I. Abd-Elsalam, N. Allam, Samia A. Shabana, Mohamed Hegab, Shaimaa Abdel Kawy
Background and objectives Microbial bioconversion of phytosterols produces many compounds especially steroid intermediate hormones. One of the most important transformation reactions is side chain degradation of sterols especially phytosterols β-sitosterol to androstenedione (AD), and androstadienedione (ADD). These compounds are considered to be critical intermediates in the preparation of testosterone, estrogen hormones. The main objective is to study the bioconversion of some agriculture wastes as a cheap source of phytosterols to more valuable products AD and ADD. Materials and methods In the present study, phytosterols of some agriculture products especially soybean, rice bran, and wheat bran were used as a substrate for the production of both AD and ADD using locally isolated bacterial strain. Different physiological and biochemical factors were tested as well as qualitative and quantitative estimation of the transformation products were carried out according to a previously recorded method. Results and discussion The results showed that screening experiments were carried out to investigate the ability of 12 bacterial isolates to transform plant agriculture wastes phytosterols into steroid hormone intermediates AD and ADD. The results also indicated that only four strains possess this ability. One of which was selected to complete this study according to its high AD and ADD productivity. Different physiological and biochemical tests involving catalase, oxidase, coagulase, indole production, urease, citrate and voges-proskauer, type of the agriculture waste, moisture content, parentage of the waste as well as some additives were tested. The results showed that the best bioconversion (3.98 and 3.37 mg/100 ml of both AD and ADD, respectively) were obtained by using soybean − what bran mixture at a ratio of 1 : 1. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of the transformation products were investigated. The phylogenic analysis was carried out and the results indicated that the new strain referred to is Ochrobactrum anthropi, which is first recorded to be a phytosterol transformer. Conclusion The study has indicated that the newly isolated bacterial strain Ochrobactrum is first recorded to perform the side chain degradation of phytosterols presented in soybean and wheat bran to AD and ADD under the above-selected fermentation conditions.
{"title":"Novel bacterial isolates used for the bioconversion of some agriculture wastes into important steroid hormones","authors":"I. Abd-Elsalam, N. Allam, Samia A. Shabana, Mohamed Hegab, Shaimaa Abdel Kawy","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_78_21","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_78_21","url":null,"abstract":"Background and objectives Microbial bioconversion of phytosterols produces many compounds especially steroid intermediate hormones. One of the most important transformation reactions is side chain degradation of sterols especially phytosterols β-sitosterol to androstenedione (AD), and androstadienedione (ADD). These compounds are considered to be critical intermediates in the preparation of testosterone, estrogen hormones. The main objective is to study the bioconversion of some agriculture wastes as a cheap source of phytosterols to more valuable products AD and ADD. Materials and methods In the present study, phytosterols of some agriculture products especially soybean, rice bran, and wheat bran were used as a substrate for the production of both AD and ADD using locally isolated bacterial strain. Different physiological and biochemical factors were tested as well as qualitative and quantitative estimation of the transformation products were carried out according to a previously recorded method. Results and discussion The results showed that screening experiments were carried out to investigate the ability of 12 bacterial isolates to transform plant agriculture wastes phytosterols into steroid hormone intermediates AD and ADD. The results also indicated that only four strains possess this ability. One of which was selected to complete this study according to its high AD and ADD productivity. Different physiological and biochemical tests involving catalase, oxidase, coagulase, indole production, urease, citrate and voges-proskauer, type of the agriculture waste, moisture content, parentage of the waste as well as some additives were tested. The results showed that the best bioconversion (3.98 and 3.37 mg/100 ml of both AD and ADD, respectively) were obtained by using soybean − what bran mixture at a ratio of 1 : 1. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of the transformation products were investigated. The phylogenic analysis was carried out and the results indicated that the new strain referred to is Ochrobactrum anthropi, which is first recorded to be a phytosterol transformer. Conclusion The study has indicated that the newly isolated bacterial strain Ochrobactrum is first recorded to perform the side chain degradation of phytosterols presented in soybean and wheat bran to AD and ADD under the above-selected fermentation conditions.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"134 - 142"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43971616","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background and objective Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) represent a source of airborne bacteria. The presence of airborne bacteria in the environment of WWTPs could be considered as a potential health hazard for the exposed workers. This study aimed to isolate and identify cultivable bacteria from bioaerosols of different sites in a WWTP using 16S rRNA gene identification, as a first step to identify the pathogenic health hazards among the exposed workers. Materials and methods Air samples were collected from various locations in a selected WWTP. Airborne microorganism samples were collected on the nutrient agar plates by the settle-plate technique and were identified by the 16S rRNA gene sequencing technique. Results A total of 32 bacterial isolates were collected and sequenced. The study identified 25 different bacterial species. Of the 25 different strains, 10 (40%) belonged to pathogenic bacteria. Overall, 40% of the isolated pathogenic species were from the secretary room locations. The isolated bacterial species were Staphylococcus sp., Bacillus sp., Rhodococcus sp., Cellulosimicrobium funkei, Kytococcus sedentarius, and Kocuria rosea. The highest percentage occurrence was Bacillus sp. (37.5%), followed by Staphylococcus sp. (18.75%). Conclusions Disseminated infection can be associated with isolated pathogen, and this result gives a warning of the danger of the spread of pathogenic aerobic bacteria in WWTPs and their existence in indoor environments.
