The Potential of Cinnamon Extract (Cinnamomum burmanii) as Anti-insomnia Medication through Hypothalamus Pituitary Adrenal Axis Improvement in Rats.

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to explore the efficacy of cinnamon extract as an anti-insomnia medication in experimental animals by evaluating the levels of hormones and neurotransmitters related to insomnia. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 30 male Wistar rats were divided into six groups. Induction of insomnia in animal models was done by administration of p-chloro-phenylalanine (PCPA) compounds. Estazolam was administrated to the positive control group. Cinnamon extract administration was divided into 3 doses, namely: 25 mg/kg BW, 50 mg/kg BW and 100 mg/kg BW. Evaluation of the organ coefficient was conducted to evaluate drug toxicity to the organs. The enzyme-linked-immunoassay method assessed hormones and neurotransmitters in the serum and hypothalamus related to insomnia. RESULTS: There was a decrease in the adrenal coefficient in the cinnamon extract group compared to the PCPA group (0.011+0.001, P<0.05). In addition, there was a decrease in the corticotropin-releasing hormone, adrenocorticotropin hormone, and corticosterone levels in the serum of animals who received cinnamon extract. Our study found a dose of cinnamon extract of 50 mg/kg BW was the best dose to balance neurotransmitter levels in insomniac rats. CONCLUSION: The cinnamon extract increased serotonin and melatonin levels and decreased norepinephrine levels in the insomnia-induced group. Cinnamon extract has potential as an anti-insomnia medication through hypothalamus-pituitaryadrenal axis improvement and brain neurotransmitter regulation in an animal model of insomnia.

Preparation and characterization of a novel nanoemulsion consisting of chitosan and Cinnamomum tamala essential oil and its effect on shelf-life lengthening of stored millets.

This study aimed to improve the stability of Cinnamomum tamala essential oil (CTEO) via encapsulating into chitosan nanoemulsion (CsNe) through an ionic-gelation technique and explore its food preservative efficacy against aflatoxigenic strain of Aspergillus flavus (AFLHPSi-1, isolated from stored millet), aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) contamination, and lipid peroxidation, causing qualitative deterioration of stored millets. The CTEO was characterized through gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis that confirmed the presence of linalool as a major component occupying approximately 82.64% of the total oil. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized through scanning electron microscopy (SEM), fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The encapsulation efficiency (EE) and loading capacity (LC) of CTEO-CsNe were found to be 97.71% and 3.33%, respectively. In vitro release study showed a biphasic release pattern: with an initial burst release followed by a controlled release of CTEO. During investigation of efficacy, the CTEO-CsNe caused complete inhibition of A. flavus growth, and AFB1 biosynthesis at 1.0 and 0.8 µL/mL, respectively. The CTEO-CsNe exhibited its antifungal mode of action by altering fungal plasma membrane integrity (ergosterol inhibition) and permeability (leakage of important cellular constituents), and antiaflatoxigenic mode of action by inhibiting cellular methylglyoxal biosynthesis. CTEO-CsNe showed high free radical scavenging capacity (IC50 = 5.08 and 2.56 µL/mL) against DPPH•+ and ABTS•+ radicals, respectively. In addition, CTEO-CsNe presented remarkable preservative efficacy, inhibiting AFB1 and lipid peroxidation in model food system (Setaria italica) without altering their organoleptic properties. Based on overall results, CTEO-CsNe can be recommended as a novel shelf-life enhancer of stored millet samples.

Cinnamomum: The New Therapeutic Agents for Inhibition of Bacterial and Fungal Biofilm-Associated Infection.

