The emerging literature has suggested essential oils (EOs) as new possible weapons to fight antimicrobial resistance due to their inherent antimicrobial properties. However, the potential pharmaceutical use of EOs is confronted by several limitations, including being non-specific in terms of drug targeting, possessing a high cytotoxicity as well as posing a high risk for causing skin irritation. Furthermore, some EOs have been demonstrated to adversely affect the cellular lipid profiles and permeability of the cell membrane, which may result in undesirable outcomes for the cells. Nevertheless, owing to their naturally complex compositions, EOs still hold undiscovered potential to mitigate antimicrobial resistance, as an alternative to existing antibiotics. To address the issue of overuse in antibiotics for crops which have led to the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance globally, EOs have also been proposed as potential biopesticides. Since the perceived advantages of antimicrobi... [more]

The ability of bacteria to adhere to the intestinal mucosa is a critical property necessary for the long-term colonization of the intestinal tract. This ability can be highly sensitive to the presence of prebiotics. However, limited data are available in this respect for beneficial bacteria such as probiotics or resident gut microbiota. We previously demonstrated that the presence of prebiotics may decrease adherence in several pre- and probiotic combinations. Thus, characterizing the interactions between numerous combinations involving different classes of pre- and probiotics can be crucial in identifying new synbiotics. Accordingly, here, we extend our prior analyses to evaluate the adhesion of five lactobacilli, six bifidobacteria, and one probiotic Escherichia coli strains, as commercial probiotics or promising probiotic candidates, together with the cariogenic Bifidobacterium dentium strain. As an in vitro intestinal mucosa model, Caco-2 and mucin-secreting HT29-MTX cells were co-... [more]

root extracts have been useful for external skin care and have been commercialized for years. Here, a comprehensive study was conducted to investigate the difference between 20% propylene glycol (PG) and water used as the storage solvent for a time course analysis of their remaining biological activities and ingredient compositions versus their freshly prepared conditions. Of the four major components in the 20% PG solvent, more than 80% of the components were retained after storage for two months, but in water only baicalin and wogonin were retained. The relative antibacterial activities, antioxidant properties and anti-inflammatory activities of the 20% PG solvent group were better than those of the water solvent group. Taken together, we demonstrated that these activities improved when PG, a common solvent used in many product formulas, was used as the storage solvent for the S. baicalensis extract.

The utilization of biological resources on the manufacture of nano silver has attracted the interest of researchers to develop an eco-friendly, cost-effective technology in nanomaterials production. In the present study, plant-mediated silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized using aqueous leaf extracts of the Copperpod plant, which was well characterized. The ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometric study showed a maximum absorbance peak at 425 nm, and the observation of transmission electron microscopic features revealed that the nanoparticles size ranged between 20 and 70 nm. The synthesized AgNPs were tested for in vitro cytotoxic effects against cancerous cells, such as HepG2, A549 and MCF-7 cells. The findings showed that the IC50 values of AgNPs against cancerous cells viz., HepG2, MCF-7 and A549 cells, were observed to be 69 µg/mL, 62 µg/mL and 53 µg/mL, respectively. In addition, the apoptosis property was analysed using propidium iodide and acridine orange-ethidium bromide... [more]

In the past 30 years, highly specific drugs, known as antibodies, have conquered the biopharmaceutical market. In addition to monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), antibody fragments are successfully applied. However, recombinant production faces challenges. Process analytical tools for monitoring and controlling production processes are scarce and time-intensive. In the downstream process (DSP), affinity ligands are established as the primary and most important step, while the application of other methods is challenging. The use of these affinity ligands as monitoring tools would enable a platform technology to monitor process steps in the USP and DSP. In this review, we highlight the current applications of affinity ligands (proteins A, G, and L) and discuss further applications as process analytical tools.

