Boswellia Carterii Research Articles

β-Elemonic acid inhibits the growth of human Osteosarcoma through endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-mediated PERK/eIF2α/ATF4/CHOP activation and Wnt/β-catenin signal suppression

BackgroundOsteosarcoma (OS) is a significant threat to the lives of children and young adults. Although neoadjuvant chemotherapy is the first choice of treatment for OS, it is limited by serious side-effects and cancer metastasis. β-Elemonic acid (β-EA), an active component extracted from Boswellia carterii Birdw., has been reported to exhibit potential anti-inflammatory and anticancer activities. However, the anti-tumor effects and underlying mechanisms on OS as well as pharmacokinetic characteristics of β-EA remain unknown. PurposeThis study was aimed to investigating the anti-tumor effects of β-EA on human OS, the underlying mechanisms, and the pharmacokinetic and tissue distribution characteristics. Study design and methodsCell viability and colony formation assays were performed to determine the effect of β-EA cell on cell proliferation. Apoptosis rates, mitochondrial membrane potential and cell cycle features were analyzed by flow cytometry. qRT-PCR, Western blot, immunofluorescence and immunohistochemical assays were conducted to evaluate the expression levels of genes or proteins related to the pathways affected by β-EA in vitro and in vivo. Cell migration and invasion were evaluated in wound healing and Transwell chamber assays. The effects and pharmacokinetic characteristics of β-EA in vivo were evaluated by analyzing tumor suppression, pharmacokinetics and tissue distribution. ResultsExplorations indicated that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress conditions provoked by β-EA activated the PERK/eIF2α/ATF4 branch of the unfolded protein reaction (UPR), stimulating C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP)-regulated apoptosis and inducing Ca2+ leakage leading to caspase-dependent apoptosis. Furthermore, β-EA induced G0/G1 cell cycle arrest and inhibited metastasis of HOS and 143B cells by attenuating Wnt/β-catenin signaling effects, which included decreased levels of p-Akt(Ser473), p-Gsk3β (Ser9), Wnt/β-catenin target genes (c-Myc and CyclinD1) along with a decline in nuclear β-catenin accumulation. The fast absorption, short elimination half-life, and linear pharmacokinetic characteristics of β-EA were also revealed. The distribution of β-EA was detected in the tumor and bone tissues. ConclusionsOverall, both in vitro and in vivo investigations showed the potential of β-EA for the treatment of human OS. The pharmacokinetic profile and considerable distribution in the tumor and bone tissues warrant further preclinical or even clinical studies.

Frankincense essential oil extraction and lead compound analysis into cancer cells using molecular docking

Oil was extracted from Frankincense (Boswellia Sacra) by the soxhlet extraction method and various bioactive compounds were identified using gas chromatography (GC).These compounds can be developed as active pharmacophores.The present study involves the extraction and identification of bioactive compounds and their in-vitro study on the interaction of these compounds to target proteins. Frankincense oil collected from Boswelia Sacra species was subjected to Soxhlet extraction using Hexane solvent and essential oil (EO) was separated using vacuum distillation. Chemical profiling of essential oil was done using GC-MS. Various biological databases like PubChem, Protein Data Bank and software like Argus Lab, Rasmol were used to retrieve and analyze the structural and molecular interactions of bioactive compounds from Frankincense oil with receptor proteins. The target protein structure was retrieved from Protein data bank ligand structures that were downloaded from Pubchem, which was visualized using Rasmol Software. Protein-ligand interaction was studied using Argus Lab software by docking simulations and various docking poses were analyzed.The energy values of docking conformations were analyzed for obtaining the best docking pose & score.

