The study isolated gelatin from Labeo rohita scales and characterized it using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-Ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The resulting gelatine and commercial bovine bone gelatin were found to have crystalline structures, with both being porous and spherical. L. rohita scales yielded 5.45 % of gelatin. The moisture content varied between 11.12 % and 9.02 % for the gelatin, while the ash content varied between 2.17 % and 2.36 %. The protein content was 82.78 % in the fish scales gelatin, while the commercial bovine bone gelatin had 94.27 %. The fat content of gelatin isolated from scales of L. rohita was 1.21 %, whereas fat in commercial bovine bone gelatin was 1.19 %. The fiber contents of gelatin isolated from fish scales was 0.44 % while fiber content of commercial bovine bone gelatin was 0.65 %. The study confirms the high-quality gelatin-bearing characteristics of fish scales, suggesting that it can be produced for various purposes and potentially increase the economic value of fish. The isolated gelatin from fish by-products could also be a valuable resource.

The research aimed to evaluate the antioxidant and anti-hyperglycemic activities of different fractions of extract from the trunk bark of Terminalia bellirica (T. bellirica), a plant commonly used in traditional Asian remedies. The antioxidant activity was determined using DPPH radical-scavenging activity. The in vitro anti-hyperglycemic activity was evaluated via the inhibitory activities against α-glucosidase and α-amylase, while the measurement of fasting blood glucose reduction capacity in treated diabetic rats was used for the in vivo anti-hyperglycemic test. The results indicated that the increase in polarity of the extraction solvent led to higher polyphenol content and DPPH radical scavenging of the extracts. The ethyl acetate fraction (EAF) and water fraction (WF) of T. bellirica exhibited significantly higher α-amylase inhibitory activity (IC50 values of 0.118 ± 0.001 and 0.404 ± 0.001 mg/mL, respectively) than acarbose (IC50 = 0.492 mg/mL), but the α-glucosidase inhibitory activity of all fractions was lower than that of acarbose. In the in vivo test, all fractions significantly lowered fasting blood glucose levels in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats at a dose of 200 mg/kg body weight without body weight loss, while no effect was observed with acarbose treatment. In addition, the UPLC-QTOF-MS analysis showed that the EAF contains phenolic acids, flavonoids, triterpenes, and their derivative compounds. Thus, the trunk-bark of T. bellirica is recommended as a potent source of natural compounds having antioxidant and anti-hypoglycemic activities.

Durian (Durio zibethinus Murr.) plant fruits are popular among Southeast Asians. This study aimed to characterise the gene expression during the growth and development of durian fruit at its young, mature, and ripening stages. We used a high-throughput RNA Sequencing approach to identify and characterise unknown transcripts (UTs) from durian fruit pulp transcriptomes. The categorisation of UTs relied on assessing their coding potential and conducting sequence analysis, followed by thorough manual curation. After mapping, 110 million high-quality reads were analysed for each of the nine samples, revealing that each contains 76,700 to 89,117 distinct transcripts and 561,211 to 646,291 exons. In the present analysis, we emphasised identifying and classifying UTs, disregarding transcripts with accurate annotations. Differential expression analysis identified 280 significant unknown transcripts, presumably involved in various biological functions in durian growth. The top BLASTn comparative analysis results for 183 unknown transcripts (UTs) primarily showed significant homology, ranging from 80 % to 100 %, with transcripts from closely related species within the Malvaceae family, including Bombax ceiba, Gossypium hirsutum, Gossypium raimondii, Herrania umbratica, and Theobroma cacao. Functional annotation showed that many upregulated UTs may encode protein-coding genes involved in cellular and metabolic activities, catalytic and electron transfer activities, cellular and anatomical entities, and protein-containing complexes. Out of 97 UTs that do not have a BLASTn hit, 2 of them match GO terms, TCONS 00034019 and TCONS 00058246, corresponding to the InterPro GO Names, namely P: positive regulation of organ growth (GO:0046622) and F: calcium ion binding (GO:0005509). Three open reading frame (ORF) sequences longer than 300 nucleotides were identified as potential protein-coding genes through SMARTBLAST analysis, showing sequence similarities with Retropepsins, pepsin-like aspartate proteases, DUF4492 domain-containing protein, and a hypothetical protein CTI12_AA006750 in UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot. In conclusion, this study sheds light on the dynamic gene expression patterns during durian fruit development. It highlights the significance of characterising unknown transcripts and their potential roles in biological processes, thus enhancing our understanding of durian genetics.