Corticosterone (CORT)-induced oxidative stress and neurotoxicity can cause neuronal dysfunction and mental disorders. In the present study, we investigated the effects and mechanism of the HP-20 resin fraction of the water extract of Vaccinium bracteatum leaves (NET-D1602) and its bioactive compound p-coumaric acid on neuronal cell damage in SH-SY5Y cells and primary culture of rat cortical cells. NET-D1602 and p-coumaric acid significantly improved cell viability in CORT-induced neurotoxicity in SH-SY5Y cells and primary cultures of rat cortical cells, and increased the activities of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase and catalase) against CORT-induced neurotoxicity in SH-SY5Y cells. NET-D1602 and p-coumaric acid increased the phosphorylation levels of ERK1/2 and cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB) in cortical neurons. In addition, CREB phosphorylation by NET-D1602 and p-coumaric acid was dramatically reversed by PKA, c-Raf/ERK, PI3K, and mTOR inhibitors. Lastly, we de... [more]

Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) has emerged as a promising biomarker for the early prediction of acute kidney injury (AKI). The production of recombinant NGAL is considered to be necessary for the development of a detection method. This study intended to express the recombinant NGAL protein in 293T cell under the Tet-On inducible system and human serum albumin signal sequence (HSA-SS). The transfection efficiency and protein modulation were assessed by detecting the expression of the enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) and secreted NGAL protein. Both proteins were detected only in the presence of a doxycycline (Dox) inducer. Cell toxicity was not found under any conditions. Moreover, a higher level of soluble NGAL protein in the supernatant secreted by HSA-SS compared with a native signal peptide (Nat-SS) was observed. In summary, this work successfully optimized the conditions for induction of NGAL expression. This system will provide as an efficient strategy t... [more]

Valorising green waste will greatly enhance and promote the sustainable management of this large volume resource. One potential way to achieve this is the extraction of high value human health promoting chemicals (e.g., polyphenols) from this material. Our primary aim was to identify the main polyphenols present in four contrasting green waste feedstocks, namely Smyrnium olusatrum, Urtica dioica, Allium ursinum and Ulex europaeus, using UPLC-HDMSE. Polyphenol-rich Camellia sinensis (green tea) was used as a reference material. Samples were extracted and analysed by UPLC-HDMSE, which was followed by data processing using Progenesis QI and EZ Info. A total of 77 high scoring polyphenolic compounds with reported benefits to human health were tentatively identified in the samples, with abundances varying across the plant types; A. ursinum was seen to be the least abundant in respect to the polyphenols identified, whereas U. europaeus was the most abundant. Important components with a diver... [more]

MicroRNAs orchestrate the tight regulation of numerous cellular processes and the deregulation in their activities has been implicated in many diseases, including diabetes and cancer. There is an increasing amount of epidemiological evidence associating diabetes, particularly type 2 diabetes mellitus, to an elevated risk of various cancer types, including breast cancer. However, little is yet known about the underlying molecular mechanisms and even less about the role miRNAs play in driving the tumorigenic potential of the cell signaling underlying diabetes pathogenesis. This article reviews the role of miRNA in bridging the diabetes−breast cancer association by discussing specific miRNAs that are implicated in diabetes and breast cancer and highlighting the overlap between the disease-specific regulatory miRNA networks to identify a 20-miRNA signature that is common to both diseases. Potential therapeutic targeting of these molecular players may help to alleviate the socioeconomic bur... [more]

Human cytochrome P450 1B1 (CYP1B1) is an extrahepatic heme-containing monooxygenase. CYP1B1 contributes to the oxidative metabolism of xenobiotics, drugs, and endogenous substrates like melatonin, fatty acids, steroid hormones, and retinoids, which are involved in diverse critical cellular functions. CYP1B1 plays an important role in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases, hormone-related cancers and is responsible for anti-cancer drug resistance. Inhibition of CYP1B1 activity is considered as an approach in cancer chemoprevention and cancer chemotherapy. CYP1B1 can activate anti-cancer prodrugs in tumor cells which display overexpression of CYP1B1 in comparison to normal cells. CYP1B1 involvement in carcinogenesis and cancer progression encourages investigation of CYP1B1 interactions with its ligands: substrates and inhibitors. Computational methods, with a simulation of molecular dynamics (MD), allow the observation of molecular interactions at the binding site of CYP1B1, which... [more]

Over- or under-expression of mRNA results from genetic alterations. Comprehensive pathway analyses based on mRNA expression are as important as single gene level mutations. This study aimed to compare the mutation- and mRNA expression-based signaling pathways in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) and to match these with potential drug or druggable pathways. Altogether, 93 recurrent/metastatic HNSCC patients were enrolled. We performed targeted gene sequencing using Illumina HiSeq-2500 for NGS, and nanostring nCounter® for mRNA expression; mRNA expression was classified into over- or under-expression groups based on the expression. We investigated mutational and nanostring data using the CBSJukebox® system, which is a big-data driven platform to analyze druggable pathways, genes, and protein-protein interaction. We calculated a Treatment Benefit Prediction Score (TBPS) to identify suitable drugs. By mapping the high score interaction genes to identify druggable pathways, we f... [more]