Due to the potent antibacterial properties of Cinnamomum and its derivatives, particularly cinnamaldehyde, recent studies have used these compounds to inhibit the growth of the most prevalent bacterial and fungal biofilms. By inhibiting flagella protein synthesis and swarming motility, Cinnamomum could suppress bacterial attachment, colonization, and biofilm formation in an early stage. Furthermore, by downregulation of Cyclic di-guanosine monophosphate (c-di-GMP), biofilm-related genes, and quorum sensing, this compound suppresses intercellular adherence and accumulation of bacterial cells in biofilm and inhibits important bacterial virulence factors. In addition, Cinnamomum could lead to preformed biofilm elimination by enhancing membrane permeability and the disruption of membrane integrity. Moreover, this substance suppresses the Candida species adherence to the oral epithelial cells, leading to the cell wall deformities, damage, and leakages of intracellular material that may contribute to the established Candida's biofilm elimination. Therefore, by inhibiting biofilm maturation and destroying the external structure of biofilm, Cinnamomum could boost antibiotic treatment success in combination therapy. However, Cinnamomum has several disadvantages, such as poor solubility in aqueous solution, instability, and volatility; thus, the use of different drug-delivery systems may resolve these limitations and should be further considered in future investigations. Overall, Cinnamomum could be a promising agent for inhibiting microbial biofilm-associated infection and could be used as a catheter and other medical materials surface coatings to suppress biofilm formation. Nonetheless, further in vitro toxicology analysis and animal experiments are required to confirm the reported molecular antibiofilm effect of Cinnamomum and its derivative components against microbial biofilm.

Transcriptome and metabolome reveal the accumulation of secondary metabolites in different varieties of Cinnamomum longepaniculatum.

BACKGROUND: Cinnamomum longepaniculatum (Gamble) N. Chao ex H. W. Li, whose leaves produce essential oils, is a traditional Chinese medicine and economically important tree species. In our study, two C. longepaniculatum varieties that have significantly different essential oil contents and leaf phenotypes were selected as the materials to investigate secondary metabolism. RESULT: The essential oil content and leaf phenotypes were different between the two varieties. When the results of both transcriptome and metabolomic analyses were combined, it was found that the differences were related to phenylalanine metabolic pathways, particularly the metabolism of flavonoids and terpenoids. The transcriptome results based on KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that pathways involving phenylpropanoids, tryptophan biosynthesis and terpenoids significantly differed between the two varieties; 11 DEGs (2 upregulated and 9 downregulated) were associated with the biosynthesis of other secondary metabolites, and 12 DEGs (2 upregulated and 10 downregulated) were related to the metabolism of terpenoids and polyketides. Through further analysis of the leaves, we detected 196 metabolites in C. longepaniculatum. The abundance of 49 (26 downregulated and 23 upregulated) metabolites differed between the two varieties, which is likely related to the differences in the accumulation of these metabolites. We identified 12 flavonoids, 8 terpenoids and 8 alkaloids and identified 4 kinds of PMFs from the leaves of C. longepaniculatum. CONCLUSIONS: The combined results of transcriptome and metabolomic analyses revealed a strong correlation between metabolite contents and gene expression. We speculate that light leads to differences in the secondary metabolism and phenotypes of leaves of different varieties of C. longepaniculatum. This research provides data for secondary metabolite studies and lays a solid foundation for breeding ideal C. longepaniculatum plants.

Elucidation of the essential oil biosynthetic pathways in Cinnamomum burmannii through identification of six terpene synthases.

Cinnamomum burmannii is a traditional plant that has long been used as a spice, food preservative, and food flavoring. Essential oils in C. burmannii, which mainly consist of mono- and sesquiterpenes such borneol, linalool, and caryophyllene, have impressive pharmaceutical properties. Although the transcriptome-based discovery of (+)-bornyl diphosphate synthase (CbTPS1) from C. burmannii was reported in our previous study, the remaining terpene synthases (TPSs) corresponding to various terpene biosynthesis pathways remain unidentified. In this study, we report the results of RNA-sequencing of a borneol type plant and functional characterization of six additional full-length candidate TPS genes (named CbTPS2-7). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that CbTPS2 and CbTPS3 together with the previously identified CbTPS1 protein belong to the TPS-b subfamily, and enzyme assays using geranyl diphosphate (GPP) and farnesyl diphosphate (FPP) as substrates revealed that CbTPS1, CbTPS2 and CbTPS3 catalyze the formation of monoterpenes. CbTPS4, CbTPS5, and CbTPS6, which belong to the TPS-a clade, generated monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes. CbTPS7, which belongs to the TPS-g clade, showed linalool/nerolidol synthase activity. These CbTPSs identified in C. burmannii produced a total of 10 monoterpenes and 14 sesquiterpenes in an in vitro assay. These findings clarify the biosynthesis pathways of 13 monoterpenoids and 12 sesquiterpenoids in the leaf essential oil of C. burmannii and shed light on terpene biosynthesis in Cinnamomum.

