Country-wide, multi-location trials of Green Super Rice lines for yield performance and stability analysis using genetic and stability parameters.

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is an important member of the family Poaceae and more than half of world population depend for their dietary nutrition on rice. Rice cultivars with higher yield, resilience to stress and wider adaptability are essential to ensure production stability and food security. The fundamental objective of this study was to identify higher-yielding rice genotypes with stable performance and wider adaptability in a rice growing areas of Pakistan. A triplicate RCBD design experiment with 20 Green Super Rice (GSR) advanced lines was conducted at 12 rice growing ecologies in four Provinces of Pakistan. Grain yield stability performance was assessed by using different univariate and multivariate statistics. Analysis of variance revealed significant differences among genotypes, locations, and G x E interaction for mean squares (p < 0.05) of major yield contributing traits. All the studied traits except for number of tillers per plant revealed higher genotypic variance than environmental variance. Broad sense heritability was estimated in the range of 44.36% to 98.60%. Based on ASV, ASI, bi, Wi2, σ2i and WAAS statistics, the genotypes G1, G4, G5, G8, G11 and G12 revealed lowest values for parametric statistics and considered more stable genotypes based on  paddy yield. The additive main effects and multiplicative interaction (AMMI) model revealed significant variation (p < 0.05) for genotypes, non-signification for environment and highly significant for G × E interaction. The variation proportion of PC1 and PC2 from interaction revealed 67.2% variability for paddy yield. Based on 'mean verses stability analysis of GGE biplot', 'Which-won-where' GGE Biplot, 'discriminativeness vs. representativeness' pattern of stability, 'IPCA and WAASB/GY' ratio-based stability Heat-map, and ranking of genotypes, the genotypes G1, G2, G3, G5, G8, G10, G11 and G13 were observed ideal genotypes with yield potential more than 8 tons ha-1. Discriminativeness vs. representativeness' pattern of stability identifies two environments, E5 (D.I Khan, KPK) and E6 (Usta Muhammad, Baluchistan) were best suited for evaluating genotypic yield performance. Based on these findings we have concluded that the genotypes G1, G2, G3, G5, G8, G10, G11 and G13 could be included in the commercial varietal development process and future breeding program.

Recent Trends and Advances in Additive-Mediated Composting Technology for Agricultural Waste Resources: A Comprehensive Review.

Agriculture waste has increased annually due to the global food demand and intensive animal production. Preventing environmental degradation requires fast and effective agricultural waste treatment. Aerobic digestion or composting uses agricultural wastes to create a stabilized and sterilized organic fertilizer and reduces chemical fertilizer input. Indeed, conventional composting technology requires a large surface area, a long fermentation period, significant malodorous emissions, inferior product quality, and little demand for poor end results. Conventional composting loses a lot of organic nitrogen and carbon. Thus, this comprehensive research examined sustainable and adaptable methods for improving agricultural waste composting efficiency. This review summarizes composting processes and examines how compost additives affect organic solid waste composting and product quality. Our findings indicate that additives have an impact on the composting process by influencing variables including temperature, pH, and moisture. Compost additive amendment could dramatically reduce gas emissions and mineral ion mobility. Composting additives can (1) improve the physicochemical composition of the compost mixture, (2) accelerate organic material disintegration and increase microbial activity, (3) reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) and ammonia (NH3) emissions to reduce nitrogen (N) losses, and (4) retain compost nutrients to increase soil nutrient content, maturity, and phytotoxicity. This essay concluded with a brief summary of compost maturity, which is essential before using it as an organic fertilizer. This work will add to agricultural waste composting technology literature. To increase the sustainability of agricultural waste resource utilization, composting strategies must be locally optimized and involve the created amendments in a circular economy.

Unveiling the Genetic Tapestry: Exploring Rhizoctonia solani AG-3 Anastomosis Groups in Potato Crops across Borders.

