Plant Phytochemicals Research Articles

A Mini-Review on Solid Lipid Nanoparticles and Nanostructured Lipid Carriers: Topical Delivery of Phytochemicals for the Treatment of Acne Vulgaris.

Acne vulgaris (acne) is one of the most common dermatological problems affecting adolescents and young adults. Although acne may not lead to serious medical complications, its psychosocial effects are tremendous and scientifically proven. The first-line treatment for acne is topical medications composed of synthetic compounds, which usually cause skin irritation, dryness and itch. Therefore, naturally occurring constituents from plants (phytochemicals), which are generally regarded as safe, have received much attention as an alternative source of treatment. However, the degradation of phytochemicals under high temperature, light and oxygen, and their poor penetration across the skin barrier limit their application in dermatology. Encapsulation in lipid nanoparticles is one of the strategies commonly used to deliver drugs and phytochemicals because it allows appropriate concentrations of these substances to be delivered to the site of action with minimal side effects. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) and nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) are promising delivery systems developed from the combination of lipid and emulsifier. They have numerous advantages that include biocompatibility and biodegradability of lipid materials, enhancement of drug solubility and stability, ease of modulation of drug release, ease of scale-up, feasibility of incorporation of both hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs and occlusive moisturization, which make them very attractive carriers for delivery of bioactive compounds for treating skin ailments such as acne. In this review, the concepts of SLNs and NLCs, methods of preparation, characterization, and their application in the encapsulation of anti-acne phytochemicals will be discussed.

Natural Therapeutics in Aid of Treating Alzheimer's Disease: A Green Gateway Toward Ending Quest for Treating Neurological Disorders.

The current scientific community is facing a daunting challenge to unravel reliable natural compounds with realistic potential to treat neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The reported compounds/drugs mostly synthetic deemed the reliability and therapeutic potential largely due to their complexity and off-target issues. The natural products from nutraceutical compounds emerge as viable preventive therapeutics to fill the huge gap in treating neurological disorders. Considering that Alzheimer’s disease is a multifactorial disease, natural compounds offer the advantage of a multitarget approach, tagging different molecular sites in the human brain, as compared with the single-target activity of most of the drugs so far used to treat Alzheimer’s disease. A wide range of plant extracts and phytochemicals reported to possess the therapeutic potential to Alzheimer’s disease includes curcumin, resveratrol, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, morin, delphinidins, quercetin, luteolin, oleocanthal, and other phytochemicals such as huperzine A, limonoids, and azaphilones. Reported targets of these natural compounds include inhibition of acetylcholinesterase, amyloid senile plaques, oxidation products, inflammatory pathways, specific brain receptors, etc. We tenaciously aimed to review the in-depth potential of natural products and their therapeutic applications against Alzheimer’s disease, with a special focus on a diversity of medicinal plants and phytocompounds and their mechanism of action against Alzheimer’s disease pathologies. We strongly believe that the medicinal plants and phytoconstituents alone or in combination with other compounds would be effective treatments against Alzheimer’s disease with lesser side effects as compared to currently available treatments.

Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Phytochemicals in some Medicinal plants of Western Himalayas

Plants have been well known for their medicinal applications for ages and traditional medicines are still a major part of habitual treatments in different parts of the world. They are used since ancient times for treating different ailments and providing valuable drugs such as analgesics (morphine), antihypertensives (reserpine), cardiotonic (digoxin) and antimalarials (quinine and artemisinin). The discovery of medicinal plants helps in achieving the new targets in treating various diseases like cancer, malaria and neurological disorders. Herbs proved to be the only solution for treating a large number of health-related problems. Most of the recent drugs are obtained in one or another way from plants. Medicinal plants contain biologically active, naturally occurring chemical compounds known as phytochemicals which provide health benefits and protect the human cell from any type of damage. Phytochemical screenings of medicinal plants have contributed to the discovery of new drugs. In our present investigation, an attempt has been made to screen out the bioactive constituents of three selected plants of western Himalayas and further they had been subjected to quantitative analysis for estimation of different parameters.