Transcriptome analysis of Cinnamomum migao seed germination in medicinal plants of Southwest China.

BACKGROUND: Cinnamomum migao is an endangered evergreen woody plant species endemic to China. Its fruit is used as a traditional medicine by the Miao nationality of China and has a high commercial value. However, its seed germination rate is extremely low under natural and artificial conditions. As the foundation of plant propagation, seed germination involves a series of physiological, cellular, and molecular changes; however, the molecular events and systematic changes occurring during C. migao seed germination remain unclear. RESULTS: In this study, combined with the changes in physiological indexes and transcription levels, we revealed the regulation characteristics of cell structures, storage substances, and antioxidant capacity during seed germination. Electron microscopy analysis revealed that abundant smooth and full oil bodies were present in the cotyledons of the seeds. With seed germination, oil bodies and other substances gradually degraded to supply energy; this was consistent with the content of storage substances. In parallel to electron microscopy and physiological analyses, transcriptome analysis showed that 80-90 % of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) appeared after seed imbibition, reflecting important development and physiological changes. The unigenes involved in material metabolism (glycerolipid metabolism, fatty acid degradation, and starch and sucrose metabolism) and energy supply pathways (pentose phosphate pathway, glycolysis pathway, pyruvate metabolism, tricarboxylic acid cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation) were differentially expressed in the four germination stages. Among these DEGs, a small number of genes in the energy supply pathway at the initial stage of germination maintained high level of expression to maintain seed vigor and germination ability. Genes involved in lipid metabolism were firstly activated at a large scale in the LK (seed coat fissure) stage, and then genes involved in carbohydrates (CHO) metabolism were activated, which had their own species specificity. CONCLUSIONS: Our study revealed the transcriptional levels of genes and the sequence of their corresponding metabolic pathways during seed germination. The changes in cell structure and physiological indexes also confirmed these events. Our findings provide a foundation for determining the molecular mechanisms underlying seed germination.

A polyphenolic cinnamon fraction exhibits anti-inflammatory properties in a monocyte/macrophage model.

Periodontal diseases are bacteria-induced inflammatory disorders that lead to the destruction of the tooth-supporting tissues. Active compounds endowed with a capacity to regulate the inflammatory response are regarded as potential therapeutic agents for the treatment of periodontal diseases. The aim of this study was to characterize the anti-inflammatory properties of a polyphenolic cinnamon fraction. Chromatographic and mass spectrometry analyses of the polyphenolic composition of the cinnamon fraction revealed that phenolic acids, flavonoids (flavonols, anthocyanins, flavan-3-ols), and procyanidins make up 9.22%, 0.72%, and 10.63% of the cinnamon fraction, respectively. We used a macrophage model stimulated with lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from either Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans or Escherichia coli to show that the cinnamon fraction dose-dependently reduced IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α secretion. Evidence was brought that this inhibition of cytokine secretion may result from the ability of the fraction to prevent LPS-induced NF-κB activation. We also showed that the cinnamon fraction reduces LPS binding to monocytes, which may contribute to its anti-inflammatory properties. Lastly, using a competitor assay, it was found that the cinnamon fraction may represent a natural PPAR-γ ligand. Within the limitations of this in vitro study, the cinnamon fraction was shown to exhibit a therapeutic potential for the treatment of periodontal diseases due to its anti-inflammatory properties.

The in vitro and in vivo anti-virulence activities of Cinnamomum bejolghota by inhibiting type three secretion system effector proteins of Salmonella.

The bark of Cinnamomum bejolghota (Buch.-Ham.) Sweet (C. bejolghota) is widely used as medicine to treat bacterial diarrhea in Myanmar. We previously reported that the bark extract of C. bejolghota significantly inhibited secretion effector proteins of the type three secretion system (T3SS) in Salmonella. This study is designed to investigate the anti-virulence potential of the C. bejolghota bark extract against Salmonella Typhimuriumin in in vivo and in vitro experiments. The results suggested that the polar fraction Fr.M1 inhibited the secretion of effector proteins SipA, SipB, SipC and SipD without affecting bacteria growth and the translocation of SipC into MDA-MB-231 cells. In addition, Fr.M1 alleviated inflammatory symptoms of mice in Salmonella-infected mouse model. Overall, the results provide evidence for medicinal usage of C. bejolghota bark to treat diarrhea in Myanmar.