{"title":"16S rRNA gene identification of airborne pathogenic bacteria isolated from bioaerosols of wastewater treatment plant","authors":"G. Moubarz, A. Saad-Hussein, Asmaa M. Elfiky","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_27_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_27_22","url":null,"abstract":"Background and objective Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) represent a source of airborne bacteria. The presence of airborne bacteria in the environment of WWTPs could be considered as a potential health hazard for the exposed workers. This study aimed to isolate and identify cultivable bacteria from bioaerosols of different sites in a WWTP using 16S rRNA gene identification, as a first step to identify the pathogenic health hazards among the exposed workers. Materials and methods Air samples were collected from various locations in a selected WWTP. Airborne microorganism samples were collected on the nutrient agar plates by the settle-plate technique and were identified by the 16S rRNA gene sequencing technique. Results A total of 32 bacterial isolates were collected and sequenced. The study identified 25 different bacterial species. Of the 25 different strains, 10 (40%) belonged to pathogenic bacteria. Overall, 40% of the isolated pathogenic species were from the secretary room locations. The isolated bacterial species were Staphylococcus sp., Bacillus sp., Rhodococcus sp., Cellulosimicrobium funkei, Kytococcus sedentarius, and Kocuria rosea. The highest percentage occurrence was Bacillus sp. (37.5%), followed by Staphylococcus sp. (18.75%). Conclusions Disseminated infection can be associated with isolated pathogen, and this result gives a warning of the danger of the spread of pathogenic aerobic bacteria in WWTPs and their existence in indoor environments.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"214 - 222"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43070711","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
O. Mboso, I. Iwara, Rukesh Maharjan, F. Uboh, E. Eyong
Background and objective Eremomastax speciosa and Eremomastax polysperma plants potentially contain bioactive principles against reproductive toxicants and oxidative stress. Thus, the ameliorative action of methanol and ethyl acetate fractions of E. speciosa and E. polysperma leaves on cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and oxidative-stressed states in indomethacin-induced rat tissues have been performed. Materials and methods The dried-leaf extract of E .speciosa and E. polysperma was subjected to liquid–liquid fractionation to obtain the ethyl acetate and methanol fractions. The ethyl acetate and methanol fractions were respectively administered orally to rats (200 mg/kg), 30 min, and 10 h after subcutaneous injection with indomethacin (5 mg/kg) for 4 days. The postadministration of E. speciosa and E. polysperma fractions was used to determine their effect on ovarian and serum COX-2 concentration, ovarian malondialdehyde, and ovarian nitric oxide concentrations. Results and conclusion E. speciosa and E. polysperma fractions significantly (P<0.05) increased the concentration of COX-2 in ovaries and serum compared with the group treated with indomethacin only. Malondialdehyde and nitric oxide concentrations were significantly (P<0.05) decreased in all the animal groups posttreated with plant fractions compared with indomethacin only. Histological assessment of the ovary showed proliferating ovarian follicles and mature Graafian follicles in the groups treated with the plant fractions, while the indomethacin-only group showed scanty primary follicles. These results showed that E. speciosa and E. polysperma leaf fractions mediated their protective effect on the ovaries and serum through the regulated COX-2 action and inhibited indomethacin-induced oxidative stress.