Whole-plant corn silages on family farms were sampled in Erdos (S1), Baotou (S2), Ulanqab (S3), and Hohhot (S4) in North China, after 300 d of ensiling. The microbial communities, metabolites, and aerobic stability were assessed. Lactobacillusbuchneri, Acinetobacter johnsonii, and unclassified Novosphingobium were present at greater abundances than others in S2 with greater bacterial diversity and metabolites. Lactobacillus buchneri, Lactobacillus parafarraginis, Lactobacillus kefiri, and unclassified Lactobacillus accounted for 84.5%, and 88.2%, and 98.3% of bacteria in S1, S3, and S4, respectively. The aerobic stability and fungal diversity were greater in S1 and S4 with greater abundances of unclassified Kazachstania, Kazachstania bulderi, Candida xylopsoci, unclassified Cladosporium, Rhizopus microspores, and Candida glabrata than other fungi. The abundances of unclassified Kazachstania in S2 and K. bulderi in S3 were 96.2% and 93.6%, respectively. The main bacterial species in S2... [more]

The controlled application of olive mill wastewater (OMW) as a by-product of the olive oil extraction process is widespread in olive oil-producing countries. Therefore, a sustainable approach necessarily targets the positive effects of soil resilience between successive annual applications to exclude possible accumulations of negative consequences. To investigate this, we applied 50, 100, 100 with tillage and 150 m3 OMW ha−1 y−1 for five consecutive seasons to an olive orchard in a semi-arid region and monitored various soil physicochemical and biological properties. OMW increased soil water content with concentration of total phenols, cations, and anions as well as various biological and soil organic matter indices. Soil hydrophobicity, as measured by water drop penetration time (WDPT), was found to be predominantly in the uppermost layer (0−3 and 3−10 cm). OMW positively affected soil biology, increased the activity and abundance of soil arthropods, and served as a food source for ba... [more]

Bioactive peptides (BPs) released by proteases from different food protein sources are often served as antioxidants in food applications. This study aims to investigate 11 BPs derived from fish and egg white as potential natural antioxidants by antioxidant activity assays. The kinetic activity of the BPs against xanthine oxidase (XOD) and tyrosinase was also analyzed. The antioxidative capacity of the BPs indicated that VWWW (VW4, mackerel meat), followed by IRW (IW3, egg white) and VKAGFAWTANQQLS (VS14, tuna backbone protein), possessed the highest antioxidant activity in 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl radical (DPPH), 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) and reducing power (RP) assays. Both the free-radical scavenging score predicted from the AnOxPePred algorithm and the DPPH, ABTS and RP results indicated that VW4 was the best antioxidant. Furthermore, the XOD and tyrosinase inhibition by three selected peptides exhibited competitive patterns o... [more]

Background: Recently, miRNA-181a2 could be identified as a major regulator of IDH1 expression in fat tissue. The IDH1 gene, its mutation and expression have a major impact on overall survival in patients with glioblastoma. The presented study aimed to investigate the effect of miRNA-181a2 on IDH1 expression in glioblastoma and on the prognosis of patients suffering from, for example, a tumor. Methods: A total of 74 glioblastoma specimens were analyzed for the expression of miRNA-181a2, acquired as fold change, using qRT-PCR. IDH1 protein expression was estimated via mRNA quantification. Eight post mortal, non-glioma related brain tissue specimens served as the control group. The results were correlated with relevant demographic and clinical aspects of the cohort. A TCGA dataset was used as an independent reference. Results: MiRNA-181a2 was significantly downregulated in tumor samples compared to the control group (p < 0.001). In the glioblastoma cohort, 63/74 (85.1%) showed an IDH1... [more]