Isokotomolide A from Cinnamomum kotoense Induce Melanoma Autophagy and Apoptosis In Vivo and In Vitro.

Melanoma is an aggressive cancer with high lethality. In order to find new anticancer agents, isokotomolide A (Iso A) and secokotomolide A (Sec A) isolated from Cinnamomum kotoense were identified to be potential bioactive agents against human melanoma but without strong antioxidative properties. Cell proliferation assay displayed Iso A and Sec A treated in the normal human skin cells showed high viabilities. It also verified that two of them possess strong antimelanoma effect in concentration-dependent manners, especially on B16F10, A2058, MeWo, and A375 cells. Wound healing assay presented their excellent antimigratory effects. Through 3-N,3-N,6-N,6-N-Tetramethylacridine-3,6-diamine (acridine orange, AO) staining and Western blot, the autophagy induced by treatment was confirmed, including autophagy-related proteins (Atgs). By using annexin V-FITC/PI double-stain, the apoptosis was confirmed, and both components also triggered the cell cycle arrest and DNA damage. We demonstrated the correlations between the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway and antimelanoma, such as caspase cascade activations. To further evaluate in vivo experiments, the inhibition of tumor cell growth was verified through the histopathological staining in a xenograft model. In this study, it was confirmed that Iso A and Sec A can encourage melanoma cell death via early autophagy and late apoptosis processes.

Full-Length Transcriptome Sequencing and Different Chemotype Expression Profile Analysis of Genes Related to Monoterpenoid Biosynthesis in Cinnamomum porrectum.

Leaves of C. porrectum are rich in essential oils containing monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes and aromatic compounds, but the molecular mechanism of terpenoid biosynthesis in C. porrectum is still unclear. In this paper, the differences in the contents and compositions of terpenoids among three chemotypes were analyzed using gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Furthermore, the differential expression of gene transcripts in the leaf tissues of the three C. porrectum chemotypes were analyzed through a comparison of full-length transcriptomes and expression profiles. The essential oil of the three C. porrectum chemotypes leaves was mainly composed of monoterpenes. In the full-length transcriptome of C. porrectum, 104,062 transcripts with 306,337,921 total bp, an average length of 2944 bp, and an N50 length of 5449 bp, were obtained and 94025 transcripts were annotated. In the eucalyptol and linalool chemotype, the camphor and eucalyptol chemotype, and the camphor and linalool chemotype comparison groups, 21, 22 and 18 terpene synthase (TPS) unigenes were identified respectively. Three monoterpene synthase genes, CpTPS3, CpTPS5 and CpTPS9, were upregulated in the eucalyptol chemotype compared to the linalool chemotype and camphor chemotype. CpTPS1 was upregulated in the camphor chemotype compared to the linalool chemotype and the eucalyptol chemotype. CpTPS4 was upregulated in the linalool chemotype compared to the camphor chemotype and the eucalyptol chemotype. Different unigenes had different expression levels among the three chemotypes, but the unigene expression levels of the 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol 4phosphate (MEP) pathway were generally higher than those of the mevalonate acid (MVA) pathway. Quantitative reverse transcription PCR(qRT-PCR) further validated these expression levels. The present study provides new clues for the functional exploration of the terpenoid synthesis mechanism and key genes in different chemotypes of C. porrectum.

Antichemotactic and Antifungal Action of the Essential Oils from Cryptocarya aschersoniana, Schinus terebinthifolia, and Cinnamomum amoenum.