Population Status and Resin Quality of Frankincense Boswellia neglecta (Burseraceae) Growing in South Omo, Southwestern Ethiopia

ABSTRACT A study was conducted in South Omo Zone, Ethiopia with the aim of assessing the population status of the frankincense tree Boswellia neglecta and investigating its resin essential oil chemical composition. The status of populations of B. neglecta was assessed by examining the density, abundance, frequency, dominance, importance value index, and population structure. Resin sample was analyzed for the physicochemical properties. The composition of the essential oil was analyzed with Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry. The high values of density, abundance, frequency, dominance, and importance value index for B. neglecta showed the potential of the tree for bulk resin collection. Boswellia neglecta had a bell-shaped diameter distribution indicating a hampered regeneration. The B. neglecta resin had a moisture content of 2.68%, ash content of 0.99%, pH of 5.7, and oil yield of 5.92%. The resin possessed good quality as compared to resins in other reports. The essential oil was optically active (−31.6° at 23.2°C). The essential oil contained several compounds, but 71.1% of the composition were formed mainly from methyl oleate, methyl linoleate, methyl palmitate, which have not been reported from B. neglecta. Sustainable management must be enacted since the agro-pastoralist mode of life hinders regeneration of the species and its resin resources.

Xihuang pills, a traditional chinese preparation used as a complementary medicine to treat cancer: An updated review

The traditional Chinese medicine, Xihuang pills (XHP), has long been used for the management of cancers, both to limit tumor cells proliferation and dissemination, and to protect nontumor cells from damages induced by conventional therapeutic agents. XHP is made from two plant extracts (from Boswellia carteri and Commiphora myrrha) and two animal-derived products (from Moschus moschiferus and Calculus bovis). Recent advances into the mechanism of action of XHP and its clinical efficacy are reviewed here to highlight its potential to treat breast and colon cancers in particular. The immunoregulatory effects of XHP are underlined. Similar traditional medicinal preparations containing Boswellia and Commiphora are discussed, as well as the activities of the major natural products found in XHP including abietic acid, acetyl-keto-boswellic acid, and muscone. Pharmacological and clinical studies of XHP and similar medicinal preparations, such as the Korean medicine HangAmDan-B, are encouraged.

Chemical Composition and in Vitro Cytotoxic Screening of Sixteen Commercial Essential Oils on Five Cancer Cell Lines.

The in vitro cytotoxic activity on human cancer cell lines of sixteen commercial EOs such as Aloysia citriodora, Boswellia sacra, Boswellia serrata, Cinnamomum zeylanicum, Cistus ladanifer, Citrus × aurantium, Citrus limon, Citrus sinensis, Cymbopogon citratus, Foeniculum vulgare, Illicium verum, Litsea cubeba, Satureja montana, Syzygium aromaticum, Thymus capitatus and Thymus vulgaris was performed using the MTT reduction assay. The screening was carried out on human cancer cells of breast adenocarcinoma (MCF7, T47D and MDA-MB-231), chronic myelogenous erythroleukemia (K562) and neuroblastoma cell lines (SH-SY5Y). C. zeylanicum and L. cubeba EOs were the most active on almost all the cell lines studied and thus could be promising as an anticancer agent. These two species showed a difference in their composition even though they belong to the Lauraceae family. Almost 57 % of the true cinnamon composition was made of (E)-cinnamaldehyde, while L. cubeba showed citral as the major compound (68.9 %). The K562 cells were the most sensitive to these oils with an IC50 ranging from 5.2 parts-per million (ppm) (C. zeylanicum) to 11.1 ppm (L. cubeba). The latter oil also showed an important cytotoxicity on MDA-MB-231 (13.4 ppm).

The complete chloroplast genome sequence of Canarium album

The first complete chloroplast genome (cpDNA) sequence of Canarium album was determined from Illumina HiSeq pair-end sequencing data in this study. The cpDNA is 163,347 bp in length, contains a large single-copy (LSC) region of 87,838 bp and a small single-copy (SSC) region of 13,935 bp, which were separated by a pair of inverted repeats (IRs) regions of 30,787 bp. The genome contains 129 genes, including 84 protein-coding genes, 8 ribosomal RNA genes, and 37 transfer RNA genes. The overall guanine-cytosine (GC) content of the whole genome is 37.5%, and the corresponding values of the LSC, SSC, and IR regions are 35.8%, 32.6%, and 41.1%, respectively. Further, phylogenomic analysis showed that C. album clustered together with Boswellia sacra.