{"title":"Eremomastax speciosa and Eremomastax polysperma leaf fractions ameliorate the adverse effects of indomethacin in ovary and serum of treated rats","authors":"O. Mboso, I. Iwara, Rukesh Maharjan, F. Uboh, E. Eyong","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_67_21","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_67_21","url":null,"abstract":"Background and objective Eremomastax speciosa and Eremomastax polysperma plants potentially contain bioactive principles against reproductive toxicants and oxidative stress. Thus, the ameliorative action of methanol and ethyl acetate fractions of E. speciosa and E. polysperma leaves on cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and oxidative-stressed states in indomethacin-induced rat tissues have been performed. Materials and methods The dried-leaf extract of E .speciosa and E. polysperma was subjected to liquid–liquid fractionation to obtain the ethyl acetate and methanol fractions. The ethyl acetate and methanol fractions were respectively administered orally to rats (200 mg/kg), 30 min, and 10 h after subcutaneous injection with indomethacin (5 mg/kg) for 4 days. The postadministration of E. speciosa and E. polysperma fractions was used to determine their effect on ovarian and serum COX-2 concentration, ovarian malondialdehyde, and ovarian nitric oxide concentrations. Results and conclusion E. speciosa and E. polysperma fractions significantly (P<0.05) increased the concentration of COX-2 in ovaries and serum compared with the group treated with indomethacin only. Malondialdehyde and nitric oxide concentrations were significantly (P<0.05) decreased in all the animal groups posttreated with plant fractions compared with indomethacin only. Histological assessment of the ovary showed proliferating ovarian follicles and mature Graafian follicles in the groups treated with the plant fractions, while the indomethacin-only group showed scanty primary follicles. These results showed that E. speciosa and E. polysperma leaf fractions mediated their protective effect on the ovaries and serum through the regulated COX-2 action and inhibited indomethacin-induced oxidative stress.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"109 - 116"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47822610","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tawfeek H. Abdelhafez, M. Khattab, Ahmed Temirak, Y. Shaker, Sherifa M. Abu Bakr, E. Abbas, Sarah H M Khairat, Mona A. Abdullaziz, Ahmed El Rashidi, Reham A. Mohamed-Ezzat, S. Galal, Passant E. Moustafa, Sally A El Awdan, Hamed Ali, W. El-Eraky, M. E. El Awady, Hoda I El Diwani
Abstract Background Chronic hepatitis C can cause serious, even deadly, health problems like cirrhosis and liver cancer. There is no vaccine for hepatitis C. The hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS5B gene encodes RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, which is a key player in viral replication and is a promising target for the development of antiviral drugs. Drugs having benzimidazole and quinoxaline scaffolds were described to selectively block the activity of NS5B polymerase. New antiviral drugs have to be developed to overcome drug resistance. Objective The main goal of this work was to develop new effective anti-bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) and anti-HCV agents by designing and synthesizing benzimidazole and quinoxaline derivatives. Materials and methods Synthesis of target compounds based on benzimidazole and quinoxaline scaffolds according to reported methods was done. Antiviral activity against BVDV was studied. BVDV and Madin-Darby bovine kidney cells were obtained from the American Type Culture Collection. Antiviral activity against HCV infectious system was evaluated. Huh7.5.1 cells were cultured and treated with different concentrations of studied compounds. GOLD molecular docking study was evaluated. The crystal structures of the HCV polymerases in complex with its co-crystalized native ligand were retrieved from the Protein Data Bank. Acute toxicity studies were carried out on animals. Results and conclusion A rational design based on the previous work was performed to indicate new promising benzimidazole and quinoxaline derivatives to be synthesized and tested as anti-HCV compounds. New benzimidazole and quinoxaline derivatives were synthesized and tested for anti-BVDV activity. All of the compounds showed strong activity against BVDV, except 17, which exhibited moderate antiviral activity. Compounds 12 and 13 were the most promising. The anti-HCV activity of 12 and 13 was investigated after infection of Huh 7.5.1 cells with HCV (JFH1). The IC50 values of 12 and 13 were found to be 19.1 and 49.4 μM, respectively; their CC50 values were 752.25 and 1480 μM, respectively; and their SI were calculated to be 39.3 for 12 and 30.03 for 13. The assigned compounds were docked into the hepatitis-C virus polymerase enzyme (pdb: 3FRZ) using GOLD 5.2.2 docking program. They revealed GoldScore fitness activities of 69.78–80.71, which is comparable to the native ‘PF-00868554’ ligand as a potent HCV polymerase inhibitor. They are bound by up to three hydrogen bonds, mainly with aminoacids R422 and S476, as well as they were embedded into the two small hydrophobic pockets formed by amino acid residues including L419, M423, L482,and L497. The acute toxicity of compound 12 on rats was tested. No signs of toxicity, no deaths, and no significant changes were observed in the biochemical parameters of liver and kidneys.