Molecular networking and collision cross section prediction for structural isomer and unknown compound identification in plant metabolomics: a case study applied to Zhanthoxylum heitzii extracts

Mass spectrometry-based plant metabolomics allow large-scale analysis of a wide range of compounds and the discovery of potential new active metabolites with minimal sample preparation. Despite recent tools for molecular networking, many metabolites remain unknown. Our objective is to show the complementarity of collision cross section (CCS) measurements and calculations for metabolite annotation in a real case study. Thus, a systematic and high-throughput investigation of root, bark, branch, and leaf of the Gabonese plant Zhanthoxylum heitzii was performed through ultra-high performance liquid chromatography high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-QTOF/MS). A feature-based molecular network (FBMN) was employed to study the distribution of metabolites in the organs of the plants and discover potential new components. In total, 143 metabolites belonging to the family of alkaloids, lignans, polyphenols, fatty acids, and amino acids were detected and a semi-quantitative analysis in the different organs was performed. A large proportion of medical plant phytochemicals is often characterized by isomerism and, in the absence of reference compounds, an additional dimension of gas phase separation can result in improvements to both quantitation and compound annotation. The inclusion of ion mobility in the ultra-high performance liquid chromatography mass spectrometry workflow (UHPLC-IMS-MS) has been used to collect experimental CCS values in nitrogen and helium (CCSN2 and CCSHe) of Zhanthoxylum heitzii features. Due to a lack of reference data, the investigation of predicted collision cross section has enabled comparison with the experimental values, helping in dereplication and isomer identification. Moreover, in combination with mass spectra interpretation, the comparison of experimental and theoretical CCS values allowed annotation of unknown features. The study represents a practical example of the potential of modern mass spectrometry strategies in the identification of medicinal plant phytochemical components.

Development of EPS-rich herbal shampoo base fermented using Cyclea peltata leaf powder and Lactobacillus plantarum.

Studies show that the extensive use of chemical shampoos has a negative impact on health. Given the recent trends, the use of herbal shampoos is gaining importance. Cyclea peltata is a common plant in Kerala's coastal region that has traditionally been used to aid in wound healing, allergy relief, and hair and scalp improvement. Greenly produced silver nanoparticles made from plant sources have a wide range of medical applications. The main objective is to optimize the base of the shampoo with better solid content by OFAT studies and characterize the silver nanoparticles synthesized using post optimized shampoo base. Cyclea peltata leaves were fermented with Lactobacillus plantarum for the shampoo formulation, substituting the chemical basis gelatin with an herbal fermented foundation. Silver nanoparticles combined with an herbal formulation should be as safe as herbal shampoo while also being as effective as chemical shampoo. Variation of concentration of Cyclea peltata leaf powder, variation of sucrose concentration, variation of concentration of yeast extract, variation of L.plantarum inoculum, variation of temperature, variation of agitation speed, and variation of time were all studied using the OFAT (One Factor At a Time) method. Silver nanoparticles synthesized using post optimized shampoo bases were also characterized by particle size, zeta potential, and FTIR analysis in order to better understand their properties. The results clearly indicated that all the six factors had a significant effect on the growth and production of EPS. The pH considered for the shampoo base is above 5so as to maintain the acidic mantle of the scalp. Green synthesized silver nanoparticles from post optimized shampoo base were obtained within 17th hour of incubation, with single surface plasmon resonance at 420nm. Nanoparticles showed a peak at -11.6mv of zeta potential which means that the particles are less agglomerative and stable. Similar groups were seen in ftir spectrum of fermented silver nanoparticles and the plant extract which confirmed the capping of nanoparticles with plant phytochemicals. The study successfully prepared and characterized green synthesized silver nanoparticles from post optimized shampoo base and also optimized the shampoo base based on the EPS production. Characterization of the silver nanoparticles found that the nanoparticles synthesized were stable, less agglomerative,and had several useful components present in it.