Guava (Psidium guajava L.), is a fruit considered native to the American tropics. It is of great economic importance in many countries of the world, due to its high production and diversity of products derived from its fruit. It can be consumed fresh or processed. During the fruit’s processing, some residues are generated, such as seeds, rinds, and pulp, which is about 30% of the fresh fruit’s volume. Different studies have shown that it can be used in various industries, such as food, chemical, and pharmaceutical. By-products or processing residues have valuable components. Evidence indicates that it contains significant amounts of dietary fiber (soluble and insoluble), vitamins (A, B, C, β-carotene), essential oils, minerals, proteins (transferrin, ceruloplasmin, albumin), pectins, antioxidants (flavonoids, flavonols, condensed tannins) and volatile organic compounds; these elements can help in the prevention of chronic and degenerative diseases. P. guajava L. is considered a nutrace... [more]

One of the Korean endemic plants, Abeliophyllum distichum Nakai (Oleaceae), contains acteoside, which is a glycoside exhibiting neuroprotective, anti-inflammation effects and antibacterial capacities. We conducted an investigation on the effects of the callus of A. distichum (cultivar Okhwang 1, CAO) on pro-inflammatory mediators released following nuclear factor-кB (NF-кB), phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt (PI3K-Akt) and mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signal activation in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW 264.7 cells. Immunoblotting was employed to find out the expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), inducible nitric oxide (iNOS), and activation of MAPK molecules, NF-κB and Akt. Cytokines, COX-2, and iNOS gene expression were assessed using polymerase chain reaction techniques. Cytokines, COX-2, and iNOS gene expression were assessed using polymerase chain reaction techniques. High-performance liquid chromatography revealed that CAO was rich in acteoside and isoacteoside.... [more]

External stimulation of the skin by ultraviolet B (UVB) radiation induces oxidative stress or inflammation, causing skin aging and skin cancer. Glycyrrhiza uralensis (licorice) has been used as a medicinal plant for its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antimicrobial, anticarcinogenic, and hepatoprotective properties. The present study analyzed the effects of thermal processing on the bioactivities of licorice. Heat-treated licorice (HL) extracts had better antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities than non-treated licorice (NL) extract. HL extracts also had higher total phenol contents than NL extract. In particular, contents of isoliquiritigenin, an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory substance of licorice, increased in proportion to the skin-protection effects of HL extracts. Heat treatment increased the contents of phenolic compounds such as isoliquiritigenin in licorice extract, which improved the UV photoprotective effect of licorice in human dermal fibroblasts.

Microbial fuel cells (MFC) are an emerging technology for waste, wastewater and polluted soil treatment. In this manuscript, pollutants that can be treated using MFC systems producing energy are presented. Furthermore, the applicability of MFC in environmental monitoring is described. Common microbial species used, release of genome sequences, and gene regulation mechanisms, are discussed. However, although scaling-up is the key to improving MFC systems, it is still a difficult challenge. Mathematical models for MFCs are used for their design, control and optimization. Such models representing the system are presented here. In such comprehensive models, microbial growth kinetic approaches are essential to designing and predicting a biosystem. The empirical and unstructured Monod and Monod-type models, which are traditionally used, are also described here. Understanding and modelling of the gene regulatory network could be a solution for enhancing knowledge and designing more efficient... [more]

‘Wonderful’ pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) peel is rich in phytochemicals which are responsible for its strong antioxidant and antimicrobial activities, but it has low economic value as it is mainly discarded, causing an environmental waste management problem. To examine the best processing regime for pomegranate peel wastes, different solvents (ethanol, methanol and acetone) at various concentrations (50%, 70% and 100%) and blanching at 60, 80 and 100 °C for 1, 3 and 5 min, for each temperature, were tested. Ethanol at 70% (v/v) provided the highest extract yield, total phenolic and total tannin content at 29.46%, 10.61 ± 0.15, and 0.76 ± 0.02 mg GAE/g DM, respectively. Antioxidant activity using the 2,2 diphenyl-1-picryl hydrazyl assay (DPPH), ferric-reducing antioxidant power assay (FRAP) and 2,2-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid assay (ABTS) were reported at 243.97 ± 2.43, 478.04 ± 73.98 and 718.79 ± 2.42 µmol Trolox/g DM, respectively. A blanching temperature of... [more]

