Existing status and future advancements of adulteration detection techniques in herbal products.

BACKGROUND: Herbal products have been commonly used all over the world for centuries. Its products have gained remarkable acceptance as therapeutic agents for a variety of disorders. However, following recent research disclosing discrepancies between labeling and actual components of herbal products, there is growing concern about the efficacy, quality and safety of the products. The admixture and adulteration of herbal medicinal products pose a risk of serious health compromise and the well-being of the consumers. To prevent adulteration in raw ingredients and final herbal products, it is necessary to use approaches to assess both genomes as well as metabolomics of the products; this offers quality assurance in terms of product identification and purity. The combinations of molecular and analytical methods are inevitable for thorough verification and quality control of herbal medicine. METHODS AND RESULTS: This review discusses the combination of DNA barcoding, DNA metabarcoding, mass spectroscopy as well as HPLC for the authentication of herbal medicine and determination of the level of adulteration. It also discusses the roles of PCR and real-time PCR techniques in validating and ensuring the quality, purity and identity of the herbal products. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, each technique has its own pros and cons, but the cumulative of both the chemical and molecular methods is proven to be the best strategy for adulteration detection. Moreover, CRISPR diagnosis tools equipped with multiplexing techniques may be implemented for screening adulteration from herbal drugs, this will play a crucial role in herbal product authentication in the future.

Phylogenetic implications and secondary structure analyses of Vigna mungo (L.) Hepper genotypes based on nrDNA ITS2 sequences.

The internal transcribed spacers are highly preferred nuclear markers for the phylogenetic assessment of most eukaryotes, including plants. More recently, ITS2 has shown to possess equivalent phylogenetic significance as the entire ITS region. Vigna mungo L. Hepper is comparatively less explored from the molecular aspects as compared to the other species of the Vigna genus. The study presents the intra-individual characterization of 24 distinct genotypes Vigna mungo L. Hepper, using morphological as well as nrDNA ITS2 sequences and secondary structural data. The morphological characterization has been carried out using nine important agro-morphological traits. The molecular phylogeny of the sequence data, using the maximum parsimony and neighbor joining methods, shows the significant distinction based on the haplotypic variations amongst blackgram genotypes. The ITS2 secondary structures predicted using the homology modeling approach were compatible with the eukaryote-universal ITS2 secondary structure. The sequence-structure phylogeny reconstructed using the profile neighbour joining approach, also showed the presence of haplotypic variations in form of clusters on the phylogenetic tree. Further, the high GC content in the sequence data and highly negative ΔG values of the folded secondary structures ruled out the possibilities of the presence of any pseudogenes in the data set. Our analysis recommends the use of ITS2 sequence and secondary structure data at the intraspecific levels of plant taxonomical classification. Moreover, this study for the very first time reports the combined use morphological, and molecular data (using ITS2 sequence and secondary structural information) for the characterization of plants at the varietal level of taxonomical classification.

DNA barcoding and traditional taxonomy: an integrated approach for biodiversity conservation.

Biological diversity is depleting at an alarming rate. Additionally, a vast amount of biodiversity still remains undiscovered. Taxonomy has been serving the purpose of describing, naming, and classifying species for more than 250 years. DNA taxonomy and barcoding have accelerated the rate of this process, thereby providing a tool for conservation practice. DNA barcoding and traditional taxonomy have their own inherent merits and demerits. The synergistic use of both methods, in the form of integrative taxonomy, has the potential to contribute to biodiversity conservation in a pragmatic timeframe and overcome their individual drawbacks. In this review, we discuss the basics of both these methods of biological identification (traditional taxonomy and DNA barcoding), the technical advances in integrative taxonomy, and future trends. We also present a comprehensive compilation of published examples of integrative taxonomy that refer to nine topics within biodiversity conservation. Morphological and molecular species limits were observed to be congruent in ∼41% of the 58 source studies. The majority of the studies highlighted the description of cryptic diversity through the use of molecular data, whereas research areas like endemism, biological invasion, and threatened species were less discussed in the literature.

Identification of a Herbal Powder by Deoxyribonucleic Acid Barcoding and Structural Analyses.