The current study was carried out to screen 10 isolates (ARS-01-ARS-10) of Rhizoctonia. solani from potato tubers cv. Kuroda, which were collected from various potato fields in Multan, Pakistan. The isolates were found to be morphologically identical, as the hyphae exhibit the production of branches at right angles and acute angles often accompanied by septum near the emerging branches. Anastomosis grouping showed that these isolates belonged to AG-3. A pathogenicity test was performed against the susceptible Kuroda variety and among the isolates, ARS-05 exhibited the highest mean severity score of approximately 5.43, followed by ARS-09, which showed a mean severity score of about 3.67, indicating a moderate level of severity. On the lower end of the severity scale, isolates ARS-06 and ARS-07 displayed mean severity scores of approximately 0.53 and 0.57, respectively, suggesting minimal symptom severity. These mean severity scores offer insights into the varying degrees of symptom expression among the different isolates of R. solani under examination. PCoA indicates that the severe isolate causing black scurf on the Kuroda variety was AG-3. A comprehensive analysis of the distribution, genetic variability, and phylogenetic relationships of R. solani anastomosis groups (AGs) related to potato crops across diverse geographic regions was also performed to examine AG prevalence in various countries. AG-3 was identified as the most widespread group, prevalent in Sweden, China, and the USA. AG-5 showed prominence in Sweden and the USA, while AG-2-1 exhibited prevalence in China and Japan. The phylogenetic analysis unveiled two different clades: Clade I comprising AG-3 and Clade II encompassing AG-2, AG-4, and AG-5, further subdivided into three subclades. Although AGs clustered together regardless of origin, their genetic diversity revealed complex evolutionary patterns. The findings pave the way for region-specific disease management strategies to combat R. solani's impact on potato crops.

Molecular docking of bioactive compounds extracted and purified from selected medicinal plant species against covid-19 proteins and in vitro evaluation.

Bioactive compounds are secondary metabolites of plants. They offer diverse pharmacological properties. Peganum harmala is reported to have pharmaceutical effects like insecticidal, antitumor, curing malaria, anti-spasmodic, vasorelaxant, antihistaminic effect. Rosa brunonii has medicinal importance in its flower and fruits effective against different diseases and juice of leaf is reported to be applied externally to cure wounds and cuts. Dryopteris ramosa aqueous leaf extract is used to treat stomach ulcers and stomachaches. Each of these three medicinal plants have been indicated to have anticancer, antiviral, antioxidant, cytotoxic and antifungal effects but efficacy of their bioactive compounds remained unexplored. Study was aimed to explore In-vitro and In-silico anticancer, antiviral, antioxidant, cytotoxic and antifungal effects of bioactive compounds of above three medicinal plants. DPPH and ABTS assay were applied for assessment of antioxidant properties of compounds. Antibacterial properties of compounds were checked by agar well diffusion method. Brine shrimp lethality assay was performed to check cytotoxic effect of compounds. Molecular docking was conducted to investigate the binding efficacy between isolated compounds and targeted proteins. The compound isomangiferrin and tiliroside presented strong antioxidant potential 78.32% (± 0.213) and 77.77% (± 0.211) respectively in DPPH assay while harmaline showed 80.71% (± 0.072) at 200 µg/mL in ABTS assay. The compound harmine, harmaline and PH-HM 17 exhibited highest zone of inhibition 22 mm, 23 mm, 22 mm respectively against Xanthomonas while Irriflophenone-3-C-ß- D-glucopyranoside showed maximum zone of inhibition 34 mm against E. coli. The compound isomangiferrin and vasicine contained strong antibacterial activity 32 mm and 22 mm respectively against S. aureus. The compound mangiferrin, astragalin, tiliroside, quercitin-3-O-rhamnoside showed maximum inhibitory zone 32 mm, 26 mm, 24 mm and 22 mm respectively against Klebsiella pneumoniae. Highest cytotoxic effect was observed by compound tiliroside i.e. 95% with LD50 value 73.59 µg/mL. The compound tiliroside showed the best binding mode of interaction to all targeted proteins presenting maximum hydrophobic interactions and hydrogen bonds. The binding affinity of tiliroside was - 17.9, - 14.9, - 14.6, - 13.8, - 12.8 against different proteins 6VAR, 5C5S, IEA3, 2XV7 and 6LUS respectively. Bioactive compounds are significant natural antioxidants, which could help to prevent the progression of various diseases caused by free radicals. Based on molecular docking we have concluded that phytochemicals can have better anticancer and antiviral potential.

In Silico Comparison of WRKY Transcription Factors in Wild and Cultivated Soybean and Their Co-expression Network Arbitrating Disease Resistance.

