Comparative de novo transcriptome analysis of flower and root of Oliveria decumbens Vent. to identify putative genes in terpenes biosynthesis pathway.

The Oliveria decumbens Vent. is a wild, rare, annual medicinal plant and endemic plant of Iran that has metabolites (mostly terpenes) which make it a precious plant in Persian Traditional Medicine and also a potential chemotherapeutic agent. The lack of genetic resources has slowed the discovery of genes involved in the terpenes biosynthesis pathway. It is a wild relative of Daucus carota. In this research, we performed the transcriptomic differences between two samples, flower and root of Oliveria decumbens, and also analyze the expression value of the genes involved in terpenoid biosynthesis by RNA-seq and its essential oil's phytochemicals analyzed by GC/MS. In total, 136,031,188 reads from two samples of flower and root have been produced. The result shows that the MEP pathway is mostly active in the flower and the MVA in the root. Three genes of GPP, FPPS, and GGPP that are the precursors in the synthesis of mono, di, and triterpenes are upregulated in root and 23 key genes were identified that are involved in the biosynthesis of terpenes. Three genes had the highest upregulation in the root including, and on the other hand, another three genes had the expression only in the flower. Meanwhile, 191 and 185 upregulated genes in the flower and root of the plant, respectively, were selected for the gene ontology analysis and reconstruction of co-expression networks. The current research is the first of its kind on Oliveria decumbens transcriptome and discussed 67 genes that have been deposited into the NCBI database. Collectively, the information obtained in this study unveils the new insights into characterizing the genetic blueprint of Oliveria decumbens Vent. which paved the way for medical/plant biotechnology and the pharmaceutical industry in the future.

Evaluation of the Anti-cancer Effect of Syzygium cumini Ethanolic Extract on HT-29 Colorectal Cell Line.

INTRODUCTION: GLOBOCAN 2018 data indicates the incidence and mortality of colorectal cancer that is the third lethal and fourth most diagnosed cancer in the world. There has been significant progress in cancer therapy while the ability of cancerous cells to survive is one of the main challenges in cancer research. Still, conventional therapies like surgery, chemo, and radiotherapy are widely used options. Therefore, efforts put in action by researchers in the field of drug design, molecular genetics, and biomedicine to come across safer substances with the minimum unwanted side effects to be utilized in cancer treatment. Plant-derived compounds are ideal options as they might have a better outcome with minimal side effects. METHODS: In the current research, the anti-cancer effect of Syzygium cumini ethanolic extract (SCE) was evaluated on the HT-29 colorectal cancer cell line. To this end, the apoptosis rate and proliferation of HT-29 cell lines after exposure to SCE were investigated through MTT, and other methods including DNA damage assessment and scratch test also employed to evaluate the metastasis and cell migration capacity of HT-29 after treatment with SCE. Behind that, expression ration of genes involved in the process of apoptosis has been studied, including Bax and Bcl-2 that were measured by qRT-PCR. RESULTS: Based on the MTT test, SCE suppresses the growth of HT-29 cell lines drastically. Expression analysis of the ratio of desired genes (Bax: Bcl-2) also changed significantly after treatment by SCE. DNA damage test confirmed DNA lost its integrity and gone through apoptosis, and wound healing suggests the lower change of metastasis after treatment by SCE. CONCLUSION: The outcome of this study suggests that Syzygium cumini might be contemplating as a future chemotherapeutic agent and suitable candidate for in vivo trial.

Antioxidants with two faces toward cancer.

Antioxidants are essential in preventing the formation and suppressing the activities of reactive nitrogen and oxygen species. The aim of this study was to review the role of antioxidants in cancer development or prevention. Antioxidants are believed to prevent and treat various types of malignancies. Currently, natural antioxidant compounds have been generally consumed to prevent and treat cancers. Certainly, phenolic compounds extracted from medicinal plants have opened a new prospect with respect to the prevention and treatment of cancers due to having antioxidant characteristics. However, some recently published studies have revealed that antioxidant compounds do not indicate absolute anti-tumor properties. Some antioxidants are helpful in cancer initiation and progression. Taken together, antioxidants demonstrate a two-faced nature toward cancer. However, it is required to conduct further cell culture and in vivo studies to confirm the exact role of antioxidants and then use them for efficient cancer treatments.

The anti-proliferative and apoptotic effects of crocin on chemosensitive and chemoresistant cervical cancer cells.