The purpose of this work was to determine the chemical composition and evaluate the antichemotactic, antioxidant, and antifungal activities of the essential oil obtained from the species Cryptocarya aschersoniana Mez, Cinnamomum amoenum (Ness & Mart.) Kosterm., and Schinus terebinthifolia Raddi, as well as the combination of C. aschersoniana essential oil and terbinafine against isolates of dermatophytes. Allo-aromadendrene, bicyclogermacrene, and germacrene B were identified as major compounds in essential oils. The essential oil of C. aschersoniana shown 100 % inhibitory effect on leukocyte migration at the concentration of 10 µg/mL while S. terebinthifolia oil presented 80.1 % inhibitory effect at the same concentration. Only S. terebinthifolia oil possessed free-radical-scavenging activity which indicates its antioxidant capacity. The essential oils were also tested against fungal isolates of dermatophyte species (Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, Microsporum canis and Microsporum gypseum), resulting in MIC ranging from 125 µg/mL to over 500 µg/mL. C. aschersoniana oil combined with terbinafine resulted in an additive interaction effect. In this case, the essential oil may act as a complement to conventional therapy for the topical treatment of superficial fungal infections, mainly because it is associated with an anti-inflammatory effect.

Molecular interactions of active constituents of essential oils in zwitterionic lipid bilayers.

Eugenol and its related compounds are major active constituents of essential oils and have been extensively used as food flavoring agents with significant lipid peroxidation inhibition activity, highlighting the importance of understanding detailed molecular mechanisms behind their interactions with lipid bilayer. For this, we studied antioxidant activity of essential oils rich extract of Cinnamomum tamala leaves and molecular dynamics simulations of eugenol, isoeugenol, methyleugenol, acetyleugenol and eugenol oxide in POPC and PLPC lipid bilayers. All the compounds penetrated into bilayer however, isoeugenol showed highest affinity for the pure POPC and PLPC bilayers with lowest free energy profiles, formed more H-bonds with bilayer oxygen atoms and more pronounced changes in area per lipid and thickness of the bilayer, thus more efficient for scavenging radicals coming from outside as well as centrally located lipid peroxyl radicals. These molecular interactions rationalize the difference in inhibition activities of lipid peroxidation by eugenol and its related compounds.

Identification of novel Nrf2 activators from Cinnamomum chartophyllum H.W. Li and their potential application of preventing oxidative insults in human lung epithelial cells.

Human lung tissue, directly exposed to the environmental oxidants and toxicants, is apt to be harmed to bring about acute or chronic oxidative insults. The nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) represents a central cellular defense mechanism, and is a target for developing agents against oxidative insult-induced human lung diseases. Our previous study found that the EtOH extract of Cinnamomum chartophyllum protected human bronchial epithelial cells against oxidative insults via Nrf2 activation. In this study, a systemic phytochemical investigation of the aerial parts of C. chartophyllum led to the isolation of thirty chemical constituents, which were further evaluated for their Nrf2 inducing potential using NAD(P)H: quinone reductase (QR) assay. Among these purified constituents, a sesquiterpenoid bearing α, ß-unsaturated ketone group, 3S-(+)-9-oxonerolidol (NLD), and a diphenyl sharing phenolic groups, 3, 3', 4, 4'-tetrahydroxydiphenyl (THD) significantly activated Nrf2 and its downstream genes, NAD(P)H quinone oxidoreductase 1 (NQO-1), and γ-glutamyl cysteine synthetase (γ-GCS), and enhanced the nuclear translocation and stabilization of Nrf2 in human lung epithelial cells. Importantly, NLD and THD had no toxicities under the Nrf2 inducing doses. THD also demonstrated a potential of interrupting Nrf2-Keap1 protein-protein interaction (PPI). Furthermore, NLD and THD protected human lung epithelial cells against sodium arsenite [As(III)]-induced cytotoxicity. Taken together, we conclude that NLD and THD are two novel Nrf2 activators with potential application of preventing acute and chronic oxidative insults in human lung tissue.

Antileukemic activity of lignans and phenylpropanoids of Cinnamomum parthenoxylon.

In this study, we evaluated the in vitro cytotoxicity of fractions and isolated constituents from Cinnamomum parthenoxylon woods against human leukemia HL-60 and U937 cells. The n-Hex, EtOAc, and MeOH-H2O fractions of the woods inhibited cell proliferation in both cell lines. Our phytochemical investigation of the n-Hex and EtOAc fractions led to the isolation of lignans and phenylpropanoids, whose chemical structures were confirmed by spectroscopic analyses. All isolated compounds were evaluated for their in vitro antileukemic activity; especially, hinokinin and cubebin exhibited strong inhibition toward U937 cell proliferation. Morphological observation indicated that these cytotoxic actions were mediated by apoptosis. Our findings suggested that an oxygenated functional group at the C-9 position in dibenzylfuran skeleton contributed their potency. In addition, these results enhanced the ethnopharmacological value of C. parthenoxylon.