The complete chloroplast genome characterization and phylogenetic analysis of Canarium album

Canarium album is one of the precious and characteristic fruit trees of China. In this study, we first presented the complete chloroplast genome of C. album by using BGISEQ-500 sequencing. Its complete chloroplast genome is 163,140 bp in size, containing a pair of inverted repeat regions of 30,729 bp, a large single copy region of 87,748 bp and a small single copy region of 13,934 bp. The chloroplast genome contains 117 unique genes, including 83 protein coding genes, 30 tRNA and 4 rRNA genes. Phylogenetic analysis based on complete chloroplast genomes indicated that C. album was closest to Boswellia sacra.

P-072 - Effects of natural substances from Boswellia sacra and Nerium oleander (breastin) in colon and pancreatic cancer

Introduction: Colon cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer and it accounts approximately 10-15% of all cancer deaths each year, while pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer deaths, accounting 6% of all cancer-related deaths. Natural products are becoming an important research area for drug discovery and have been used for the treatment of various diseases. They exhibit anticarcinogenic properties by interfering with the development and progression of cancer. Boswellia sacra has exhibited tumor-cell specific apoptosis and suppresses tumor aggressiveness in human breast cancer cell lines. Nerium oleander is determined to have cytotoxic effects over some types of cancer cells. The present study aimed to evaluate the outcome of treating colon and pancreatic carcinoma cell lines with the above two natural substances, Boswellia sacra and Nerium oleander (breastin). Methods: The products were tested with HPLC or LC-MS for identification of active substances (boswellic acids and oleandrin/oleandrigenin respectively). HCT-116 (colon carcinoma) and PANC-1 (pancreatic) cell lines were then cultured with the above substances in different concentrations for 24 and 48h. Viability assays were performed by using methyl-tetrazolium dye (MTT) and statistical analysis followed (t-test). All the reactions were performed in triplicates, while appropriate controls were used. Results: The active substances were detected with the analytical methods. The treatment with Boswellia sacra in 50 μg/ml decreased the viability of HCT116 by 50% at 24h and 48h, while in PANC-1, optimum results observed in 25 μg/ml, decreasing the cell population approximately 40-50% in both time periods. The treatment of colon carcinoma cell line with breastin in 1 μg/ml reduced the cell population 35% at 24h, while addition in 2.5 μg/ml decreased viability up to 70% at 48h of incubation. A decrease in viability up to 50% was also observed in PANC-1 after treatment with 0.5 μg/ml at 24h and 1 μg/ml post 48h of treatment. Conclusion: Taking everything into consideration, it has been demonstrated that Boswellia sacra and Nerium oleander (breastin) affected the proliferation of the above-tested cell lines. The mechanism of action is not known, however, the above substances contain molecules that might contribute to this inhibition. The study of the specific molecules contained in breastin and Boswellia sacra, as well as studies in more samples and other types of cancer, is necessary to prove the previous concept.

Anti-cancer Activity of Boswellia Carterii Extract Alters the Stress Functional Gene Expression in the Pancreatic Cancer Cell

Boswellia Carterii, a well-known plant species used in Korean medicine, is particularly effective in anti-cancer and inflammatory diseases. Its gum created from white resin is known to have therapeutic effects. However, the study on the anti-cancer pathway is very limited in human pancreatic cancer cells. thus, we investigated the changes in overall oncologic gene expression when treated BC in AsPC-1 cells. In this paper, we aimed to see how BC can be used to decrease cell viability with full explanation of gene expression in AsPC-1. We used MTT, microarray, and qRT-PCR to confirm our thesis. Results showed that BC inhibited cell viability in AsPC-1 by more than two-fold, which implies that BC has cell cytotoxic effects. Also, BC induced early and late apoptosis when treated for 24h on the pancreatic cancer cells. Differentially expressed genes were analyzed by microarray for demonstrated apoptotic effects at the mRNA level. The number of genes were related to participation in the oxidation-reduction process or signaling pathways. The signal pathway was verified by western blotting mainly STAT3 but also JAK, Src, ERK, JNK, and Akt. The results prove that stress signaling such as cytokines were regulated by BC stimulation. Therefore, our findings support the show that differentially expressed genes in BC-treated represent anti- cancer effects in pancreatic cancer and this has the potential for further understanding of the entire mechanism of cancer and its treatment.