WRKY Transcription factors (TFs) play critical roles in plant defence mechanisms that are activated in response to biotic and abiotic stresses. However, information on the Glycine soja WRKYs (GsoWRKYs) is scarce. Owing to its importance in soybean breeding, here we identified putative WRKY TFs in wild soybean, and compared the results with Glycine max WRKYs (GmaWRKYs) by phylogenetic, conserved motif, and duplication analyses. Moreover, we explored the expression trends of WRKYs in G. max (oomycete, fungi, virus, bacteria, and soybean cyst nematode) and G. soja (soybean cyst nematode), and identified commonly expressed WRKYs and their co-expressed genes. We identified, 181 and 180 putative WRKYs in G. max and G. soja, respectively. Though the number of WRKYs in both studied species is almost the same, they differ in many ways, i.e., the number of WRKYs on corresponding chromosomes, conserved domain structures, WRKYGQK motif variants, and zinc-finger motifs. WRKYs in both species grouped in three major clads, i.e., I-III, where group-II had sub-clads IIa-IIe. We found that GsoWRKYs expanded mostly through segmental duplication. A large number of WRKYs were expressed in response to biotic stresses, i.e., Phakospora pachyrhizi, Phytoplasma, Heterodera glycines, Macrophomina phaseolina, and Soybean mosaic virus; 56 GmaWRKYs were commonly expressed in soybean plants infected with these diseases. Finally, 30 and 63 GmaWRKYs and GsoWRKYs co-expressed with 205 and 123 non-WRKY genes, respectively, indicating that WRKYs play essential roles in biotic stress tolerance in Glycine species.

Bacopa monnieri: A promising herbal approach for neurodegenerative disease treatment supported by in silico and in vitro research.

Neurodegenerative disorders, caused by progressive neuron loss, are a global health issue. Among the various factors implicated in their pathogenesis, dysregulation of acetylcholinesterase activity has been recognized as a key contributor. Acetylcholinesterase breaks down the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, important for neural transmission. Evaluating phyto-compounds from Bacopa monnieri Linn. through in vitro and in silico analysis may expand their role as alternative therapeutic agents by modulating the function of acetylcholinesterase and complementing existing treatments. To accomplish this objective, chemical structures of phyto-compounds were retrieved from PubChem database and subjected to in silico and in vitro approaches. Virtual screening was performed through molecular docking and molecular dynamic simulation resulting in four top hit compounds including quercetin, apigenin, wogonin, and bacopaside X (novel lead compound for acetylcholinesterase inhibitor) with least binding score. Further, dose dependent acetylcholinesterase inhibition biochemical assay depicted that bacopaside X, apigenin, quercetin, and wogonin exhibited strong potential against acetylcholinesterase with IC50 values of 12.78 µM, 13.83 µM, 12.73 µM and 15.48 µM respectively, in comparison with the donepezil (IC50: 0.0204 µM). The in silico and in vitro research suggests that B. monnieri phyto-compounds have the potential to modulate molecular targets associated with neurodegenerative diseases and have a role in neuroprotection.

Optimization of soybean physiochemical, agronomic, and genetic responses under varying regimes of day and night temperatures.

Soybean is an important oilseed crop worldwide; however, it has a high sensitivity to temperature variation, particularly at the vegetative stage to the pod-filling stage. Temperature change affects physiochemical and genetic traits regulating the soybean agronomic yield. In this regard, the current study aimed to comparatively evaluate the effects of varying regimes of day and night temperatures (T1 = 20°C/12°C, T2 = 25°C/17°C, T3 = 30°C/22°C, T4 = 35°C/27°C, and T5 = 40°C/32°C) on physiological (chlorophyll, photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, transpiration, and membrane damage) biochemical (proline and antioxidant enzymes), genetic (GmDNJ1, GmDREB1G;1, GmHSF-34, GmPYL21, GmPIF4b, GmPIP1;6, GmGBP1, GmHsp90A2, GmTIP2;6, and GmEF8), and agronomic traits (pods per plant, seeds per plant, pod weight per plant, and seed yield per plant) of soybean cultivars (Swat-84 and NARC-1). The experiment was performed in soil plant atmosphere research (SPAR) units using two factorial arrangements with cultivars as one factor and temperature treatments as another factor. A significant increase in physiological, biochemical, and agronomic traits with increased gene expression was observed in both soybean cultivars at T4 (35°C/27°C) as compared to below and above regimes of temperatures. Additionally, it was established by correlation, principal component analysis (PCA), and heatmap analysis that the nature of soybean cultivars and the type of temperature treatments have a significant impact on the paired association of agronomic and biochemical traits, which in turn affects agronomic productivity. Furthermore, at corresponding temperature regimes, the expression of the genes matched the expression of physiochemical traits. The current study has demonstrated through extensive physiochemical, genetic, and biochemical analyses that the ideal day and night temperature for soybeans is T4 (35°C/27°C), with a small variation having a significant impact on productivity from the vegetative stage to the grain-filling stage.