Identification of potential lead compounds against BACE1 through in-silico screening of phytochemicals of Medhya rasayana plants for Alzheimer's disease management

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive and irreversible neurodegenerative disease that accounts for 70–80% of dementia in the elderly. According to recent clinical data, the incidence of the disease is exponentially increasing with age. Beta-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme1 (BACE1) is an important molecule involved in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease due to its early role in the amyloid cascade. Cleavage of amyloid precursor protein by BACE1 is the rate-limiting step leading to the production and aggregation of amyloid-beta plaques. A number of natural products are being identified as non-competitive BACE1 inhibitors. In Ayurveda, Medhya rasayana is a group of medicinal herbs, specifically used for managing neurological disorders and is known to be effective in improving cognitivity and intellect. This study aimed to analyze the pharmacological activity of bio-active compounds in Medhya rasayana plants against BACE1, employing structure-based docking approach. 11 compounds out of 876 were identified as potential hits, based on docking scores, binding energies, and interactions with the critical residues of BACE1. Possible neurological activities of these compounds were predicted using PASS server. Out of the 11 compounds screened, two compounds, ‘Convolidine’ from the plant Convolvulus pleuricaulis Choisy and ‘N-(4-hydroxybutyl) phthalimide’ from Glycyrrhiza glabra satisfied the pharmacological parameters of Lipinski rule of filtering and ADMET prediction. The binding stability of these compounds against BACE1 was confirmed by molecular dynamic simulation and post dynamic MM/GBSA calculations. Detailed analysis of the interaction with the critical amino acids in the active site revealed the possible inhibitory potential of these compounds of medicinal plant origin against BACE1.

Green synthesized superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles for water treatment with alternative recyclability

Widely used water treatment methods are based on chemicals that leave residual unwanted impurities, instigating long-term health impacts. Hence, functionalized magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) have been used to fill those gabs and are commonly used for metallic adsorption in contaminated waters. High surface to volume ratio of those MNPs allows for a larger capacity of pollutant adsorption. In this study, functionalized iron oxide MNPs are synthesized by a novel green approach using plant phytochemicals with the capability of absorbing multiple organic pollutants. Herein, we studied synthesis of iron oxide MNPs with crude plant extracts using a simple maceration technique. The reaction was supported further by heat treatments at the supercritical condition of ethanol to complete the reduction process to superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles. Our XRD result shows formation of spherical and cubic goethite (before treatment-Y0PL), magnetite (after treatment -Y0PR) and magnetite (after treatment and functionalization-Y0PRP) with an average crystalline size 277, 29, 45 nm respectively. Phytochemicals increased the size and altered texture of nanoparticles. The magnetic properties were measured for magnetization dependence on external magnetic field to show superparamagnetic behavior with Ms = 44 (Hc = 123 Oe), 36 (Hc = 133 Oe) and 13 (Hc = 44 Oe) emu/g for Y0PR, Y0PRP and Y0PL, respectively. Absorption/reduction efficiency of nanoparticles was studied against MB (10–140 mg/L) and 4-NA (0.5–1 mM). As synthesized green nanoparticles absorbed the model dyes above 80% efficiency under a wide range of conditions in a very short time and 94% under optimum conditions. Moreover, this work introduces successful alternative recyclability in particular for weakly magnetic nanoparticles by growing them on the surface of polyvinyl alcohol solid support. Therefore, the green synthesized superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles prepared in this study are easy to synthesize and cost-effective and enviro-friendly water treatment agents.

Chemical phenotype as important and dynamic niche dimension of plants.

Niche theory considering the traits of species and individuals provides a powerful tool to integrate ecology and evolution of species. In plant ecology, morphological and physiological traits are commonly considered as niche dimensions, whereas phytochemical traits are mostly neglected in this context despite their pivotal functions in plant responses to their environment and in mediating interactions. The diversity of plant phytochemicals can thus mediate three key processes: niche choice, conformance and construction. Here, we integrate frameworks from niche theory with chemical ecology and argue that plants use their individual-specific diversity in phytochemicals (chemodiversity) for different niche realization processes. Our concept has important implications for ecosystem processes and stability and increases the predictive ability of chemical ecology.