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus continues to rise on a global basis, making this entity one of the most pressing issues facing public health nowadays. Generally, diabetes mellitus is characterized by increased blood sugar levels caused by insulin secretion or action abnormalities. Natural products have become more popular in treating various types of diseases, including diabetes mellitus, due to their minimal adverse effects. Promoting the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPARG) activation is an anti-diabetic strategy due to its biological function for adipocyte storage, mobilization, differentiation, and insulin sensitivity. This study aims to evaluate diosgenin and multiflorenol in silico as anti-diabetic drug candidates by targeting PPARG. Several analyses, such as molecular docking, protein target prediction, biological function prediction, protein-protein interaction, and pharmacokinetics analyses were carried out in this study. Computational prediction showed PPARG have involved in several activities, such as fat cell differentiation, fatty acid oxidation, fatty acid transport, and cellular response to fatty acid. The binding affinity score revealed that diosgenin and multiflorenol have a higher value than the control drug. Other characteristics, such as chemical interaction, amino acid residues, and physicochemical properties, demonstrated supportive drug development outcomes. Therefore, based on our findings, we suggested that diosgenin and multiflorenol, both of which target PPARG, would hold promise as potential candidates for an anti-diabetic drug.

The aim of this work was to evaluate the possibility to utilize the dried biomass of Euglena gracilis var. bacillaris as a biosorbent applied for the removal of Zn from aqueous solutions. For these purposes, experiments involving solutions spiked by 65ZnCl2 were carried out under the conditions of batch systems. The prepared biosorbent in the form of dried biomass of E. gracilis (< 300 μm) was characterized in terms of the presence of functional groups (COOH, PO3H2, OH, and NH2), the concentration of binding sites cAn and the value of pHzpc = 6.6 using the modelling program ProtoFit. From the kinetics of Zn biosorption, it can be assumed that the Zn removal was a rapid process, in which the concentration equilibrium [Zn]solution : [Zn]biosorbent was stabilized in the first 5 min of interaction. In individual experiments, the effect of solution pH, initial biosorbent or Zn concentration were evaluated. Based on the MINEQL+ speciation modelling program, we predicted the decrease in the abundance of free Zn2+ cations in the presence of different concentrations of EDTA as a complexing agent in the solution. It was found that the Zn biosorption decreased linearly with the decreasing the proportion of Zn2+ in solution. The biosorption data expressed as equilibrium values of the remaining Zn concentration in solution Ceq (µmol.dm-3) and equilibrium values of specific adsorption Qeq (µmol.g-1; d.w.) were well fitted to the Langmuir model of adsorption isotherm in comparison with the Freundlich model. The maximum adsorption capacity of the dried biomass of E. gracilis for the biosorption of Zn reached the value Qmax = 0.53 ± 0.05 mmol.g-1or 34.7 ± 3.4 mg.g-1 (d.w.), respectively.

Coriolopsis aspera is a medicinal mushroom that exerts several pharmacological and biological activities. However, the protective effect of the ethanol extract of C. aspera against arthritis has not been studied yet. In this study, we estimated some bioactive compounds in the ethanol extract of C. aspera fruiting bodies and used the extract with a dose of 400 mg.kg-1 body weight or the reference drug Mobic (0.2 mg.kg-1 body weight) to treat an adjuvant-induced arthritis model. Arthritis severity was determined via the changes in the diameters and volumes of hind paws, arthritic scores, total leukocyte count, ESR, biochemical parameters such as CRP and RF, as well as histological features of ankle joints. We found the presence of polyphenols and flavonoids with a high content (37.79 ± 0.88 mg GAE/g DW and 8.56 ± 0.37 mg QE/g DW, respectively) in the extract. Furthermore, the results showed that Freund’s complete adjuvant-treated mice exhibited a severe arthritic score and histological features, an increase in the diameters and volumes of hind paws, along with an elevation of leukocyte count, erythrocyte sediment rate, and biochemical parameters such as rheumatoid factor and C-reactive protein compared to normal mice. On the contrary, treatment with ethanol extract at a dose of 400 mg.kg-1 body weight for 28 days exhibited a strong anti-arthritis effect and could improve all the testing parameters at the same efficacy as those of the reference drug (Mobic 0.2 mg.kg-1 body weight). These findings suggest a potential application of the ethanol extract of C. aspera for arthritis treatment.