Indole pyruvate decarboxylase gene regulates the auxin synthesis pathway in rice by interacting with the indole-3-acetic acid-amido synthetase gene, promoting root hair development under cadmium stress.

This research focused on cadmium (Cd), which negatively affects plant growth and auxin hemostasis. In plants, many processes are indirectly controlled through the expression of certain genes due to the secretion of bacterial auxin, as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) acts as a reciprocal signaling molecule in plant-microbe interaction. The aim of current studies was to investigate responsible genes in rice for plant-microbe interaction and lateral root development due to the involvement of several metabolic pathways. Studies revealed that GH3-2 interacts with endogenous IAA in a homeostasis manner without directly providing IAA. In rice, indole-3-pyruvate decarboxylase (IPDC) transgenic lines showed a 40% increase in lateral roots. Auxin levels and YUCCA (auxin biosynthesis gene) expression were monitored in osaux1 mutant lines inoculated with Bacillus cereus exposed to Cd. The results showed an increase in root hairs (RHs) and lateral root density, changes in auxin levels, and expression of the YUCCA gene. B. cereus normalizes the oxidative stress caused by Cd due to the accumulation of O 2 - and H2O2 in osaux1 mutant lines. Furthermore, the inoculation of B. cereus increases DR5:GUS expression, indicating that bacterial species have a positive role in auxin regulation. Thus, the current study suggests that B. cereus and IPDC transgenic lines increase the RH development in rice by interacting with IAA synthetase genes in the host plant, alleviating Cd toxicity and enhancing plant defense mechanisms.

Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria Eliminate the Effect of Drought Stress in Plants: A Review.

Plants evolve diverse mechanisms to eliminate the drastic effect of biotic and abiotic stresses. Drought is the most hazardous abiotic stress causing huge losses to crop yield worldwide. Osmotic stress decreases relative water and chlorophyll content and increases the accumulation of osmolytes, epicuticular wax content, antioxidant enzymatic activities, reactive oxygen species, secondary metabolites, membrane lipid peroxidation, and abscisic acid. Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) eliminate the effect of drought stress by altering root morphology, regulating the stress-responsive genes, producing phytohormones, osmolytes, siderophores, volatile organic compounds, and exopolysaccharides, and improving the 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate deaminase activities. The use of PGPR is an alternative approach to traditional breeding and biotechnology for enhancing crop productivity. Hence, that can promote drought tolerance in important agricultural crops and could be used to minimize crop losses under limited water conditions. This review deals with recent progress on the use of PGPR to eliminate the harmful effects of drought stress in traditional agriculture crops.

Uncovering the Research Gaps to Alleviate the Negative Impacts of Climate Change on Food Security: A Review.