{"title":"Design and synthesis of antivirals benzimidazoles and quinoxalines","authors":"Tawfeek H. Abdelhafez, M. Khattab, Ahmed Temirak, Y. Shaker, Sherifa M. Abu Bakr, E. Abbas, Sarah H M Khairat, Mona A. Abdullaziz, Ahmed El Rashidi, Reham A. Mohamed-Ezzat, S. Galal, Passant E. Moustafa, Sally A El Awdan, Hamed Ali, W. El-Eraky, M. E. El Awady, Hoda I El Diwani","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_13_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_13_22","url":null,"abstract":"Abstract Background Chronic hepatitis C can cause serious, even deadly, health problems like cirrhosis and liver cancer. There is no vaccine for hepatitis C. The hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS5B gene encodes RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, which is a key player in viral replication and is a promising target for the development of antiviral drugs. Drugs having benzimidazole and quinoxaline scaffolds were described to selectively block the activity of NS5B polymerase. New antiviral drugs have to be developed to overcome drug resistance. Objective The main goal of this work was to develop new effective anti-bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) and anti-HCV agents by designing and synthesizing benzimidazole and quinoxaline derivatives. Materials and methods Synthesis of target compounds based on benzimidazole and quinoxaline scaffolds according to reported methods was done. Antiviral activity against BVDV was studied. BVDV and Madin-Darby bovine kidney cells were obtained from the American Type Culture Collection. Antiviral activity against HCV infectious system was evaluated. Huh7.5.1 cells were cultured and treated with different concentrations of studied compounds. GOLD molecular docking study was evaluated. The crystal structures of the HCV polymerases in complex with its co-crystalized native ligand were retrieved from the Protein Data Bank. Acute toxicity studies were carried out on animals. Results and conclusion A rational design based on the previous work was performed to indicate new promising benzimidazole and quinoxaline derivatives to be synthesized and tested as anti-HCV compounds. New benzimidazole and quinoxaline derivatives were synthesized and tested for anti-BVDV activity. All of the compounds showed strong activity against BVDV, except 17, which exhibited moderate antiviral activity. Compounds 12 and 13 were the most promising. The anti-HCV activity of 12 and 13 was investigated after infection of Huh 7.5.1 cells with HCV (JFH1). The IC50 values of 12 and 13 were found to be 19.1 and 49.4 μM, respectively; their CC50 values were 752.25 and 1480 μM, respectively; and their SI were calculated to be 39.3 for 12 and 30.03 for 13. The assigned compounds were docked into the hepatitis-C virus polymerase enzyme (pdb: 3FRZ) using GOLD 5.2.2 docking program. They revealed GoldScore fitness activities of 69.78–80.71, which is comparable to the native ‘PF-00868554’ ligand as a potent HCV polymerase inhibitor. They are bound by up to three hydrogen bonds, mainly with aminoacids R422 and S476, as well as they were embedded into the two small hydrophobic pockets formed by amino acid residues including L419, M423, L482,and L497. The acute toxicity of compound 12 on rats was tested. No signs of toxicity, no deaths, and no significant changes were observed in the biochemical parameters of liver and kidneys.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"249 - 271"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45259069","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Amal Aboelmaaty, S. Omara, M. Aly, Mohamed Kotp, Amal Ali
Background and objectives The emerging nanotechnology-prepared medications and their applications in industrial and medical fields have gained great progress. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) synthesized by the green method using the Thymus vulgaris plant extract against the most common pathogenic bacteria causing endometritis in horses (Escherichia coli) and E. coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Materials and methods Uterine swabs from mares (n=50) with clinical endometritis were collected for isolating the pathogenic bacteria. A total of 40 Wistar rats were divided equally into control (n=10), LPS (n=10; 10 mg/kg body weight), ZnO-NPs (n=10; 50 mg/kg body weight), and LPS+ZnO-NPs (n=10). ZnO-NPs were administered for 4 days and the LPS on the fourth day. Histopathological and ultrastructures of liver, kidney, and testes were obtained. Blood samples were collected for measuring superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, and testosterone. Results and conclusion ZnO-NPs of 15–30 nm showed antimicrobial effectiveness against the isolated multidrug-resistant E. coli. The LD50 for ZnO-NPs was 2000 mg/kg body weight. The histopathological changes showed massive damage to the seminiferous tubules, liver, and kidney of LPS-treated rats, which was reversed to a great extent by preadministration of ZnO-NPs. The activity of SOD was high in LPS and ZnO-NPs, but the LPS+ZnO-NPs and the controls had the lowest SOD activity. LPS and LPS+ZnO-NPs decreased malondialdehyde concentrations. LPS decreased NO, but ZnO-NPs restored control values. Testosterone declined after LPS administration, with no observed changes in the rats treated with ZnO-NPs or LPS+ZnO-NPs. ZnO-NPs proved dual actions of antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory. Short course and suitable dose should be investigated to avoid its cytotoxicity effects to vital organs.