Integrative cancer treatment may have a survival benefit in patients with lung cancer: A retrospective cohort study from an integrative cancer center in Korea.

Integrative oncology is being increasingly adopted in mainstream cancer care to strengthen anticancer effects and to control cancer-related symptoms.The objective of this study is to identify the characteristics of patients with lung cancer treated at an integrative cancer center in Korea and to determine the effects of integrative cancer treatment (ICT) on survival outcome in traditional Korean medicine (TKM).We reviewed medical records for lung cancer patients who visited a single integrative clinical setting, East-West Cancer Center, between January 2014 and December 2015. We classified the patients into groups according to their ICT and whether or not they underwent anticancer traditional Korean Medicine treatment with a multiherbal formula containing Panax notoginseng Radix, Cordyceps militaris, P ginseng C.A.Mey., and Boswellia carterii BIRDWOOD (HangAmDan-B), with a herbal formula containing Rhus verniciflua Stoke, or with cultivated wild ginseng pharmacopuncture. A descriptive analysis of the characteristics and a survival analysis using the Kaplan-Meier curves with log rank test and a Cox proportional hazard model were performed.A total of 91 patients were included, and the majority had advanced-stage cancer. Of those patients, 45.1% were in the mono-TKM group and 39.6% were integrative group. Patients with advanced stage had significantly higher mortality than patients with early stage (crude hazard ratio [HR]: 4.41, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.56–12.5; adjusted HR: 6.31, 95% CI: 1.24–32.1). In the unadjusted model, for patients in the integrative group, the mortality rate was reduced by 50% compared to mono-TKM group with statistical significance. After adjusting confounders, the mortality rate of integrative group was reduced by 6% compared to mono-TKM group, suggesting positive effect on survival probability of integrative group.The results suggest that integration of TKM and conventional cancer treatment may have survival benefits in patients with lung cancer. Even though this study has limitations including heterogeneity between treatment groups, the study results suggest that ICT has positive effect on survival probability. To clarify the impacts of ICT for lung cancer and other cancers on survival outcome, further prospective study with a rigorous study design is required in multiclinical setting.

Isolation, structure elucidation, and immunostimulatory activity of polysaccharide fractions from Boswellia carterii frankincense resin.

Frankincense has a long history in religious, cultural, and medicinal use. In this study polysaccharides were extracted from frankincense from Boswellia carterii. The polysaccharides were purified by anion exchange chromatography on a DEAE-Sepharose Fast Flow 16/10 FPLC column. Six fractions were obtained and the three most active immunomodulatory fractions were further purified by size exclusion chromatography on a Superdex-200 column. The composition showed the monosaccharides present were predominantly galactose, arabinose, and glucuronic acid along with small amounts of rhamnose and glucose. The monosaccharide composition and glycosyl linkage analysis revealed the polysaccharides belong to the type II arabinogalactans. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and bicinchoninic acid assay showed that the amount of protein in the samples was <1 wt%. One-dimensional 1H NMR were consistent with high molecular weight compounds. The monosaccharides were primarily in the β conformation. The three fractions exhibited an immunostimulatory effect on RAW 264.7 murine macrophage cells. The most active immunostimulatory fraction FA2, stimulated a range of pro-inflammatory mediators including iNOS, NO, TNF-α, and IL-6 in RAW 264.7 cells. The fractions were effective in proliferating primary murine splenocytes. The results indicate that the polysaccharides isolated from frankincense have the potential to be used as an immunological stimulant or nutraceutical.

Organic Certification is Not Enough: The Case of the Methoxydecane Frankincense.