Climatic variability has been acquiring an extensive consideration due to its widespread ability to impact food production and livelihoods. Climate change has the potential to intersperse global approaches in alleviating hunger and undernutrition. It is hypothesized that climate shifts bring substantial negative impacts on food production systems, thereby intimidating food security. Vast developments have been made addressing the global climate change, undernourishment, and hunger for the last few decades, partly due to the increase in food productivity through augmented agricultural managements. However, the growing population has increased the demand for food, putting pressure on food systems. Moreover, the potential climate change impacts are still unclear more obviously at the regional scales. Climate change is expected to boost food insecurity challenges in areas already vulnerable to climate change. Human-induced climate change is expected to impact food quality, quantity, and potentiality to dispense it equitably. Global capabilities to ascertain the food security and nutritional reasonableness facing expeditious shifts in biophysical conditions are likely to be the main factors determining the level of global disease incidence. It can be apprehended that all food security components (mainly food access and utilization) likely be under indirect effect via pledged impacts on ménage, incomes, and damages to health. The corroboration supports the dire need for huge focused investments in mitigation and adaptation measures to have sustainable, climate-smart, eco-friendly, and climate stress resilient food production systems. In this paper, we discussed the foremost pathways of how climate change impacts our food production systems as well as the social, and economic factors that in the mastery of unbiased food distribution. Likewise, we analyze the research gaps and biases about climate change and food security. Climate change is often responsible for food insecurity issues, not focusing on the fact that food production systems have magnified the climate change process. Provided the critical threats to food security, the focus needs to be shifted to an implementation oriented-agenda to potentially cope with current challenges. Therefore, this review seeks to have a more unprejudiced view and thus interpret the fusion association between climate change and food security by imperatively scrutinizing all factors.

Fulvic Acid Alleviates Paper Sludge Toxicity in Canola (Brassica napus L.) by Reducing Cr, Cd, and Pb Uptake.

Heavy metal toxicity reduces the growth and development of crop plants growing in metal-contaminated regions. Disposal of industrial waste in agricultural areas has negative effects on the physiochemical activities of plants. This research aimed to examine the fulvic acid (FA)-mediated efficacy of Brassica napus L. regarding stress tolerance in soil amended with paper sludge (PS). For this purpose, plants were grown for 90 days under greenhouse conditions at various concentrations of PS-amended soils (0, 5, 10, and 15%) being irrigated with water containing FA (0, 10, and 20%). All the physicochemical parameters of PS were carried out before and after plant transplantation. Paper sludge toxicity reduced the growth (shoot/root length, fresh/dry weight of shoot/root, numbers of flowers and leaves) and physicochemical characteristics of exposed B. napus plants. In comparison, FA application improved growth by reducing the metal uptake in the shoot of plants grown at various concentrations of PS. An increasing trend in antioxidant enzyme activity was observed by increasing the FA concentration (0%-10% and 20%). Post-harvest analysis indicated that the amount of tested metals was significantly reduced at all PS concentrations. Minimum metal uptake was observed at 0% concentration and maximum at 15% concentration of paper sludge. Additionally, FA application at 20% concentration reduced Chromium (Cr), Cadmium (Cd), and Lead (Pb) uptake in the shoot from 6.08, 34.42, and 20.6 mgkg-1 to 3.62, 17.33, and 15.22 mgkg-1, respectively. At this concentration of paper sludge in the root, 20% FA reduced Cr, Cd, and Pb uptake from 11.19, 44.11, and 35.5 mgkg-1 to 7.88, 27.01, and 24.02 mgkg-1, respectively. Thus, FA at 20% concentration was found to be an effective stimulant to mitigate the metal stress in B. napus grown in paper sludge-polluted soil by reducing metal uptake and translocation to various plant parts.

Improving Nitrogen Use Efficiency in Aerobic Rice Based on Insights Into the Ecophysiology of Archaeal and Bacterial Ammonia Oxidizers.