Rhamnella gilgitica functionalized green synthesis of ZnONPs and their multiple therapeutic properties.

In the recent years, green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) using plant extracts and phytochemicals has gained significant attention. In present research study, facile, green, and tunable ZnONPs were biosynthesized from Rhamnella gilgitica leaf aqueous extract as a strong reducing and stabilizing agents. The prepared ZnONPs@Rhamnella were characterized and validated using common nanotechnology techniques (UV-Vis, XRD, EDX, FT-IR, SEM, TEM, DLS, and Raman) and revealed spherical morphology with particle size ~21 nm. The asynthesized ZnONPs were further evaluated for different biological applications. Strong antimicrobial efficacies were reported for ZnONPs using disc-diffusion method and were capable of rendering significant antimicrobial potential. ZnONPs were evaluated against HepG2 (IC50 : 18.40 μg/ml) and HUH7 (IC50 : 20.59 μg/ml) cancer cell lines and revealed strong anticancer properties. Dose-dependent MTT cytotoxicity assay was confirmed using Leishmania tropica "KWH23 strain" (promastigote: IC50 : 26.78 μg/ml and amastigote: IC50 : 29.57 μg/ml). Antioxidant activities (DPPH: 93.36%, TAC: 72.43%) were performed to evaluate their antioxidant potentials. Further, protein kinase and α-amylase inhibition assays were determined. Biocompatibility assays were done using human RBCs and macrophages thus revealed biosafe and non-toxic nature of ZnONPs@Rhamnella. In current experiment, we concluded that greenly orchestrated ZnONPs is an attractive, non-toxic and ecofriendly candidate and showed potential biological activities. In future, different clinical trials and in vivo studies are necessary for the confirmation of these remedial properties of ZnONPs using different animal models. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Greenly orchestrated ZnONPs were synthesized using Rhamnella gilgitica leaves broth. Analytical techniques such as UV, SEM, TEM, XRD, FTIR, DLS, and Raman confirmed synthesis of ZnONPs. Green ZnONPs determined strong antimicrobial, cytotoxic, and antioxidant potentials. Significant enzyme inhibition and biocompatibility assays were investigated.

COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE PROXIMATE COMPOSITION AND PHYTOCHEMICAL SCREENING OF ETHANOLIC EXTRACTS OF LEAVES OF Chromolaena Odorata (L.) King & Robinson and Boerhaevia Diffusa

Based on local claims on the efficacy of Boerhaevia diffusa and Chromolaena odorata in the treatment of malaria, this study compared the proximate content and phytochemical constituents of ethanolic extracts of C. odorata (COE) and B. diffusa (BDE) leaves. Ethanolic extract of the plant leaves were obtained by using standard procedures. The results of the proximate analysis of the dried ground leaves of both plants revealed that COE exhibited significantly higher (p < 0.05) percentage of ash, lipid, fiber, carbohydrate (10.30 %, 1.20 %, 5.19 %, 6.58 %, respectively) with lower amount of protein (0.66 %) and moisture (75.80 %) in contrast to the BDE counterpart which had higher moisture (84.50 %) and protein (2.58 %) content but lower levels of the other parameters. The mineral elements of both plants samples were not significantly different (p>0.05) except for phosphorus which was very high for BDE (5mg/dl) when compared with COE (1.0mg/dl). Results of the phytochemical screening of the extracts showed that both extracts were positive for alkaloid, flavonoid, steroids, terpenoids, saponins and anthraquinones. However, cardiac glycosides were detected in BDE but absent in COE. While reducing sugars and tannins were positive for COE and negative for BDE. The results reveal that both extracts had almost similar nutritive and phytochemical values with some variations. The occurrence of the nutrients and phytochemicals in both plants justifies local claims of their medicinal and nutritional values.