Growth Effect of Cinnamomum kanehirae Cuttings Associated with its Dark Septate Endophytes.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Stout camphor tree (Cinnamomum kanehirae Hay.) is an endemic specie in Taiwan and cutting is the major propagation of C. kanehirae for plantation. Mycorrhiza can accelerate the growth of the host plant, especially in root of the host plant. The objective of this study was to investigate the growth effect of the 2 dark septate endophytes isolated from C. kanehirae. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To measure the effects of stains CkDB2 and CkDB5 on growth performance of cuttings, the cuttings were carefully removed from their substrate after 9 months of incubation. Each treatment had three replicates. RESULTS: After 9 month incubation, the mycorrhizal synthesis experiment showed that the roots of synthesized cuttings produced microsclerotia, a characteristic of dark septate endophyte, but nothing was found in the control. All inoculated cuttings had higher values of net height growth, dry weight, leaf area and chlorophyll concentration than the control. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrated that the 2 endophytes, strains CkDB2 and CkDB5, capable of forming microsclerotia with C. kanehirae cuttings were dark septate endophytes. Based on the results, CkDB5 had a better growth response than CkDB2. Cuttings inoculated with CkDB5 showed a 200% increase in the root dry weight and therefore, CkDB5 could presumably be a prerequisite for the survival of C. kanehirae cutting plantation.

In vitro culture of immature embryos of Cinnamomum tamala Nees.--the role of different factors.

Seed characteristics and in vitro culture of C. tamala embryos were studied. Embryos desiccated below 50% (fresh weight) exhibited poor morphogenetic response in vitro and confirmed the recalcitrant nature of seeds. The immature embryos of various developmental ages (4-16 week after flowering, WAF) were cultured on different strengths of MS medium. Morphogenesis responses were recorded after 10 days of culture. The best culture responses were achieved from the immature embryos of 12 WAF on MS medium with sucrose (3%, w/v), polyvinyl pyrollidone (100 mg L(-1)) and benzyl adenine (12 microM). Under optimum condition -60% explants responded; and -7.3 shoots buds developed per explants after 35 days of culture initiation. The shoot buds could be converted into micro-shoots on MS medium with sucrose (3%) and kinetin (3 microM). About 5.3 micro-shoots/shoot buds sprouted per sub-culture. The micro-shoots were rooted by maintaining them on MS medium with alpha-naphthalene acetic acid (3 microM) where within 6-8 wk of culture -8-10 roots developed. The rooted plantlets were acclimatized in vitro before they were transferred to community potting mix and maintained in the poly-shade ca 75% shading. The transplants registered -70% survival after two months of transfer.

[Effects of temperature on CH4 emission from subtropical common tree species leaves].

Laboratory incubation test was conducted to study the effects of temperature on the CH4 emission from the leaves of subtropical common tree species Castanopsis carlesii, Schima superb, Cinnamomum chekiangense, Castsanopsis fabri, Cunninghamia lanceolata, and Citrus reticulata. Among the six tree species, only S. superb, C. reticulate, and C. fabri emitted CH4 at 10 degrees C. At above 20 degrees C, all the six species emitted CH4, and the average CH4 emission rate at above 30 degrees C (1.010 ng CH4 x g(-1) DM x h(-1)) was 2.96 times higher than that at 10-30 degrees C (0.255 ng CH4 x g(-1) DM x h(-1)). Moreover, increasing temperature had much more effects on the CH4 emission rate of C. reticulata and C. lanceolata than on that of the other four tree species. Incubation time affected the CH4 emission rate of all test tree species significantly, suggesting that the effects of temperature stress on the CH4 emission could be controlled by plant activity. Dry leaves could not emit CH4 no matter the temperature was very high or low. It was suggested that high temperature stress had important effects on the CH4 emission from subtropical tree leaves, and global warming could increase the CH4 emission from plants.