BACKGROUND: Authentic identification of plants is essential for exploiting their medicinal properties as well as to stop the adulteration and malpractices with the trade of the same. OBJECTIVE: To identify a herbal powder obtained from a herbalist in the local vicinity of Rajkot, Gujarat, using deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) barcoding and molecular tools. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The DNA was extracted from a herbal powder and selected Cassia species, followed by the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing of the rbcL barcode locus. Thereafter the sequences were subjected to National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) basic local alignment search tool (BLAST) analysis, followed by the protein three-dimension structure determination of the rbcL protein from the herbal powder and Cassia species namely Cassia fistula, Cassia tora and Cassia javanica (sequences obtained in the present study), Cassia Roxburghii, and Cassia abbreviata (sequences retrieved from Genbank). Further, the multiple and pairwise structural alignment were carried out in order to identify the herbal powder. RESULTS: The nucleotide sequences obtained from the selected species of Cassia were submitted to Genbank (Accession No. JX141397, JX141405, JX141420). The NCBI BLAST analysis of the rbcL protein from the herbal powder showed an equal sequence similarity (with reference to different parameters like E value, maximum identity, total score, query coverage) to C. javanica and C. roxburghii. In order to solve the ambiguities of the BLAST result, a protein structural approach was implemented. The protein homology models obtained in the present study were submitted to the protein model database (PM0079748-PM0079753). The pairwise structural alignment of the herbal powder (as template) and C. javanica and C. roxburghii (as targets individually) revealed a close similarity of the herbal powder with C. javanica. CONCLUSION: A strategy as used here, incorporating the integrated use of DNA barcoding and protein structural analyses could be adopted, as a novel rapid and economic procedure, especially in cases when protein coding loci are considered. SUMMARY: Authentic identification of plants is essential for exploiting their medicinal properties as well as to stop the adulteration and malpractices with the trade of the same. A herbal powder was obtained from a herbalist in the local vicinity of Rajkot, Gujarat. An integrated approach using DNA barcoding and structural analyses was carried out to identify the herbal powder. The herbal powder was identified as Cassia javanica L.

Scientific retraction: a synonym for pseudoscience? / Retractación científica: un sinónimo de seudociencia? / Retratação científica: um sinônimo de pseudociência?

The phenomenon of scientific retraction is a shameful act for the scientific community, but a necessity to maintain the purity of science. The two main causes for retractions include plagiarism and research misconduct. The post retraction citation of articles is again a repetition of inappropriateness. Hence the editorial, peer review policies should be revised and the retractions should be publicized more to avoid the citation of the invalid literature. Also, the scientific readership has a responsibility to evaluate the scientific validity of published studies.

El fenómeno de la retractación científica constituye una vergüenza para la comunidad científica, pero es necesario para mantener la pureza de la ciencia. Las dos causas principales de retractación son el plagio y faltas en la conducta de investigación. La citación de artículos posterior a su retractación es, de nuevo, una repetición inapropiada. Por lo tanto, la editorial y las normas de evaluación por pares debieran revisarse y las retractaciones publicarse más para evitar las citaciones de literatura inválida. También los lectores científicos tienen la responsabilidad de evaluar la validez científica de los estudios publicados.

O fenômeno de retratação científica é uma vergonhosa atitude para a comunidade científica, mas uma necessidade para manter a pureza da ciência. As duas principais causas para a retratação incluem o plágio e a má conduta na pesquisa. A citação após retratação de artigos é novamente uma repetida inadequação. Daí porque o editorial e a política de revisão por pares devem ser revistas e as retratações deveriam ser mais divulgadas para evitar uma citação inválida da literatura. Ademais, o revisor científico tem uma responsabilidade de avaliar a validade científica dos estudos publicados.

Plant systems biology: insights, advances and challenges.

Plants dwelling at the base of biological food chain are of fundamental significance in providing solutions to some of the most daunting ecological and environmental problems faced by our planet. The reductionist views of molecular biology provide only a partial understanding to the phenotypic knowledge of plants. Systems biology offers a comprehensive view of plant systems, by employing a holistic approach integrating the molecular data at various hierarchical levels. In this review, we discuss the basics of systems biology including the various 'omics' approaches and their integration, the modeling aspects and the tools needed for the plant systems research. A particular emphasis is given to the recent analytical advances, updated published examples of plant systems biology studies and the future trends.