{"title":"The antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects of zinc oxide nanoparticles synthesized by Thymus vulgaris medicinal plant against Escherichia coli and Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharides","authors":"Amal Aboelmaaty, S. Omara, M. Aly, Mohamed Kotp, Amal Ali","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_98_21","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_98_21","url":null,"abstract":"Background and objectives The emerging nanotechnology-prepared medications and their applications in industrial and medical fields have gained great progress. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) synthesized by the green method using the Thymus vulgaris plant extract against the most common pathogenic bacteria causing endometritis in horses (Escherichia coli) and E. coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Materials and methods Uterine swabs from mares (n=50) with clinical endometritis were collected for isolating the pathogenic bacteria. A total of 40 Wistar rats were divided equally into control (n=10), LPS (n=10; 10 mg/kg body weight), ZnO-NPs (n=10; 50 mg/kg body weight), and LPS+ZnO-NPs (n=10). ZnO-NPs were administered for 4 days and the LPS on the fourth day. Histopathological and ultrastructures of liver, kidney, and testes were obtained. Blood samples were collected for measuring superoxide dismutase (SOD), malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, and testosterone. Results and conclusion ZnO-NPs of 15–30 nm showed antimicrobial effectiveness against the isolated multidrug-resistant E. coli. The LD50 for ZnO-NPs was 2000 mg/kg body weight. The histopathological changes showed massive damage to the seminiferous tubules, liver, and kidney of LPS-treated rats, which was reversed to a great extent by preadministration of ZnO-NPs. The activity of SOD was high in LPS and ZnO-NPs, but the LPS+ZnO-NPs and the controls had the lowest SOD activity. LPS and LPS+ZnO-NPs decreased malondialdehyde concentrations. LPS decreased NO, but ZnO-NPs restored control values. Testosterone declined after LPS administration, with no observed changes in the rats treated with ZnO-NPs or LPS+ZnO-NPs. ZnO-NPs proved dual actions of antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory. Short course and suitable dose should be investigated to avoid its cytotoxicity effects to vital organs.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"153 - 166"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"43139914","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
W. Elkhateeb, A. Hamdan, T. Zendo, N. Ishibashi, G. Daba, Y. Tashiro, K. Sonomoto
Background and objective Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are generous producers of many industrially important products. Of these products, optically pure lactic acid is of great value as it is essential for production of highly crystalline poly-lactic acid, which is the most widely used biodegradable synthetic polymer. Hence, this study aimed to screen for thermotolerant LAB from a new source, which is fresh water samples collected from the coast of the Nile River, Egypt, and then evaluate their ability to produce optically pure L-lactic acid. Materials and methods LAB strains were isolated at 50°C and evaluated for producing optically pure L-lactic acid using high-performance liquid chromatography and BF-5. Effects of medium containing different sugar sources, incubation temperature, and initial pH of the medium on the purity and productivity of L-lactic acid were also studied. Results and discussion All obtained isolates were capable of producing optically pure L-lactic acid on different sugar sources. Changing the incubation temperature to 30°C positively affected both productivity and optical purity, which reached 5.0 g/l of 100% optically pure L-lactic acid. On the contrary, pH of the medium was confirmed to be also one of the major factors affecting productivity and optical purity of obtained L-lactic acid. For our isolates, pH 7.0 was the optimum one for the production process. The four promising producers of 100% optically pure L-lactic acid were molecularly identified as Lactiplantibacillus sp. Conclusion This is the first study describing the evaluation of the ability of fresh water LAB isolated from the Nile River to produce optically pure L-lactic acid.
{"title":"Evaluation of fresh water lactic acid bacteria for production of optically pure L-(+)-lactic acid","authors":"W. Elkhateeb, A. Hamdan, T. Zendo, N. Ishibashi, G. Daba, Y. Tashiro, K. Sonomoto","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_33_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_33_22","url":null,"abstract":"Background and objective Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are generous producers of many industrially important products. Of these products, optically pure lactic acid is of great value as it is essential for production of highly crystalline poly-lactic acid, which is the most widely used biodegradable synthetic polymer. Hence, this study aimed to screen for thermotolerant LAB from a new source, which is fresh water samples collected from the coast of the Nile River, Egypt, and then evaluate their ability to produce optically pure L-lactic acid. Materials and methods LAB strains were isolated at 50°C and evaluated for producing optically pure L-lactic acid using high-performance liquid chromatography and BF-5. Effects of medium containing different sugar sources, incubation temperature, and initial pH of the medium on the purity and productivity of L-lactic acid were also studied. Results and discussion All obtained isolates were capable of producing optically pure L-lactic acid on different sugar sources. Changing the incubation temperature to 30°C positively affected both productivity and optical purity, which reached 5.0 g/l of 100% optically pure L-lactic acid. On the contrary, pH of the medium was confirmed to be also one of the major factors affecting productivity and optical purity of obtained L-lactic acid. For our isolates, pH 7.0 was the optimum one for the production process. The four promising producers of 100% optically pure L-lactic acid were molecularly identified as Lactiplantibacillus sp. Conclusion This is the first study describing the evaluation of the ability of fresh water LAB isolated from the Nile River to produce optically pure L-lactic acid.