonine protein kinase. The KEGG pathway analysis mapped into 377 KEGG different metabolic pathways. The enrichment of phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathways (22 genes i.e., phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, trans-cinnamate 4-monooxygenase, 4-coumarate-CoA ligase, cinnamoyl-CoA reductase, beta-glucosidase, shikimate O-hydroxycinnamoyl transferase, 5-O-(4-coumaroyl)-D-quinate 3'-monooxygenase, cinnamyl-alcohol dehydrogenase, peroxidase, coniferyl-alcohol glucosyltransferase, caffeoyl shikimate esterase, caffeoyl-CoA O-methyltransferase, caffeate O-methyltransferase, coniferyl-aldehyde dehydrogenase, feruloyl-CoA 6-hydroxylase, and ferulate-5-hydroxylase), and expression profile indicated antioxidant, anti-arthritic, and anticancer properties of L. tridentata. The present results could provide an important resource for squeezing biotechnological applications of L. tridentata.

The cp genome characterization of Adenium obesum: Gene content, repeat organization and phylogeny.

Adenium obesum (Forssk.) Roem. & Schult. belonging to the family Apocynaceae, is remarkable for its horticultural and ornamental values, poisonous nature, and medicinal uses. In order to have understanding of cp genome characterization of highly valued medicinal plant, and the evolutionary and systematic relationships, the complete plastome / chloroplast (cp) genome of A. obesum was sequenced. The assembled cp genome of A. obesum was found to be 154,437 bp, with an overall GC content of 38.1%. A total of 127 unique coding genes were annotated including 96 protein-coding genes, 28 tRNA genes, and 3 rRNA genes. The repeat structures were found to comprise of only mononucleotide repeats. The SSR loci are compososed of only A/T bases. The phylogenetic analysis of cp genomes revealed its proximity with Nerium oleander.

Evaluation of a labdane diterpene forskolin isolated from Solena amplexicaulis (Lam.) Gandhi (Cucurbitaceae) revealed promising antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic pharmacological properties.

Solena amplexicaulis (Lam.) Gandhi (Family Cucurbitaceae) is one of the important plant species used by the Irula tribes of Walayar valley of southern Western Ghats, India for the management of diabetes. To confirm the antidiabetic property of S. amplexicaulis, the present study was addressed using crude methanolic leaf extract of S. amplexicaulis (MeOHSa) and its isolated compound, Forskolin against streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic rats. The oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT), blood glucose, lipid profile, serum liver markers, antioxidants, hemoglobin and glycogen were evaluated using standard procedure. The oral administration of Forskolin and MeOHSa (600 mg/kg b.w.) for 30 days resulted in significant restoration of all these parameters supported by histopathological observations too. The results clearly suggest that the Forskolin (diterpene) possess potent antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic activities, which may be considered as a lead molecule for therapeutic purposes, and the source of Forskolin i.e. S. amplexicaulis can be further exploited for pharmaceutical industries.

The binding proximity of methyl ß-lilacinobioside isolated from Caralluma retrospiciens with topoisomerase II attributes apoptosis in breast cancer cell line.

The alterations in somatic genomes that controls the mechanism of cell division as a main cause of cancer, and then the drug that specifically toxic to the cancer cells further complicates the process of the development of the widely effective potential anticancer drug. The side effects of the drug as well as the radiotherapy used for the treatment of cancer is severe; therefore, the search of the natural products from the sources of wild plants having anticancer potential is become immense importance today. The ethno-medicinal survey undertaken in Al-Fayfa and Wadi-E-Damad region of southern Saudi Arabia revealed that the Caralluma retrospiciens (Ehrenb.) N.E.Br. (family Apocynaceae) is being used for the treatment of cancer by the native inhabitants. The biological evaluation of anticancer potential of bioassay-guided fractionations of methanolic extract of whole plant of C. retrospiciens against human breast adenocarcinoma cell line (MCF-7) followed by characterization using spectroscopic methods confirmed the presence of methyl ß-lilacinobioside, a novel active constituent reported for the first time from C. retrospiciens, is capable of inhibition of cell proliferation and induction of apoptosis in MCF-7 cells by regulating ROS mediated autophagy, and thus validated the folkloric claim. Based on a small-scale computational target screening, Topoisomerase II was identified as the potential binding target of methyl ß-lilacinobioside.

Bionanotechnology approach for FAD-dependent enzymes with nanomaterials sensor.

We have reported the modification of biomolecule with nanomaterials. In this paper, the electrochemical response of different FAD-dependent enzymes at carbon nanomaterials modified electrode. The modified electrode also exhibits a promising enhanced electrocatalytic activity toward the oxidation of substrate. Different methods were used for fabrication of modified electrode. The presence of nanomaterials enhances the enzyme loading and stability. Cyclic voltammograms (CVs) were used for the determination of substrate and the apparent coefficient values for these compounds at different electrodes. Finally, we have studied the surface morphology of the modified electrode using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which revealed that enzyme is coated on nanomaterials.