Frankincense, the oleo-gum-resin of Boswellia trees, has been an important religious and medicinal element for thousands of years, and today is used extensively for essential oils. One of the most popular frankincense species is Boswellia sacra Flueck. (syn. Boswellia carteri Birdw.) from Somalia and Somaliland. Recent increases in demand have led to many areas being overharvested, emphasizing the need for incentives and monitoring for sustainable harvesting, such as certification schemes. Concurrently, a new chemical component, called methoxydecane, has emerged in oils claimed to be B. carteri, suggesting the possibility of a chemical marker of overharvesting or other stress that could aid in monitoring. To find the source of this new chemical component, we sampled resin directly from trees in areas producing the new methoxydecane chemotype. This revealed that methoxydecane comes not from Boswellia carteri, but from a newly described frankincense species, Boswellia occulta. The presence of Boswellia occulta oil in essential oil sold as pure B. carteri, including certified organic oil, emphasizes the current lack of traceability in the supply chain and the ineffectiveness of organic certification to secure purity and sustainable harvesting in wildcrafted species.

Boswellic Acid Composition of Frankincense Dietary Supplements and Correlation to Cytotoxic Efficacy against Treatment‐Resistant Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cells

Frankincense is an oleogum resin from Boswellia trees of the Burseraceae family. The oleogum resin contains 15–20 % triterpenic acids, including therapeutically active boswellic acids [1]. Extracts of oleogum resins obtained from Boswellia serrata have been traditionally used in Indian folk medicine (Ayurveda) for the treatment of various chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. Furthermore, boswellic acids are known to possess anticancer efficacy against various human cancer types, e.g. gliomas, prostate cancer, or leukemia [2–4]. The aim of the present study was to analyze the contents of boswellic acids in dietary supplements from various Boswellia species grown in different areas and to correlate the concentrations of distinct boswellic acids to the extracts' cytotoxic efficacy against chemoresistant triple‐negative human breast cancer cells. Accordingly, a new method to quantify a large variety of pentacyclic triterpenic acids was developed. Dietary supplements from various Boswellia species Boswellia serrata, Boswellia sacra, Boswellia carterii, and others were extracted with methanol and analyzed by high performance reversed‐phase liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometric detection (HPLC‐MS/MS). Besides, the effects of the extracts against the treatment‐resistant, triple negative human breast cancer cell line MDA‐MB‐231 were investigated in vitro by using a cell viability assay. The extracts exhibited potent cytotoxic activity against the human breast cancer cell line. Correlations between the boswellic acid contents and the cytotoxic efficacy were determined by multiple linear regression and principal component regression. This approach allowed not only the correlation of complex phytochemical mixtures to desired biomedical effects, but it likewise provided evidence for key compounds governing the therapeutic efficacy. Hence, the study provides new insights into differential chemical composition patterns of frankincense dietary supplements from Boswellia species grown in different regions. Besides, the study identified distinct components correlating positively with the desired cytotoxic activity. Thus, the identified key compounds deserve further studies either as chemically pure substances or as defined chemical mixtures permitting development of the most active ingredients as potential anticancer drug candidates.Support or Funding InformationThis work was supported by the Academic Center for Complementary and Integrative Medicine (AZKIM), State Ministry of Baden‐Württemberg for Sciences, Research and Arts.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.

Prevalence of herbal medicines in patients with chronic allergic disorders in Western Saudi Arabia.

Objectives:To assess the prevalence and pattern of the use of herbal medicines by allergic patients in Western Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.Methods:Cross-sectional study design was used to collect data from consecutively recruited patients with chronic allergic disorders from July 2018 to October 2018. Participants from 2 allergy clinics in Jeddah, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia were interviewed face-to-face using a structured questionnaire.Results:One hundred and two patients with allergy were interviewed. Their average age was 34±18 and 72.5% were female. The most common primary diagnoses were allergic rhinitis (24.5%), atopic dermatitis (19.6%), and bronchial asthma (16.7%). Herbal medicines were used by 60% of participants, including: Nigella sativa (19.6%), Pimpinella anisum (12.7%), Boswellia sacra (11.8%), Zingiber officinale (10.8%), Foeniculum vulgare (9.8%), Psidium guajava (9.8%), Olea europaea (8.8%), Thymus vulgaris (5.9%), Matricaria chamomilla (4.9%), Mentha piperita (4.9%), Syzygium aromaticum (4.9%), and others. Of those, 63% reported subjective improvement in symptoms. A significant association was found between asthma and herbal medicines intake (p=0.001).Conclusion:Despite the insufficient evidence, there was a high prevalence of herbal medicines used by allergic patients (more than half), especially in bronchial asthma. Black seed, anise and olibanum were the most commonly used.