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"233 - 241"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46576384","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background and objective Keratinases are gaining considerable momentum in green technology because of their endowed robustness and multifaceted application potentials, such as valorization of keratinous agro-waste. Therefore, the production of novel keratinases from relative yeasts grown in agro-waste formulated medium is cost-effective and imperative for the sustainability of thriving bioeconomy. Materials and methods A total of 51 yeast isolates were isolated from 10 different poultry farms and assayed for keratinase-specific activity. Molecular identification of the high-efficiency keratinase-producing yeast isolate was done by PCR amplification, employing sequencing of internal transcribed spacer regions of yeast. Mutagenesis induction with ethidium bromide, ultraviolet, and ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS) was done in a multistep mutation-induction process for creating super keratinase-productive mutants. Response surface methodology optimization of culture conditions for high-productive mutant was carried out using different parameters such as incubation time, pH, carbon sources, and nitrogen sources to test keratinase activity. Inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR-PCR) was applied to study the genetic diversity of isolated Pichia kudriavzevii YK46 compared with their five mutants. Results and conclusion The results indicated that the isolate with the highest keratinase activity was isolate no. 46, which recorded 164.04 U/ml. It was identified as P. kudriavzevii and was submitted to NCBI under accession number ‘OK092586’. It was named as P. kudriavzevii YK46. Results of mutagenesis showed that the best keratinolytic efficiency mutant was designated as EMS-37, which showed an activity of 211.90 U/ml. After response surface methodology optimization of culture conditions for mutant EMS-37, the maximum keratinase activity was noted after an optimized condition at pH 5, 72 h of incubation time, 2.5% glucose, and 2.5% beef extract (as carbon and nitrogen sources), with an activity of 240.172 U/ml (Run3). Inter-simple sequence repeat showed that the highest total and polymorphic with unique bands were revealed in the mutant EMS-37, with 82 and 54 bands, respectively, whereas the mutant EMS-56 showed 72 and 44 bands, respectively, compared with the wild-type strain P. kudriavzevii YK46, with 86 and 58 bands, respectively. The data obtained showed that mutant EMS-37 was the highest producer of keratinase enzyme. It had seven unique bands. These bands might be related to the increase in the productivity of keratinase enzyme.
{"title":"Improvement of Pichia kudriavzevii Egyptian isolate for keratinase production","authors":"Bigad E. Khalil, H. Ibrahim, Nagwa M. Abd El-Aziz","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_103_21","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_103_21","url":null,"abstract":"Background and objective Keratinases are gaining considerable momentum in green technology because of their endowed robustness and multifaceted application potentials, such as valorization of keratinous agro-waste. Therefore, the production of novel keratinases from relative yeasts grown in agro-waste formulated medium is cost-effective and imperative for the sustainability of thriving bioeconomy. Materials and methods A total of 51 yeast isolates were isolated from 10 different poultry farms and assayed for keratinase-specific activity. Molecular identification of the high-efficiency keratinase-producing yeast isolate was done by PCR amplification, employing sequencing of internal transcribed spacer regions of yeast. Mutagenesis induction with ethidium bromide, ultraviolet, and ethyl methane sulfonate (EMS) was done in a multistep mutation-induction process for creating super keratinase-productive mutants. Response surface methodology optimization of culture conditions for high-productive mutant was carried out using different parameters such as incubation time, pH, carbon sources, and nitrogen sources to test keratinase activity. Inter-simple sequence repeat (ISSR-PCR) was applied to study the genetic diversity of isolated Pichia kudriavzevii YK46 compared with their five mutants. Results and conclusion The results indicated that the isolate with the highest keratinase activity was isolate no. 46, which recorded 164.04 U/ml. It was identified as P. kudriavzevii and was submitted to NCBI under accession number ‘OK092586’. It was named as P. kudriavzevii YK46. Results of mutagenesis showed that the best keratinolytic efficiency mutant was designated as EMS-37, which showed an activity of 211.90 U/ml. After response surface methodology optimization of culture conditions for mutant EMS-37, the maximum keratinase activity was noted after an optimized condition at pH 5, 72 h of incubation time, 2.5% glucose, and 2.5% beef extract (as carbon and nitrogen sources), with an activity of 240.172 U/ml (Run3). Inter-simple sequence repeat showed that the highest total and polymorphic with unique bands were revealed in the mutant EMS-37, with 82 and 54 bands, respectively, whereas the mutant EMS-56 showed 72 and 44 bands, respectively, compared with the wild-type strain P. kudriavzevii YK46, with 86 and 58 bands, respectively. The data obtained showed that mutant EMS-37 was the highest producer of keratinase enzyme. It had seven unique bands. These bands might be related to the increase in the productivity of keratinase enzyme.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"192 - 206"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46491545","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