Impact of decomposing Cinnamomum septentrionale leaf litter on the growth of Eucalyptus grandis saplings.

A pot experiment was performed to study the impact of decomposing Cinnamomum septentrionale leaf litter on the growth of Eucalyptus grandis saplings. The experimental design scheme was 0 (CK), 40 (A1), 80 (A2) and 120 g pot(-1) (A3) of E. grandis leaves, and changes in the volatile oil chemical composition during litter decomposition were assessed in the present study. The results showed that C. septentrionale leaf litter inhibited the growth of E. grandis saplings, as determined by the height, basal diameter and chlorophyll content, after 69 d (T1). Five months after transplantation (T2), the height growth rate of the E. grandis saplings increased and then gradually reduced (A1: 40 g pot(-1) > A2: 80 g pot(-1) > A3: 120 g pot(-1) > CK: 0 g pot(-1)). After eleven months (T3), the variations in the height and basal diameter were the same as observed at T2, and the inhibition on leaf, branch, root and stem biomass increased with increasing leaf litter content. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to identify the volatile compound composition. The results indicated that the C. septentrionale original leaf litter (S1) contained thirty-one volatile compounds, but the treated leaf litter S2 (which was mixed with soil for eleven months to simultaneously plant E. grandis saplings) only possessed fourteen volatile compounds, releasing many secondary metabolites in the soil during decomposition. Most of the volatile compounds were alcohols, monoterpenoids, sesquiterpenes, alkanes, alkene, esters and ketones. Most of the allelochemicals of C. septentrionale might be released during the initial decomposing process, inhibiting the growth of other plants, whereas some nutrients might be released later, promoting the height growth of plants. In conclusion, decomposing C. septentrionale leaf litter release of many allelochemicals in the soil that significantly inhibit the growth of E. grandis.

Direct analysis in real time by mass spectrometric technique for determining the variation in metabolite profiles of Cinnamomum tamala Nees and Eberm genotypes.

Cinnamomum tamala Nees & Eberm. is an important traditional medicinal plant, mentioned in various ancient literatures such as Ayurveda. Several of its medicinal properties have recently been proved. To characterize diversity in terms of metabolite profiles of Cinnamomum tamala Nees and Eberm genotypes, a newly emerging mass spectral ionization technique direct time in real time (DART) is very helpful. The DART ion source has been used to analyze an extremely wide range of phytochemicals present in leaves of Cinnamomum tamala. Ten genotypes were assessed for the presence of different phytochemicals. Phytochemical analysis showed the presence of mainly terpenes and phenols. These constituents vary in the different genotypes of Cinnamomum tamala. Principal component analysis has also been employed to analyze the DART data of these Cinnamomum genotypes. The result shows that the genotype of Cinnamomum tamala could be differentiated using DART MS data. The active components present in Cinnamomum tamala may be contributing significantly to high amount of antioxidant property of leaves and, in turn, conditional effects for diabetic patients.

Insecticidal activities of leaf essential oils from Cinnamomum osmophloeum against three mosquito species.

The larvicidal activities of leaf essential oils and their constituents from six chemotypes of indigenous cinnamon (Cinnamomum osmophloeum Kaneh.) trees were evaluated against three mosquito species. Results of larvicidal tests demonstrated that the leaf essential oils of cinnamaldehyde type and cinnamaldehyde/cinnamyl acetate type had an excellent inhibitory effect against Aedes albopictus larvae, and their LC(50) values in 24h were 40.8 microg/ml (LC(90)=81.7 microg/ml) and 46.5 microg/ml (LC(90)=83.3 microg/ml), respectively. Results of the 24-h mosquito larvicidal assays also showed that the effective constituents in leaf essential oils were trans-cinnamaldehyde and benzaldehyde and that the LC(50) values of these constituents against A. albopictus larvae were below 50 mug/ml. In addition, cinnamaldehyde type leaf essential oil and trans-cinnamaldehyde have also exhibited great larvicidal performance against Culex quinquefasciatus and Armigeres subalbatus larvae. Comparisons of mosquito larvicidal activity of trans-cinnamaldehyde congeners revealed that alpha-methyl cinnamaldehyde, benzaldehyde, and trans-cinnamaldehyde exhibited strong mosquito larvicidal activity.