Potential Roles of Phytochemicals in Combating Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Infection

Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of the current ongoing global pandemic COVID-19 is yet far away from the clutches of contemporary western medicines. With the lack of conventional drugs for this deadly disease the scope for the development of herbal formulations and Ayurvedic medication is finding a sound basis in the current scenario. The past two years has witnessed detailed and focused investigations on the biologically active constituents derived from a range of medicinal plants and their potential antiviral properties against SARS-CoV-2. The promising results of these investigations have intrigued the medical and plant experts in pharmacognosy enough to consider herbal medicines and plant-based products as they are more effective in combating the COVID-19 crisis. However, a large-scale application of the same would require more focused and thorough research on this matter. This review is an attempt to describe the current and future prospects of using medicinal plants and herbal compounds as natural and sustainable alternative for treating COVID-19. The current article evaluates the various strong evidences from biochemical and molecular studies that have been investigated so far in the development of herbal formulations to combat COVID-19 with detailed focus on the most potential phytochemicals of medicinal plants studied in this regard namely Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal, Cinchona officinalis L., Curcuma longa L., Ocimum sanctum L., Azadirachta indica A. Juss., and Tinospora cordifolia (Willd) Miers.

Molecular docking study of the main phytochemicals of some medicinal plants used against COVID-19 by the rural population of Al-Haouz region, Morocco

Context: The infection by Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a global health emergency. The management of this crisis requires the discovery of new drugs able to cure or reduce the severity of SARS-CoV-2. Aims: To explore the medicinal plants consumed by the rural population of Al-Haouz region against the emergence of the COVID-19, and to assess in silico the main phytochemicals present in the essential oils and the extracts of these medicinal plants, as potential inhibitors of the COVID-19 main protease (Mpro). Methods: The survey was conducted through a semi-structured questionnaire among 85 respondents aged 30 years and above, in the Al-Haouz region, Morocco. AutoDock Vina, was used to assess the binding affinity of the phytochemicals to the Mpro. Results: Eleven wild medicinal species were cited; 10 belonging to the Lamiaceae family and one to the Compositae family. Thymus saturejoides Coss., Artemisia herba-alba Asso.and Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. were respectively the three most cited species during the survey. The rosmarinic acid (-7.7 kcal/mol), hesperetin (-7.2 kcal/mol), gallocatechin (-7.2 kcal/mol) and cyasterone (-7.2 kcal/mol) have shown the higher inhibitory potential against covid-19 Mpro respectively. Conclusions: In addition to their different recognized biological activities, the medicinal plants used in the Al-Haouz region have shown good inhibitory potential against SARAS-CoV-2 Mpro. Furthermore, the phytochemicals that exhibited the highest inhibitory potentials in this virtual study require further investigation in vitro and in vivo.

Biosynthesis of Gold Nanoparticles Using Strobilanthes crispa Aqueous Leaves Extract and Evaluation of Its Antibacterial Activity

The role of plant phytochemicals has drawn undeniable attention for synthesizing stable and eco-friendly nanoparticles. Therefore, this work explores using locally grown Strobilanthes crispa aqueous leaves extract for the biosynthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) using HAuCl4 as the metal precursor. The AuNPs were characterized using Ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, Fourier transforms infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, High-resolution Transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The UV-Vis spectrum exhibits two absorption peaks due to surface plasmon resonance of gold at 530 nm and 708 nm within 2 hours. The HRTEM micrographs proved that AuNPs were predominantly spherical with mixtures of anisotropic nanoshapes. The FTIR spectra evident the presence of phytochemical compounds, which acted as the capping agent. The face-centered cubic (fcc) structure was confirmed using the XRD pattern with an average crystallite size of 9.3 nm. The antibacterial assay exhibited a positive inhibitory effect on Gram-negative bacteria (Escherichia coli ATCC 11229) compared to Gram-positive bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538). Further in silico analysis between AuNPs and E. coli bacterial proteins using STITCH 5.0 revealed a high binding affinity of > 0.7 to DNA and membrane-related proteins. This result unravels the antibacterial properties of S. crispa AuNPs, leading to potent bacterial death.