J. Samuel, Anoora Charles, Christine George, E. Thomas, S. Swathy, Sujith Kumar, Boby G.
Background Cardiovascular diseases have been responsible for one-fifth of all deaths in India over the last decade. The overall purpose of this research was to study patients who have had a myocardial infarction (MI) and their subsequent readmission rate. The study focused on understanding the quality of life of patients with MI, the adverse effects of drugs used in MI, and the compliance of patients with their medication. Patient counselling was given by clinical pharmacists regarding the importance of medication adherence and nonpharmacological therapy such as diet and exercise in the management of MI. The study showed that patient counselling can significantly improve medication adherence and, thereby, quality of life in patients with MI. Objectives To assess the quality of life and prevalence of readmission among patients with MI, to monitor the adverse drug reactions (ADR) and its management, and to study the effect of patient counselling initiated by clinical pharmacists on medication adherence and knowledge of the patients in a tertiary care hospital. Patients and methods A total of 61 patients with MI were subjected to Morisky medication adherence scale 8-item questionnaire to measure medication adherence, modified Hartwig’s Siegel assessment scale to measure the severity of ADR, and the WHO-UPSALA evaluation scale to identify causality. The short form 36 questionnaire was used to assess the quality of life. Results and conclusion According to the study, 14 ADRs were observed. Patients who have experienced chronic MI had a far greater readmission rate. People who experienced a MI had a lower quality of life. The findings in this study revealed that patient counselling was able to enhance patient understanding and medication adherence. This contributes to the development of a positive professional relationship between the pharmacist and the patient. Better understanding of disease and medication can improve health and quality of life of patients.
{"title":"Assessment of quality of life and prevalence of readmission in patients with myocardial infarction","authors":"J. Samuel, Anoora Charles, Christine George, E. Thomas, S. Swathy, Sujith Kumar, Boby G.","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_42_21","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_42_21","url":null,"abstract":"Background Cardiovascular diseases have been responsible for one-fifth of all deaths in India over the last decade. The overall purpose of this research was to study patients who have had a myocardial infarction (MI) and their subsequent readmission rate. The study focused on understanding the quality of life of patients with MI, the adverse effects of drugs used in MI, and the compliance of patients with their medication. Patient counselling was given by clinical pharmacists regarding the importance of medication adherence and nonpharmacological therapy such as diet and exercise in the management of MI. The study showed that patient counselling can significantly improve medication adherence and, thereby, quality of life in patients with MI. Objectives To assess the quality of life and prevalence of readmission among patients with MI, to monitor the adverse drug reactions (ADR) and its management, and to study the effect of patient counselling initiated by clinical pharmacists on medication adherence and knowledge of the patients in a tertiary care hospital. Patients and methods A total of 61 patients with MI were subjected to Morisky medication adherence scale 8-item questionnaire to measure medication adherence, modified Hartwig’s Siegel assessment scale to measure the severity of ADR, and the WHO-UPSALA evaluation scale to identify causality. The short form 36 questionnaire was used to assess the quality of life. Results and conclusion According to the study, 14 ADRs were observed. Patients who have experienced chronic MI had a far greater readmission rate. People who experienced a MI had a lower quality of life. The findings in this study revealed that patient counselling was able to enhance patient understanding and medication adherence. This contributes to the development of a positive professional relationship between the pharmacist and the patient. Better understanding of disease and medication can improve health and quality of life of patients.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"24 8","pages":"25 - 29"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41330539","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Background Doxorubicin (DOX) is widely used to treat many human cancers, but significant brain damage limits its clinical application. Objectives To investigate the neuroprotective activity of Terminalia muelleri extract (TME) against DOX-induced neurotoxicity in rats. Materials and methods The first group served as a normal control; the second group served as a positive control which was treated with DOX (2.5 mg/kg; dissolved in saline; intraperitoneal three times/week for 2 weeks,); the third group was treated with TME at a dose of 100 mg/kg; the fourth group was pretreated with TME for 2 weeks and then coadministrated with DOX for other 2 weeks; the fifth and sixth groups were treated with DOX for 2 weeks and then posttreated with two doses of TME (100, 200 mg/kg), respectively, for another 2 weeks. The experiment lasted for 4 weeks; brain tissue samples were harvested for the measurement of toxicity such as oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, neurodegeneration, and histopathological examinations. Results and conclusion DOX-treated animals showed a reduction in glutathione and superoxide dismutase along with a raise in malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, and myeloperoxidase. Also, it caused an increase in caspase-3, indicating an increased propensity for cell death, acetylcholinesterase, extracellular signal-regulated kinase, mammalian target of rapamycin with concomitant decrease in brain-derived neurotrophic factor. However, administration of TME significantly improved oxidative stress alterations, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, and apoptosis. Histological assessments of brain tissues supported the obtained biochemical finding. In conclusion, our findings disclose a potent protective role of TME by activating antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and neurogenesis effects, which may contribute to the safe use of DOX in cancer treatment.