The Effects of Frankincense Essential Oil on Stress in Rats.

Frankincense essential oil, obtained from Boswellia carteri, is a popular essential oil, which is widely used in many parts of the world. While some of its properties are known, its effects on stress and sleep have not been studied. The effects of frankincense essential oil and its major components, limonene and α-pinene, on plasma corticosterone and glutathione (GSH) levels, as well as on sleep and wakefulness behaviour, were studied in sleep-deprived rats. The substances were applied topically after dilution in jojoba oil (vehicle). As compared to vehicle, frankincense essential oil at a dilution of 1/1000 (1:103) significantly reduced corticosterone levels (p < 0.05). In contrast, its major constituents (α-pinene and limonene), elevated levels of this stress hormone. Frankincense, limonene and α-pinene, all led to significant reductions in plasma GSH levels. Although frankincense dose-dependently reduced plasma concentrations of antioxidant ions albeit to levels insufficient to neutralize oxidative stress; levels of products of oxidative metabolism metabolites were decreased by the frankincense. In sleep-deprived rats, frankincense 1:103 respectively increased and decreased the amount of wakefulness and non-rapid eye movement sleep. Frankincense essential oil can counter the effects of stress by effectively relieving sleep debt and maintaining antioxidant capacity without increasing oxidative stress, and, therefore, may be beneficial in the management of stress.

Endogenous phytohormones of frankincense producing Boswellia sacra tree populations.

Boswellia sacra, an endemic tree to Oman, is exposed to man-made incisions for commercial level frankincense production, whereas unsustainable harvesting may lead to population decline. In this case, assessment of endogenous phytohormones (gibberellic acid (GA), indole-acetic acid (IAA), salicylic acid (SA) and kinetin) can help to understand population health and growth dynamics. Hence, it was aimed to devise a robust method using Near-Infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) coupled with multivariate methods for phytohormone analysis of thirteen different populations of B. sacra. NIRS data was recorded in absorption mode (10000–4000 cm-1) to build partial least squares regression model (calibration set 70%). Model was externally cross validated (30%) as a test set to check their prediction ability before the application to quantify the unknown amount of phytohormones in thirteen different populations of B. sacra. The results showed that phytohormonal contents varied significantly, showing a trend of SA>GA/IAA>kinetin across different populations. SA and GA contents were significantly higher in Pop13 (Hasik), followed by Pop2 (Dowkah)–an extreme end of B. sacra tree cover in Dhofar region. A similar trend in the concentration of phytohormones was found when the samples from 13 populations were subjected to advance liquid chromatography mass spectrophotometer and gas chromatograph with selected ion monitor analysis. The current analysis provides alternative tool to assess plant health, which could be important to in situ propagation of tree population as well as monitoring tree population growth dynamics.

An arabinogalactan isolated from Boswellia carterii: Purification, structural elucidation and macrophage stimulation via NF-κB and MAPK pathways

Polysaccharides from Boswellia carterii were isolated using hot water and fractionated on a DEAE Sepharose Fast Flow column to evaluate their structural characteristics and macrophage stimulating capacities. Crude and fractionated polysaccharides (BCF1 and BCF2) were mainly consisted of different amounts of neutral sugars (63.7–83.3%) and uronic acids (6.2–22.3%). The weight average molecular weights (Mw) of polysaccharides greatly varied between 295.5 and 504.7 × 103 g/mol. The BCF2 was a highly active polysaccharide on RAW264.7 murine macrophage cells inducing considerable release of nitric oxide and proinflammatory cytokines including TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6. The presence of p-NF-κB, p-JNK, p-ERK and p-p38 proteins in the cytoplasm of the stimulated macrophages indicated the activation of cells via NF-κB and MAPKs signaling pathways which was followed after CBF2-macrophage interaction through TLR4 and TLR2 receptors. The most potent macrophage activating polysaccharide, BCF2, contained a backbone of (1 → 6)-β-galactopyranosyl units branched at C-3.