The abundance and structural composition of nitrogen (N) transformation-related microbial communities under certain environmental conditions provide sufficient information about N cycle under different soil conditions. This study aims to explore the major challenge of low N use efficiency (NUE) and N dynamics in aerobic rice systems and reveal the agronomic-adjustive measures to increase NUE through insights into the ecophysiology of ammonia oxidizers. Water-saving practices, like alternate wetting and drying (AWD), dry direct seeded rice (DDSR), wet direct seeding, and saturated soil culture (SSC), have been evaluated in lowland rice; however, only few studies have been conducted on N dynamics in aerobic rice systems. Biological ammonia oxidation is majorly conducted by two types of microorganisms, ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB). This review focuses on how diversified are ammonia oxidizers (AOA and AOB), whose factors affect their activities and abundance under different soil conditions. It summarizes findings on pathways of N cycle, rationalize recent research on ammonia oxidizers in N-cycle, and thereby suggests adjustive agronomic measures to reduce N losses. This review also suggests that variations in soil properties significantly impact the structural composition and abundance of ammonia oxidizers. Nitrification inhibitors (NIs) especially nitrapyrin, reduce the nitrification rate and inhibit the abundance of bacterial amoA without impacting archaeal amoA. In contrast, some NIs confine the hydrolysis of synthetic N and, therefore, keep low NH4 +-N concentrations that exhibit no or very slight impact on ammonia oxidizers. Variations in soil properties are more influential in the community structure and abundance of ammonia oxidizers than application of synthetic N fertilizers and NIs. Biological nitrification inhibitors (BNIs) are natural bioactive compounds released from roots of certain plant species, such as sorghum, and could be commercialized to suppress the capacity of nitrifying soil microbes. Mixed application of synthetic and organic N fertilizers enhances NUE and plant N-uptake by reducing ammonia N losses. High salt concentration promotes community abundance while limiting the diversity of AOB and vice versa for AOA, whereas AOA have lower rate for potential nitrification than AOB, and denitrification accounts for higher N2 production. Archaeal abundance, diversity, and structural composition change along an elevation gradient and mainly depend on various soil factors, such as soil saturation, availability of NH4 +, and organic matter contents. Microbial abundance and structural analyses revealed that the structural composition of AOA was not highly responsive to changes in soil conditions or N amendment. Further studies are suggested to cultivate AOA and AOB in controlled-environment experiments to understand the mechanisms of AOA and AOB under different conditions. Together, this evaluation will better facilitate the projections and interpretations of ammonia oxidizer community structural composition with provision of a strong basis to establish robust testable hypotheses on the competitiveness between AOB and AOA. Moreover, after this evaluation, managing soils agronomically for potential utilization of metabolic functions of ammonia oxidizers would be easier.

Dietary supplementation with Pediococcus pentosaceus enhances the innate immune response in and promotes growth of Litopenaeus vannamei shrimp.

To reach the sustainable development goals on health management in Litopenaeus vannamei shrimp culture, Pediococcus pentosaceus AB01 was supplemented in shrimp diet. In this study, the control diet and three experimental diets containing P. pentosaceus AB01 (108 , 109 , 1010 CFU/g) were separately introduced to L. vannamei for a 28 days feeding trial. After the feeding trial, percent weight gain, feeding efficiency, and feed conversion ratio (FCR) were significantly elevated in L. vannamei administered with P. pentosaceus AB01 at 109 and 1010 colony-forming unit (CFU)/g. Protease, amylase, and trypsin were found at higher levels in the probiotic-supplied groups. The feeding of shrimps with P. pentosaceus AB01 significantly increased innate immune response and levels of related biochemical parameters in the haemolymph. After the white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) challenge, supplementation of P. pentosaceus AB01 had significant positive effects (p < .05) on survival rate, compared to that of the control diet. The higher resistance of L. vannamei to WSSV might have been due to alterations in the gut microbiome composition and upregulation of the Toll-Like Receptor (TLR) signalling pathway. Hence, P. pentosaceus AB01 may be a promising alternative feed to promote growth rate, modulate microbiota composition, and enhance immunity in L. vannamei shrimp.

Important wheat diseases in the US and their management in the 21st century.

Wheat is a crop of historical significance, as it marks the turning point of human civilization 10,000 years ago with its domestication. Due to the rapid increase in population, wheat production needs to be increased by 50% by 2050 and this growth will be mainly based on yield increases, as there is strong competition for scarce productive arable land from other sectors. This increasing demand can be further achieved using sustainable approaches including integrated disease pest management, adaption to warmer climates, less use of water resources and increased frequency of abiotic stress tolerances. Out of 200 diseases of wheat, 50 cause economic losses and are widely distributed. Each year, about 20% of wheat is lost due to diseases. Some major wheat diseases are rusts, smut, tan spot, spot blotch, fusarium head blight, common root rot, septoria blotch, powdery mildew, blast, and several viral, nematode, and bacterial diseases. These diseases badly impact the yield and cause mortality of the plants. This review focuses on important diseases of the wheat present in the United States, with comprehensive information of causal organism, economic damage, symptoms and host range, favorable conditions, and disease management strategies. Furthermore, major genetic and breeding efforts to control and manage these diseases are discussed. A detailed description of all the QTLs, genes reported and cloned for these diseases are provided in this review. This study will be of utmost importance to wheat breeding programs throughout the world to breed for resistance under changing environmental conditions.