Greener extraction of anthocyanins and antioxidant activity from blackberry (Rubus spp) using natural deep eutectic solvents

Natural deep eutectic solvents (NaDESs) are new green solvents used for the extraction of phenolic compounds. In this work, an efficient and greener strategy for extracting blackberry anthocyanins using NADESs was investigated. Sixteen NADESs constituted of choline chloride-urea, choline chloride-sugars, choline chloride-organic acids, choline chloride-polyalcohols and organic acids-sugars were synthesized. The antioxidant properties and anthocyanin profile of blackberry extracts obtained with NADESs and conventional solvents (water, methanol and ethanol)were evaluated. Results of the characterization of NADESs showed that the viscosity, pH, electric conductivity and chemical structure of NADESs were greatly influenced by the hydrogen bond acceptors and hydrogen bond donors. The highest recovery efficiencies were recorded with NADESs giving the highest total phenolic content (9.35 ± 0.39 mg GAE/G), total flavonoid content (104.72 ± 5.17 mg ECE/100g), total anthocyanin content (115.37 ± 0.43), antiradical activity (68.77 ± 2.29 mmol TE/g), reducing power (83.08 ± 3.78) and metal chelating activity (4771.25 ± 83.58 mg TE/100g). NADESs were the most prominent solvents for the recovery of the targeted anthocyanins, with the more acidic NADESs extracting higher quantities of cyanidin-3-glucoside, cyanidin-3-rutinoside, cyanidin chloride and pelargonidin-3-glucoside. A greener extraction using NADES can therefore effectively and reliably targets antioxidants and particularly anthocyanins in blackberry, offering promising ways for future investigations on the phytochemicals in plants.

Phytochemdb: a platform for virtual screening and computer-aided drug designing.

The phytochemicals of medicinal plants are regarded as a rich source of diverse chemical spaces that have been used as supplements and alternative medicines in the millennium. Even in this era of combinatorial chemical drugs, phytomedicines account for a large share of the statistics of newly approved drugs. In the field of computational aided and rational drug design, there is an urgent need to develop and build a useful phytochemical database management system with a user-friendly interface that allows proper data storage, retrieval and management. We showed ‘phytochemdb’, a manually managed database that compiles 525 plants and their corresponding 8093 phytochemicals, aiming to incorporate the activities of phytochemicals from medicinal plants. The database collects molecular formula, three-dimensional/two-dimensional structure, canonical SMILES, molecular weight, no. of heavy atoms, no. of aromatic heavy atoms, fraction Csp3, no. of rotatable bonds, no. of H-bond acceptors, no. of H-bond donors, molar refractivity, topological polar surface area, gastrointestinal absorption, Blood–Brain Barrier (BBB) permeant, P-gp substrate, CYP1A2 inhibitor, CYP2C19 inhibitor, CYP2C9 inhibitor, CYP2D6 inhibitor, CYP3A4 inhibitor, Log Kp, Ghose, Veber, Egan, Muegge, bioavailability scores, pan-assay interference compounds, Brenk, Leadlikeness, synthetic accessibility, iLOGP and Lipinski rule of five with the number of violations for each compound. It provides open contribution functions for the researchers who screen phytochemicals in the laboratory and have released their data. ‘phytochemdb’ is a comprehensive database that gathers most of the information about medicinal plants in one platform, which is considered to be very beneficial to the work of researchers on medicinal plants. ‘phytochemdb’ is available for free at https://phytochemdb.com/.

