Applied Biological Chemistry最新文献

Functional foods and herbal medicines have gained global demand due to their health benefits, which have led to increased consumer interest. Their contribution to health is associated to the existence of bioactive compounds with several pharmacological properties such as antidiabetic, antimicrobial, anticancer, and antiinflammatory activities etc. Several phytochemical compounds have been reported to prevent lifestyle disorders and diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, obesity, and hypertension. Functional foods include dairy products, bakery products and cereals, nutraceuticals, fermented foods, probiotics and prebiotics, vegetables, and fruits, whereas herbal medicines include several herbal plants not limited to ginseng, ginkgo biloba, and ephedra etc. which are expressed in many several forms such as decoctions, capsules, powders, teas, and oils. The transformation of herbal medicines from general consumption has led to the infusion of herbal extracts into foods, leading to the development of herbal functional foods including porridges, soups, beverages, biscuits, candies, chocolates, and dietary supplements. Thus, this review aims to explore the synergistic pharmacological activities of functional foods and herbal medicines as well as the challenges shaping the industry. Following the growing demand of functional foods and herbal medicines, we found that similar bioactive compounds in functional foods and herbal medicines contribute to their health benefits. However, critical issues regarding the regulation of functional foods and herbal medicines to establish their safety and efficacy are still present. Therefore, research on functional foods and herbal medicines is necessary to confirm their safety and efficacy and thereby attract more consumers.

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Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria regulate plant growth and stress tolerance by modulating endogenous developmental and physiological processes. This study examined the role of Bacillus megaterium GEB3 in affecting drought stress tolerance in peppers. GEB3 treatment significantly mitigated drought-induced symptoms, such as chlorosis, wilting, and leaf rolling, in both vegetative- and reproductive-stage peppers. For example, GEB3 treatment increased the number of fruits and total fruit weight by approximately 34% and 68%, respectively, compared to those in untreated control plants. We observed that GEB3 treatment reduces drought-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation while increasing the transcriptional expression of antioxidant genes encoding peroxidases and superoxide dismutases, which are responsible for ROS removal. Furthermore, GEB3 activated the jasmonic acid (JA) response, and JA treatment alone was sufficient to reduce the accumulation of ROS and enhance pepper tolerance to drought stress. These findings suggest that Bacillus megaterium GEB3 increases drought tolerance in peppers through JA-mediated suppression of ROS accumulation, and may serve as a promising bioinoculant for improving crop tolerance against environmental stresses including drought.

In plants, developmental or environmental stresses activate a suite of different phytohormones that trigger biochemical and/or morphological adaptations. The gaseous phytohormone ethylene has a major effect on the plant life cycle from germination onward. Ethylene biosynthesis is tightly regulated by external and internal cues. In etiolated seedlings of Arabidopsis and rice, various phytohormones affect ethylene biosynthesis through transcriptional and/or post-transcriptional regulation of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC), ACC synthases (ACS), and ACC oxidases (ACO). This study showed strigolactone also affected ethylene biosynthesis in dark-grown rice seedlings. Strigolactone treatment altered levels of S-ADENOSYLMETHIONINE SYNTHASES (OsSAMSs) and ACC SYNTHASES (OsACSs) transcripts, which encode enzymes involved in the initial steps of ethylene biosynthesis. The application of strigolactone reduced ethylene production, however, by decreasing transcription of OsACO genes, thus negatively affecting the final step of ethylene biosynthesis. In addition, treatment with strigolactone resulted in a phenotype in which the coleoptiles of dark-grown rice seedlings were shortened, contrary to treatment with ACC. These results reveal the tight correlation between strigolactone and ethylene biosynthesis.

Doxorubicin (DOX)-induced cardiotoxicity has become a major concern and is considered a limitation for the use of DOX in oncology treatment. Ginsenoside Rh2 (Rh2) is a ginseng extract with anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and cell cycle regulating activities. The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanism of cardioprotective effects of Rh2 in DOX-induced cardiotoxicity. This study utilized network pharmacology to search for potential targets and pathways of Rh2 against doxorubicin-induced heart failure. The mechanism of Rh2 protection of myocardial tissue was further examined using a doxorubicin-formed rat model of heart failure. Network pharmacology predicted 128 potential targets for Rh2 treating to heart failure. Autophagy and apoptosis pathways play critical roles in Rh2 treatment of heart failure accessed by GO and KEGG enrichment analysis. Animal experiment results showed that Rh2 attenuated DOX-induced cardiotoxicity, normalized the morphology of cardiac tissue and reduced cardiomyocyte autophagy as well as apoptosis by up-regulation of the PI3K-AKT-mTOR signaling pathway to antagonize the effect of DOX on cardiomyocyte damage. These results suggest that Rh2 was able to inhibit DOX-activated autophagy signaling and apoptotic pathways in myocardial tissues and reduced cardiomyocyte apoptosis. It has potential effects to protect myocardial tissue as well as antagonize DOX-induced cardiotoxicity.

