Molecular pharmacology and therapeutic advances of the pentacyclic triterpene lupeol.

BACKGROUND: Plant triterpenoids are major sources of nutraceuticals that provide many health benefits to humans. Lupeol is one of the pentacyclic dietary triterpenoids commonly found in many fruits and vegetables, which is highly investigated for its pharmacological effect and benefit to human health. PURPOSE: This systematic review critically discussed the potential pharmacological benefits of lupeol and its derivatives as evidenced by various cellular and animal model studies. To gain insight into the pharmacological effects of lupeol, the network pharmacological approach is applied. Pharmacokinetics and recent developments in nanotechnology-based approaches to targeted delivery of lupeol along with its safety use are also discussed. METHODS: This study is dependent on the systematic and non-exhaustive literature survey for related research articles, papers, and books on the chemistry, pharmacological benefits, pharmacokinetics, and safety of lupeol published between 2011 and 2021. For online materials, the popular academic search engines viz. Google Scholar, PubMed, Science Direct, Scopus, ResearchGate, Springer, as well as official websites were explored with selected keywords. RESULTS: Lupeol has shown promising benefits in the management of cancer and many other human diseases such as diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, kidney and liver problems, skin diseases, and neurological disorders. The pharmacological effects of lupeol primarily rely on its capacity to revitalize the cellular antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic mechanisms. Network pharmacological approach revealed some prospective molecular targets and pathways and presented some significant information that could help explain the pharmacological effects of lupeol and its derivatives. Despite significant progress in molecular pharmacology, the clinical application of lupeol is limited due to poor bioavailability and insufficient knowledge on its mode of action. Structural modification and nanotechnology-guided targeted delivery of lupeol improve the bioavailability and bioactivity of lupeol. CONCLUSION: The pentacyclic triterpene lupeol possesses numerous human health-benefiting properties. This review updates current knowledge and critically discusses the pharmacological effects and potential applications of lupeol and its derivatives in human health and diseases. Future studies are needed to evaluate the efficacies of lupeol and its derivatives in the management and pathobiology of human diseases.

Biogas slurry application could potentially reduce N2O emissions and increase crop yield.

The huge excrement quantity from the increasing large-scale livestock stressed the ecological, environmental deterioration. As a major benefit for handling livestock manure, the slurry of biogas (BS) is developed during the production of biogas that might increase plant productivity. However, nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions from BS are considered a significant danger to the environment due to global warming potential. Furthermore, applying different proportions of BS combined with chemical fertilizer (CF) on N2O productions in the North China Plain (NCP) remains unclear. Herein, two sequential field trials were performed by maize-wheat rotations to substitute the CF by BS and reduce N2O emissions while keeping the crop yield stable. Four treatments were conducted, including T1, T3, T6, and CK. A total of 226.5 kg N ha-1 used in the maize-wheat rotation system. Additionally, different ratios of BS (100%, 80%, and 50%) combined with CF were used in wheat season in the tillering stage. Results showed integrated applications of BS with CF have potential for reducing N2O emission. Our findings showed that the maximum grain yield of CF was 6250 kg ha-1, which might be achieved by applying 38% BS and 62% of CF. This ratio yielded 1.03 kg ha-1 N2O emissions, which was 15% lesser than the N2O emission of CK, 1.21 kg ha-1. Considering whole growing period of wheat biogas treatments significantly reduced the cumulative N2O emissions from 17% to 26% compared to CF. To achieve maximum yield and minimum N2O emissions, an optimum 38% BS ratio has been suggested. The integrated use of BS and CF provided the greatest grain yield because of necessary nutrients provided by both slurry and CF. Consequently, N2O emissions reduced based on frequency and type of fertilizer. In conclusion, 38% ratio of BS combined with 62% CF would be a suitable approach to mitigate N2O emission and simultaneously increase crop yield in NCP.

Inhibited effect of biochar application on N2O emissions is amount and time-dependent by regulating denitrification in a wheat-maize rotation system in North China.

Biochar application is considered an effective method of reducing nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions in soil. However, the mechanism and temporal effect of different doses of biochar on N2O emissions is still obscure. Here, we conducted a two-year field experiment to test the effects of different input amounts and frequencies of biochar on soil N2O emissions in North China. Biochar was applied in six different treatments in a winter wheat and summer maize rotation system: applications of 0 t/ha biochar (C0), 2.25 t/ha biochar (C1), 4.5 t/ha biochar (C2), 9 t/ha biochar (C3), and 13.5 t/ha biochar (C4) each year, and a single application of 13.5 t/ha biochar (CS) in the first year. The results showed that biochar could inhibit N2O emissions, reaching 20.6% to 60.1% in the wheat season and 18.1% to 39.4% in the maize season. The inhibitory effect of biochar on soil N2O emissions was dependent on amount and time. C3 had the best results in the wheat season, although its inhibitory effect in the maize season was not as good relative to C4 due to the lower biochar application. In addition, CS significantly reduced (27.7%) the cumulative N2O emissions in the first year, although the inhibitory effect disappeared in the second year. Biochar increased the nosZ gene copy numbers and promoted a reduction of N2O in the soil via the denitrification process. In conclusion, the inhibition of N2O emissions during denitrification is an important factor for reducing soil N2O emissions by biochar, and the inhibition of biochar is influenced by the input amount and time.