We studied the effect of exogenous antioxidants dithiothreitol and lipoic acid on the contents of photosynthetic pigments, including total chlorophyll and carotenoids, in the leaves of regenerated shoots of the oilseed rape cultivars Mirakel, Lagonda and Menthal (Brasisca napus L.). The shoots were obtained from hypocotyl segments cultured for six weeks on in vitro regeneration media supplemented with dithiothreitol and lipoic acid at concentrations of 1 mg.dm-3 and 10 mg.dm-3, respectively. The application of DTT and LA resulted in a significant increase in the content of total chlorophyll and carotenoids, maintaining or increasing the Chl/carotenoids ratio in the cultivars Mirakel and Menthal. Unlike the cultivar Menthal, the frequency of explant regeneration significantly decreased in the cultivar Mirakel, which may be attributed to genotype-specific responses. Mirakel exhibited a higher frequency of regeneration under control conditions compared to Lagonda and Menthal. In the leaves of the cultivar Lagonda regenerated in the presence of DTT, there was a significant reduction in chlorophyll and carotenoid contents, along with a decrease in the Chl a/Chl b ratio, suggesting a conversion of Chl b to Chl a and a biphasic effect of DTT.

Pathogenic fungi are the most common causes of economic loss in crop production. Until now, synthetic fungicides are the most effective tools for management in agriculture, but they cause a severe impact on the environment as well as several side effects for human health. The use of synthetic fungicides is prohibited in organic agriculture; however, sulfur and copper fungicides are still permitted in organic farming. In this study, chitosan-stabilized copper chitosan nanoparticles (CS-CuNPs) were synthesized and characterized via UV-Vis analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Moreover, fungicidal activities of CS-CuNPs in the range of concentrations (00, 500, and 1000 mg/L) against several plant pathogenic fungi, including Magnaporthe oryzae, Rhizoctonia solani, and Phytophthora capsici, have been assessed via filamentous fugal growth inhibition. The results indicated that the size of CS-CuNPs ranged from 70 to 74 nm with the plasmon absorption peak at 600 nm, which implied the CS-CuNPs were successfully synthesized. Furthermore, CS-CuNPs effectively inhibited the growth of all three fungi at a concentration 1000 mg/L. Among the three species, Rhizoctonia solani was the most susceptible to CS-CuNPs, with the growth inhibitory effect at 100 mg/L. In conclusion, CS-CuNPs demonstrated a strong potential for the elimination of plant pathogenic fungi and further applications in agriculture.

Abstract In the current research paper, the flavonoid dihydroquercetin, 1-(2´-bromine-4´,5´-dimethoxyphenyl)-6,7-dimethoxy-1,2,3,4-tetrahydroisoquinoline (F-18) and 2-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-6-(1-(2´-bromine-4´, 5´-dimethoxyphenyl)-6,7-dimethoxy-3,4-dihydroisoquinoline-2 (1N)-il) methyl-3. The effects of 5,7-trigidroxychroman-4-on (DHQ-11) conjugate on rat liver mitochondrial calcium megachannels and on lipid peroxidation (LPO) induced using Fe2+/citrate were investigated in vitro experiments. White male rats weighing 180-200 grams were used in the experiments. It was found that the DHQ-11 conjugate was identified to have an inhibitory effect on rat liver mitochondria to calcium megachannels and peroxidation of lipids induced by Fe2+/citrate. The inhibitory properties of DHQ-11 conjugate on hepatic mitochondrial calcium megachannels and mitochondrial membrane lipid peroxidation were identified as active against dihydroquercetin and the F-18 isoquinoline alkaloid.

This research aims to analyse the richness of propolis ethanolic extract from Kherrata (EEPKh) in phenolic and flavonoid compounds and its antioxidant effects using different methods. Further investigations were conducted to evaluate the antibacterial and antibiofilm potential of propolis against Enterococcus faecalis strains originated from oral diseases. The antiquorum-sensing ability against Chromobacterium violaceum CV 026 was also investigated. The results revealed that ethanolic extract contains a high content of phenolic and flavonoid compounds, with an amount of 734.3 9± 11.54µg GAE.mg-1 of Extract and 224.30 ± 0µg QE.mg-1of extract respectively. Caffeic acid (23.79 mg.g-1), hesperetin (15.42 mg.g-1), cynarin (7.59 mg.g-1), apigenin (5.91 mg.g-1), naringenin (4.90 mg.g-1), and kaempferol (3.43 mg.g-1) were identified as the major compounds by the HPLC-DAD analysis. The antioxidant activity showed good scavenging and reducing abilities. Furthermore, EEPKh demonstrated high antibacterial potency against E. faecalis strain 2 at concentration 20 mg.mL-1 with an inhibition diameter of 20.33 ± 0.57 mm. The MIC and MBC values were found to range between 0.625 and 10 mg.mL-1. Biofilm formation by E. faecalis strains was inhibited at MIC with a percentage ranging from 65.93 ± 1.11 to 51.54 ± 0.81%. Quorum sensing mechanisms in CV 026 was inhibited by EEPKh, with diameter zone of 11.16 ± 0.29 mm at MIC. This study indicated that propolis extract is considered as a new source of natural medication with therapeutic potential against oral pathology caused by free radicals, E. faecalis, biofilm formation and quorum-sensing.