Using HPLC-DAD and GC-MS Analysis Isolation and Identification of Anticandida Compounds from Gui Zhen Cao Herbs (Genus Bidens): An Important Chinese Medicinal Formulation.

Gui Zhen Cao is an herbal formulation that has been documented in Chinese traditional medicine as a remedy for diarrhea, dysentery, inflammation, and toxicity. The sources of this formulation (Bidens pilosa L., Bidens biternata (Lour.) Merr. & Sherff, Bidens bipinnata L.) are also listed in ethnomedicinal reports all over the world. In this study, all these plants are tested for in vitro anticandida activity. A quantitative evaluation of the phytochemicals in all these plants indicated that their vegetative parts are rich in tannins, saponins, oxalates, cyanogenic glycoside and lipids; moreover, the roots have high percentages of alkaloids, flavonoids, and phenols. The results indicated significant anticandida activity, especially for the hexane extract of B. bipinnata leaves which inhibited C. albicans (42.54%), C. glabrata (46.98%), C. tropicalis (50.89%), C. krusei (40.56%), and C. orthopsilosis (50.24%). The extract was subjected to silica gel chromatography and 220 fractions were obtained. Purification by High Performance Liquid Chromatography with Diode-Array Detection (HPLC-DAD) and Gas Chromatography tandem Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS/MS) analysis led to the identification of two anticandida compounds: dehydroabietic and linoleic acid having an inhibition of 85 and 92%, respectively.

Scrophulariae Radix: An Overview of Its Biological Activities and Nutraceutical and Pharmaceutical Applications.

Scrophulariae Radix (SR) has an important role as a medicinal plant, the roots of which are recorded used to cure fever, swelling, constipation, pharyngitis, laryngitis, neuritis, sore throat, rheumatism, and arthritis in Asia for more than two thousand years. In this paper, the studies published on Scrophularia buergeriana (SB) and Scrophularia ningpoensis (SN) in the latest 20 years were reviewed, and the biological activities of SB and SN were evaluated based on in vitro and in vivo studies. SB presented anti-inflammatory activities, immune-enhancing effects, bone disorder prevention activity, neuroprotective effect, anti-amnesic effect, and anti-allergic effect; SN showed a neuroprotective effect, anti-apoptotic effect, anti-amnesic effect, and anti-depressant effect; and SR exhibited an immune-enhancing effect and cardioprotective effects through in vitro and in vivo experiments. SB and SN are both known to exert neuroprotective and anti-amensice effects. This review investigated their applicability in the nutraceutical, functional foods, and pharmaceutical industries. Further studies, such as toxicological studies and clinical trials, on the efficacy and safety of SR, including SB and SN, need to be conducted.

Polysaccharide Derived from Nelumbo nucifera Lotus Plumule Shows Potential Prebiotic Activity and Ameliorates Insulin Resistance in HepG2 Cells.

Polysaccharides are key bioactive compounds in lotus plumule tea, but their anti-diabetes activities remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prebiotic activities of a novel polysaccharide fraction from the Nelumbo nucifera lotus plumule, and to examine its regulation of glucose metabolism in insulin-resistant HepG2 cells. The N. nucifera polysaccharide (NNP) was purified after discoloration, hot water extraction, ethanol precipitation, and DEAE-cellulose chromatography to obtain purified polysaccharide fractions (NNP-2). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used to analyze the main structural characteristics and functional group of NNP-2. Physicochemical characterization indicated that NNP-2 had a molecular weight of 110.47 kDa and consisted of xylose, glucose, fructose, galactose, and fucose in a molar ratio of 33.4:25.7:22.0:10.5:8.1. The prebiotic activity of NNP-2 was demonstrated in vitro using Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. Furthermore, NNP-2 showed bioactivity against α-glucosidase (IC50 = 97.32 µg/mL). High glucose-induced insulin-resistant HepG2 cells were used to study the effect of NNP-2 on glucose consumption, and the molecular mechanism of the insulin transduction pathway was studied using RT-qPCR. NNP-2 could improve insulin resistance by modulating the IRS1/PI3K/Akt pathway in insulin-resistant HepG2 cells. Our data demonstrated that the Nelumbo nucifera polysaccharides are potential sources for nutraceuticals, and we propose functional food developments from the bioactive polysaccharides of N. nucifera for the management of diabetes.