{"title":"Terminalia muelleri extract supplementation alleviates doxorubicin-induced neurotoxicity in rats: involvement of oxidative stress and neuroinflammation, apoptosis, extracellular signal-regulated kinase, and mammalian target of rapamycin","authors":"S. Ahmed, M. Masoud","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_56_21","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_56_21","url":null,"abstract":"Background Doxorubicin (DOX) is widely used to treat many human cancers, but significant brain damage limits its clinical application. Objectives To investigate the neuroprotective activity of Terminalia muelleri extract (TME) against DOX-induced neurotoxicity in rats. Materials and methods The first group served as a normal control; the second group served as a positive control which was treated with DOX (2.5 mg/kg; dissolved in saline; intraperitoneal three times/week for 2 weeks,); the third group was treated with TME at a dose of 100 mg/kg; the fourth group was pretreated with TME for 2 weeks and then coadministrated with DOX for other 2 weeks; the fifth and sixth groups were treated with DOX for 2 weeks and then posttreated with two doses of TME (100, 200 mg/kg), respectively, for another 2 weeks. The experiment lasted for 4 weeks; brain tissue samples were harvested for the measurement of toxicity such as oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, neurodegeneration, and histopathological examinations. Results and conclusion DOX-treated animals showed a reduction in glutathione and superoxide dismutase along with a raise in malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, and myeloperoxidase. Also, it caused an increase in caspase-3, indicating an increased propensity for cell death, acetylcholinesterase, extracellular signal-regulated kinase, mammalian target of rapamycin with concomitant decrease in brain-derived neurotrophic factor. However, administration of TME significantly improved oxidative stress alterations, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, and apoptosis. Histological assessments of brain tissues supported the obtained biochemical finding. In conclusion, our findings disclose a potent protective role of TME by activating antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, and neurogenesis effects, which may contribute to the safe use of DOX in cancer treatment.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"46 - 56"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"46450232","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hend A. Mahmoud, M. Rashad, Abeer-Hashem A. Mahmoud, G. Hamdy, S. Fathy
Background and objective Xylanase is a prominent industrially applicable enzyme. The present study investigated the applicability of crude Bacillus amyloliquifaciens NRRL B-14393 xylanase for production of xylooligosaccharides (XOS) from beech wood xylan (BWX). Materials and methods Crude xylanase activity was characterized in terms of xylanolytic activities present, pH, and temperature. The effect of incubation time, enzyme dosage, and substrate concentration on XOS production was investigated by response surface methodology based on central composite design. The antioxidant potential of produced XOS was assayed by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH) and H2O2 methods besides their correlated total phenolic content was estimated using Folin-Ciocalteu colorimetric method. Results and conclusion The crude enzyme extract was β-xylosidase free and proved active over a broad pH range. The enzyme was thermostable up to 70°C and maximal enzyme activity was observed at 50°C and pH 8. Functional groups and purity of BWX were identified by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). XOS yield was optimized to 16.02 mg XOS/ml xylan (400.45 mg XOS/g xylan) applying 1.70 mg enzyme/g xylan, 4.91 h incubation time and 1.08%, w/v substrate concentration. Xylobiose and xylopentose were identified by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) as the hydrolysate main end products. Total phenolic content of 115±0.60 mg GAEq/g XOS explicated the high antioxidant capacities exhibited by produced XOS.
{"title":"Production and optimization of xylooligosaccharides from beech wood xylan by Bacillus amyloliquifaciens NRRL B-14393 xylanase and its antioxidant potential","authors":"Hend A. Mahmoud, M. Rashad, Abeer-Hashem A. Mahmoud, G. Hamdy, S. Fathy","doi":"10.4103/epj.epj_7_22","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/epj.epj_7_22","url":null,"abstract":"Background and objective Xylanase is a prominent industrially applicable enzyme. The present study investigated the applicability of crude Bacillus amyloliquifaciens NRRL B-14393 xylanase for production of xylooligosaccharides (XOS) from beech wood xylan (BWX). Materials and methods Crude xylanase activity was characterized in terms of xylanolytic activities present, pH, and temperature. The effect of incubation time, enzyme dosage, and substrate concentration on XOS production was investigated by response surface methodology based on central composite design. The antioxidant potential of produced XOS was assayed by 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH) and H2O2 methods besides their correlated total phenolic content was estimated using Folin-Ciocalteu colorimetric method. Results and conclusion The crude enzyme extract was β-xylosidase free and proved active over a broad pH range. The enzyme was thermostable up to 70°C and maximal enzyme activity was observed at 50°C and pH 8. Functional groups and purity of BWX were identified by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). XOS yield was optimized to 16.02 mg XOS/ml xylan (400.45 mg XOS/g xylan) applying 1.70 mg enzyme/g xylan, 4.91 h incubation time and 1.08%, w/v substrate concentration. Xylobiose and xylopentose were identified by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) as the hydrolysate main end products. Total phenolic content of 115±0.60 mg GAEq/g XOS explicated the high antioxidant capacities exhibited by produced XOS.","PeriodicalId":11568,"journal":{"name":"Egyptian Pharmaceutical Journal","volume":"21 1","pages":"97 - 107"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44027417","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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