Cervical cancer is the fourth cause of cancer-related mortality among females worldwide. Although current therapies reduce disease symptoms, resistance of tumor cells to chemotherapy agents after a while is a serious problem. Therefore, utilization of novel adjuvant agents to increase efficiency of chemotherapy is essential. In the last two decades, botanicals with effective anticancer activities have been studied. Among them, the anticancer properties of crocin have been more attended. In this study, the molecular mechanism of crocin action was investigated in sensitive human cervical cancer cell line (OV2008) in comparison with the resistant one (C13). A 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay showed that crocin inhibits proliferation of sensitive cells (OV2008) at a time- and dose-dependent manner at 48 and 72h. Also, this inhibitory effect has been shown on resistant cells (C13) at 72h. Hoechst staining and flow cytometry assay also confirmed these results and revealed that antiproliferative effect of crocin might be due to the induction of apoptosis. Moreover, the genetic mechanism of crocin-induced apoptosis was accomplished by studying the relative expressions of P53, Bax, Bcl2 and miR-365, an upstream regulator of the last two ones. Real-time PCR analysis indicated that 1.5 and 3mg/ml crocin led to up-regulation of Bax and P53 and down-regulation of Bcl2 and miR-365 at all time intervals in both two cell lines. However, OV2008 cell line was more sensitive to crocin, and alternation of gene expretion was more obvious in this cell line. In this regard, the present study demonstrated the anti-proliferative and apoptotic activities of crocin against both sensitive and resistant cervical cancer cells that may benefit cervical cancer treatment as an adjuvant agent to decrease chemoresistance and increase the efficiency of therapy.

Influence of selenium on mast cell mediator release.

Selenium supplementation still enhanced the immune response even in individuals who, according to current standards, would be considered as not being overtly selenium deficient. Mast cells are granulated cells that play a pivotal role in allergic reactions. In this study, we investigated the modulatory effect of sodium selenite on mediator release and degranulation of murine mast cell line (MC/9). Cells were pre-treated with selenium selenite (1, 2, 3 µg/ml) for 24 h and controls left untreated. Then, cells were sensitized overnight with anti-dinitrophenyl (DNP) IgE and challenged with DNP/HSA for degranulation induction. The histamine and prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) were measured by ELISA, and ß-hexosaminidase was measured by spectrophotometery method. Selenium-treated cells revealed significant decrease in concentration of PGD2 (P = 0.019) and ß-hexosaminidase (P = 0.009). In addition, a slight reduction of histamine release by the selenium-treated cells was observed, based on our intracellular and extracellular assessments. The most inhibitory effect of selenium supplementation on mediator release of MC/9 cells was obtained in the presence of 3 µg/ml of sodium selenite. The results of the present study demonstrate beneficial effects of supplemental selenium in attenuating clinical manifestations of allergy and asthma.

A probable causative factor for an old problem: selenium and glutathione peroxidase appear to play important roles in epilepsy pathogenesis.

PURPOSE: Only recently has it become known that oxidative stress and generation of reactive oxygen species are the cause and the consequence of epileptic seizures. Due to the protective role of selenium (Se) and selenoproteins against oxidative damage and the ability to promote neuronal cell survival, we compared serum selenium level and red blood cell Glutathione peroxidase activity (RBC GPx) between epileptic and healthy children. METHODS: In a case control study, 53 epileptic children were compared with 57 healthy children in the same age and community of residence. Serum Se and RBC GPx activity were measured with an atomic absorption spectrophotometry and Cayman standard glutathione assay kit, respectively. RESULTS: The mean (+/-standard deviation) of serum Se was 72.90 microg/L (+/-22.20) and 86.00 microg/L (+/-15.00) in patient and control groups, respectively. For RBC GPx activity the mean (+/-standard deviation) was 440.57 nmol/min/ml (+/-264.00) and 801.00 nmol/min/ml (+/-267.00) in patient and control groups, respectively. Statistical analysis showed a significant lower means of serum Se and RBC GPx activity in patient group compared to that of healthy control group (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Lower serum Se and RBC GPx activity in epileptic patients compared to healthy children may support the proposed crucial role of Se and GPx activity in the pathogenesis of epilepsy. However, RBC GPx activity in the case of selenium deficiency could not be a sensitive and specific indicator of Se status in serum that led us to supplant Se measurement with RBC GPx activity.

Serum selenium concentration in healthy children living in Tehran.

INTRODUCTION: Selenium is one of the essential trace elements which is more notified in children in recent years. Reliable age-specific reference values for selenium in children in Iran are not clear and are important for the identification of selenium deficiency and some other researches that is the aim of this study. METHODS: Serum samples of 216 healthy children were analyzed by using hydride generation and flame atomic absorption spectroscopy to measured selenium level. RESULTS: The mean and standard deviation of serum selenium level in children 0-16 years old (mean: 39.83 months) was 72.14+/-16.80 microg/l. There was significant difference in serum selenium concentration between two sexes which was 76.78+/-15.24 microg/l and 69.56+/-17.09 microg/l in girls and boys respectively (P value=0.002). There was also a positive correlation between higher selenium serum concentration and age in both sexes. CONCLUSION: Essential trace element's normal ranges are fundamental data which could use in many studies. Serum selenium concentration in healthy Iranian children that found in this study is very close to serum concentration of European children. Our findings may reveal nutritional culture's similarity.