The most commonly consumed local specialty alcoholic beverages in South Korea are wine, beer, and soju. These alcoholic beverages contain a wide variety of volatile components, including methanol and fusel alcohols, due to their different raw materials, manufacturing methods, and fermentative microorganisms. GC–MS combined with solid phase micro-extraction (SPME) was utilized to establish a simultaneous analytical method for methanol, fusel alcohols, and other volatile compounds in alcoholic beverages, which included 9 wine, 10 beer, and 10 soju samples. A total of 221 volatile compounds were identified, consisting of 6 acetals, 14 acids, 33 alcohols, 9 aldehydes, 2 amides, 13 benzene derivatives, 5 phenols, 81 esters, 8 furans, 16 ketones, 6 sulfides, 26 terpenes, 1 pyrazine, and 1 miscellaneous. Among the three types of alcoholic beverages, wine had the highest methanol content. In case of fusel alcohols, wine, beer, and soju contained 25, 16, and 14 alcohol components, respectively. In general, those main volatile components of wine, beer, and soju were esters, alcohols, and benzene derivatives. In beer, terpenes were detected at similar levels with alcohols. Volatile compounds contributing to the distinction between soju and beer were some alcohols, such as propan-1-ol, 2-methylpropan-1-ol, and 3-methylbutan-1-ol, and acids, such as octanoic acid, whereas wine samples were distinguished from other types of alcoholic beverages by some esters, such as methyl acetate, ethyl (E)-but-2-enoate, ethyl 3-hydroxybutanoate, and diethyl butanedioate, and some alcohols, such as hexan-1-ol, nonan-2-ol, and nonan-1-ol.

Flavonoids are often decorated with methyl groups, which are catalyzed by flavonoid O-methyltransferases (FOMTs). Most FOMTs methylate flavonoids in a regiospecific manner. Because of the regiospecific nature of FOMTs, the synthesis of polymethoxyflavonoids is accomplished by multiple O-methylation steps. The multistep synthesis of dimethoxyflavonoids can be efficiently performed by a one-pot procedure using a multienzyme biocatalyst. For the one-pot production of dimethoxyflavonoids, fusion FOMTs were generated by the combination of two different regiospecific FOMTs. RdOMT10 (flavonoid 3-OMT), OsNOMT (flavonoid 7-OMT), and ObFOMT5 (flavonoid 4'-OMT) were used in the FOMT fusion. The fusion FOMTs (OsNOMT/ObFOMT5, OsNOMT/RdOMT10, and ObFOMT5/RdOMT10) were heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli. Activity assays of the recombinant fusion FOMTs demonstrated that OsNOMT/ObFOMT5, OsNOMT/RdOMT10, and ObFOMT5/RdOMT10 catalyze 7/4'-O-methylations, 7/3-O-methylations, and 4'/3-O-methylations of flavonoids, respectively. OsNOMT/ObFOMT5 and OsNOMT/RdOMT10 showed strong dimethylation activity towards diverse flavonoids and were therefore used in the site-selective bioconversion of flavonoids into dimethoxyflavonoids. The E. coli cells bearing OsNOMT/ObFOMT5 successfully converted flavonoids into 7,4'-dimethoxyflavonoids. The engineered E. coli expressing OsNOMT/RdOMT10 converted flavonoids into 3,7-dimethoxyflavonoids. This result indicates that the fusion FOMTs are useful multienzyme biocatalysts for the site-selective production of dimethoxyflavonoids by one-pot bioconversion.

Aconitum kusnezoffii Reichb. is a medicinal plant widely used in traditional Asian medicine, especially in Korea, for its potent pharmacological effects. However, its toxic alkaloids pose significant risk, making careful processing essential to reduce its toxicity. This study reviewed the plant’s processing methods, pharmacological activities, phytochemistry, toxicology, and detoxification techniques. Data from several databases, including Google scholar, PubMed, Scopus, Web science, peer-reviewed journal articles, classic herbal medicine books, and Allied and Complementary Medicine Database (AMED) were critically retrieved, organized and analyzed. The article’s findings indicate that, various ethnic groups in Asia have utilized different techniques, involving fire, water, or a combination of both to maximize the plant’s therapeutic potential and ensure safety. To date, more than 70 alkaloids, categorized into diterpenoids, norditerpenoids, and benzylisoquinolines, have been isolated from different plant’s parts (roots, leaves, stems, and flowers). These compounds exhibit various pharmacological activities including anti-inflammatory, analgesics, anti-cancer, anti-tumor, anti-arhythmic and pain-relieving properties. Despite its therapeutic potential, A. kusenzoffii. has narrow therapeutic window, meaning even small doses can be toxic. The study explored methods for reducing toxicity and detoxifying the herb emphasizing the importance of modern technologies such as propagation techniques, Systematic Evolution of Ligands by Exponential Enrichment (SELEX)-aptamer technology, and Chinmedomics in herbal medicine development. While research on this herb is extensive, gaps remain in clinical trials and efficacy studies. Further research is recommended to evaluate the quality of medicinal materials, understanding the herb’s pharmacodynamic substances, and assess long-term toxicity and clinical efficacy.

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