Improvement of Obesity and Dyslipidemic Activity of Amomum tsao-ko in C57BL/6 Mice Fed a High-Carbohydrate Diet.

Amomum tsao-ko Crevost et Lemaire (Zingiberaceae) is a medicinal herb found in Southeast Asia that is used for the treatment of malaria, abdominal pain, dyspepsia, etc. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of an ethanol extract of Amomum tsao-ko (EAT) on obesity and hyperlipidemia in C57BL/6 mice fed a high-carbohydrate diet (HCD). First, the mice were divided into five groups (n = 6/group) as follows: normal diet, HCD, and HCD+EAT (100, 200, and 400 mg/kg/day), which were orally administered with EAT daily for 84 days. Using microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) analysis, we found that EAT inhibited not only body-weight gain, but also visceral fat and subcutaneous fat accumulation. Histological analysis confirmed that EAT decreased the size of fat tissues. EAT consistently improved various indices, including plasma levels of total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein, high-density lipoprotein, atherogenic index, and cardiac risk factors, which are related to dyslipidemia-a major risk factor for heart disease. The contents of TC and TG, as well as the lipid droplets of HCD-induced hepatic accumulation in the liver tissue, were suppressed by EAT. Taken together, these findings suggest the possibility of developing EAT as a therapeutic agent for improving HCD-induced obesity and hyperlipidemia.

Prebiotic Potential and Anti-Inflammatory Activity of Soluble Polysaccharides Obtained from Soybean Residue.

In the present study, we assessed the extraction of low molecular weight soluble polysaccharides (MESP) from soybean by-products using microwave-assisted enzymatic technology and proposed the chemical structure of MESP using Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, gas chromatography, and 1H and 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectrum analysis. The results suggested that MESP mainly comprised arabinose, rhamnose, and glucuronic acid with (1→4) glycosidic linkages in the backbone. Compared with inulin, MESP was found to selectively stimulate the growth of Lactobacillus probiotics. Moreover, the results of in vitro fermentation indicated that MESP significantly increased the concentrations of both acetate and butyrate (p < 0.05). MESP were treated on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW264.7 cells to determine the anti-inflammatory effect in vitro. It was observed that MESP inhibited nitric oxide, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-1ß, IL-6, and IL-10 production. Furthermore, Western blotting results indicated that MESP significantly attenuated LPS-induced downregulation of phosphorylation levels of Janus kinase 2 (JAK2) and signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) in macrophages. The underlying mechanism might involve inhibition of the expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines, presumably via JAK2/STAT3 pathway. Collectively, the results of our study paved way for the production of MESP, which may be potentially used as nutraceutical ingredients for prebiotics and anti-inflammatory agents, from soybean residue.

Herbal Composition LI73014F2 Alleviates Articular Cartilage Damage and Inflammatory Response in Monosodium Iodoacetate-Induced Osteoarthritis in Rats.

The aim of this study was to determine the anti-osteoarthritic effects of LI73014F2, which consists of Terminalia chebula fruit, Curcuma longa rhizome, and Boswellia serrata gum resin in a 2:1:2 ratio, in the monosodium iodoacetate (MIA)-induced osteoarthritis (OA) rat model. LI73014F2 was orally administered once per day for three weeks. Weight-bearing distribution and arthritis index (AI) were measured once per week to confirm the OA symptoms. Synovial membrane, proteoglycan layer, and cartilage damage were investigated by histological examination, while synovial fluid interleukin-1ß level was analyzed using a commercial kit. Levels of pro-inflammatory mediators/cytokines and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) in the cartilage tissues were investigated to confirm the anti-osteoarthritic effects of LI73014F2. LI73014F2 significantly inhibited the MIA-induced increase in OA symptoms, synovial fluid cytokine, cartilage damage, and expression levels of pro-inflammatory mediators/cytokines and MMPs in the articular cartilage. These results suggest that LI73014F2 exerts anti-osteoarthritic effects by regulating inflammatory cytokines and MMPs in MIA-induced OA rats.