Frankincense Essential Oil as a Supportive Therapy for Cancer-Related Fatigue

Fatigue experienced by patients diagnosed with cancer can be debilitating and can be challenging to manage. The use of supportive therapies such as essential oils is gaining popularity among patients diagnosed with cancer. This article describes one patient's experience using frankincense (Boswellia carterii) essential oil to help in the management of her fatigue. The topical application of the frankincense helped to take her fatigue from being barely able to lift her head to being able to do some basic activities of daily living.

The Complete Chloroplast Genome Sequence of Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) (Sapindales: Simaroubaceae), an Important Pantropical Tree.

Ailanthus altissima (Mill.) Swingle (Simaroubaceae) is a deciduous tree widely distributed throughout temperate regions in China, hence suitable for genetic diversity and evolutionary studies. Previous studies in A. altissima have mainly focused on its biological activities, genetic diversity and genetic structure. However, until now there is no published report regarding genome of this plant species or Simaroubaceae family. Therefore, in this paper, we first characterized A. altissima complete chloroplast genome sequence. The tree of heaven chloroplast genome was found to be a circular molecule 160,815 base pairs (bp) in size and possess a quadripartite structure. The A. altissima chloroplast genome contains 113 unique genes of which 79 and 30 are protein coding and transfer RNA (tRNA) genes respectively and also 4 ribosomal RNA genes (rRNA) with overall GC content of 37.6%. Microsatellite marker detection identified A/T mononucleotides as majority SSRs in all the seven analyzed genomes. Repeat analyses of seven Sapindales revealed a total of 49 repeats in A. altissima, Rhus chinensis, Dodonaea viscosa, Leitneria floridana, while Azadirachta indica, Boswellia sacra, and Citrus aurantiifolia had a total of 48 repeats. The phylogenetic analysis using protein coding genes revealed that A. altissima is a sister to Leitneria floridana and also suggested that Simaroubaceae is a sister to Rutaceae family. The genome information reported here could be further applied for evolution and invasion, population genetics, and molecular studies in this plant species and family.

The effects of inhalation aromatherapy withBoswellia carteriiessential oil on the intensity of labor pain among nulliparous women

Background: Labor pain is a major reason behind preferring cesarean section over normal vaginal delivery. Aromatherapy is among the most common nonpharmacological therapies for pain. Objectives: The objective of this study aimed to evaluate the effects of inhalation aromatherapy with Boswellia carterii (BC) essential oil on the intensity of labor pain among nulliparous women. Methods: This randomized controlled trial was carried out on 126 nulliparous women. Women were randomly allocated to an aromatherapy (n = 63) and a placebo (n = 63) group. For each woman in the aromatherapy group, a piece of gauze was soaked with 0.2 ml of 0.2% BC essential oil diluted in 2 ml of normal saline, and then, it was attached to the collar of each woman. The intervention was repeated for each woman every 30 min up to a cervical dilation of 10 cm. The intervention in the placebo group was the same as the aromatherapy group except that the gauze was soaked only with 2 ml of normal saline. A numeric pain rating scale was used to assess the labor pain intensity before the intervention and at cervical dilations of 3–4, 5–7, and 8–10 cm. Statistical analyses were performed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as the Chi-square, the independent sample t- test, and paired t-test. Results: Between-group comparisons revealed that labor pain intensity in the aromatherapy group was significantly lower than the control group at cervical dilations of 3–4 (4.98 ± 0.93 vs. 6.68 ± 1.28, P < 0.001), 5–7 (5.79 ± 1.13 vs. 7.23 ± 1.54, <0.001), and 8–10 cm (6.35 ± 1.63 vs. 7.71 ± 1.38, P < 0.05). However, there were no significant between-group differences regarding 1 and 5 min Apgar scores (P > 0.05). Conclusion: Inhalation aromatherapy with BC essential oil has positive effects on labor pain. Therefore, it can be used for relieving labor pain in the first stage of labor.