The spontaneous enrichment of anammox bacteria has been reported in swine wastewater treatment facilities. However, their causative conditions and microbial characteristics, which this study aims to explain, are poorly understood. We discovered eight treatment facilities where the collected red biofilms exhibited high anammox activity levels at 57−843 µmol-N2/g-ignition loss (IL)/h and anammox DNA concentrations of 4.3 × 108−1.6 × 1012 copies/g-IL. The facilities used various wastewater treatment methods—six of them employed a multi-stage continuous reactor, whereas aeration tanks were continuously aerated at another combination of six facilities. Levels of dissolved oxygen (DO) in these tanks were fairly low at ≤1 mg/L. Pyrosequencing of the biofilms indicated the presence of 3−62.5% Planctomycetes, and the dominant anammox in each biofilm comprised three operational taxonomic units (OTUs) similar to Candidatus Jettenia asiatica, Ca. Brocadia fulgida, and Ca. B. caroliniensis. This su... [more]

This study aims to determine the physicochemical quality of seagrape (Caulerpa lentillifera) as a freshness label for products cultivated in different seasons. The applied post-harvest storage experiments compared between, within and without seawater that led to oxidative stress conditions. Water content, malondialdehyde (MDA) compound, total phenolic content (TPC), and chlorophyll content were observed at 0, 3, 6, and 9 days of storage. The storage without seawater showed sharper quality reductions by reaching 20−40% of water loss, 70−90% of MDA production, 15−25% of TPC reduction, and 40−60% of total chlorophyll degradation. The storage within seawater showed lower quality reductions due to the specific growth rates still reaching 5−10%. This study found that the greater the physicochemical quality, the slower the decomposition rates of the stored seagrape during storage. Therefore, the seagrapes’ obvious discoloration occurred earlier in winter, followed by summer and spring. Kineti... [more]

The synthesis of mixed-ligand complexes is considered an important strategy for developing new metal complexes of enhanced biological activity. This paper presents the synthesis, characterization, in vitro antimicrobial assessment, and theoretical molecular docking evaluation for synthesized oxidovanadium (V) complexes. The proposed structures of the synthesized compounds were proved using elemental and different spectroscopic analysis. The antimicrobial tests showed moderate activity of the compounds against the Gram-positive bacterial strains and the fungal yeast, whereas no activity was observed against the Gram-negative bacterial strains. The performance of density functional theory (DFT) was conducted to study the interaction mode of the targeted compounds with the biological system. Calculating the quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSPR) was performed depending on optimization geometries, frontier molecular orbitals (FMOs), and chemical reactivities for synthesized co... [more]

The non-enzymatic synthesis of N-benzyloxycarbonyl-L-phenylalanyl-L-leucine (Cbz-Phe-Leu) from lipophilic N-benzyloxycarbonyl-L-phenylalanine (Cbz-Phe) and hydrophilic L-leucine (Leu), by N, N’-dicyclohexylcarbodiimide (DCC) as a condensing agent, was carried out using a reversed micellar system composed of bis(2-ethylhexyl) sodium sulfosuccinate (AOT) as a surfactant and isooctane. We successfully synthesized Cbz-Phe-Leu in a short time and investigated the effects of its operational conditions, the DCC concentration, w0, and the pH on the kinetic parameters and the maximum yields. For dipeptide synthesis, we had to add an excess of DCC with the substrates because of the side reactions of Cbz-Phe. From the pH dependency of the reactivity, a partially cationic form of Leu was better for a synthesis reaction because of the enrichment of Leu at the interface by anionic AOT. The optimum water content on the dipeptide synthesis was w0 = 28 due to the competition of the peptide synthesis an... [more]

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) regulate gene expression by binding to complementary sequences within target mRNAs. Apart from working ‘solo’, miRNAs may interact in important molecular networks such as competing endogenous RNA (ceRNA) axes. By competing for a limited pool of miRNAs, transcripts such as long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and mRNAs can regulate each other, fine-tuning gene expression. Several ceRNA networks led by different lncRNAs—described here as lncRNA-mediated ceRNAs—seem to play essential roles in cervical cancer (CC). By conducting an extensive search, we summarized networks involved in CC, highlighting the major impacts of such dynamic molecular changes over multiple cellular processes. Through the sponging of distinct miRNAs, some lncRNAs as HOTAIR, MALAT1, NEAT1, OIP5-AS1, and XIST trigger crucial molecular changes, ultimately increasing cell proliferation, migration, invasion, and inhibiting apoptosis. Likewise, several lncRNAs seem to be a sponge for important tumor-suppressi... [more]