Growth enhancement of agricultural crops using seaweed liquid fertilizer

Extensive use of chemical fertilizer is leading to infertility of soil and various hazardous effect on the ecosystem. Using biofertilizer reduces these harmful effects. Many are commercially available, being a poor match to chemical fertilizer they are not used on a large scale. Near coastal regions seaweeds are used as biofertilizers. Recent studies show seaweeds have multiple growth regulators, macro and micronutrients, polysaccharides which are necessary for plant growth. The study is carried out to check the bioactivity of Seaweed liquid fertilizer (SLF) as a growth stimulant. Sargassum cinereum, Ulva rigida and Ahnfeltia plicata found on the Indian coastline were used. SLFs were prepared from each of three species in varying concentration (0.02%, 0.04%, 0.06%, 0.08% and 0.1% v/v) with water and Urea as control. The test plant selected was Vigna radiata. Agronomic characters like germination rate, shoot length, flowering and fruiting period of test plants were studied. Phyto-hormones from SLF were detected by thin-layer chromatography. Elemental analysis of micronutrients in SLF was carried by ICP-AES. Along with Chlorophyll and Protein estimation of grown plants were checked. SLF shelf life was studied using chemical and biological preservatives. The effect of 0.06% concentration of all SLFs showed enhancement in growth and phytochemicals in plants. Plants treated with SLF showed flowering earlier than control plants. Thus, using SLF bio-fertilizer can become an alternative method to reduce the use of harmful chemical fertilizers.

Excavating phytochemicals from plants possessing antiviral activities for identifying SARS-CoV hemagglutinin-esterase inhibitors by diligent computational workflow

Coronaviruses (CoVs) belong to a group of RNA viruses that cause diseases in vertebrates including. Newer and deadlier than SARS CoV-2 are sought to appear in future for which the scientific community must be prepared with the strategies for their control. Spike protein (S-protein) of all the CoVs require angiotensin-converting enzyme2 (ACE2), while CoVs also require hemagglutinin-acetylesterase (HE) glycoprotein receptor to simultaneously interact with O-acetylated sialic acids on host cells, both these interactions enable viral particle to enter host cell leading to its infection. Target inhibition of viral S-protein and HE glycoprotein receptor can lead to a development of therapy against the SARS CoV-2. The proposition is to recognize molecules from the bundle of phytochemicals of medicinal plants known to possess antiviral potentials as a lead that could interact and mask the active site of, HE glycoprotein which would ideally bind to O-acetylated sialic acids on human host cells. Such molecules can be addressed as ‘HE glycoprotein blockers’. A library of 110 phytochemicals from Withania somnifera, Asparagus racemosus, Zinziber officinalis, Allium sativum, Curcuma longa and Adhatoda vasica was constructed and was used under present study. In silico analysis was employed with plant-derived phytochemicals. The molecular docking, molecular dynamics simulations over the scale of 1000 ns (1 μs) and ADMET prediction revealed that the Withania somnifera (ashwagandha) and Asparagus racemosus (shatavari) plants possessed various steroidal saponins and alkaloids which could potentially inhibit the COVID-19 virus and even other CoVs targeted HE glycoprotein receptor. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma

UV and Visible Spectrum LED Lighting as Abiotic Elicitors of Bioactive Compounds in Sprouts, Microgreens, and Baby Leaves-A Comprehensive Review including Their Mode of Action.

Background: According to social demands, the agri-food industry must elaborate convenient safe and healthy foods rich in phytochemicals while minimising processing inputs like energy consumption. Young plants in their first stages of development represent great potential. Objective: This review summarises the latest scientific findings concerning the use of UV and visible spectrum LED lighting as green, sustainable, and low-cost technologies to improve the quality of sprouts, microgreens, and baby leaves to enhance their health-promoting compounds, focusing on their mode of action while reducing costs and energy. Results: These technologies applied during growing and/or after harvesting were able to improve physiological and morphological development of sprouted seeds while increasing their bioactive compound content without compromising safety and other quality attributes. The novelty is to summarise the main findings published in a comprehensive review, including the mode of action, and remarking on the possibility of its postharvest application where the literature is still scarce. Conclusions: Illumination with UV and/or different regions of the visible spectrum during growing and shelf life are good abiotic elicitors of the production of phytochemicals in young plants, mainly through the activation of specific photoreceptors and ROS production. However, we still need to understand the mechanistic responses and their dependence on the illumination conditions.

Tannins in the Treatment of Diabetic Neuropathic Pain: Research Progress and Future Challenges.

Diabetes mellitus and its consequences continue to put a significant demand on medical resources across the world. Diabetic neuropathic pain (DNP) is a frequent diabetes mellitus chronic microvascular outcome. Allodynia, hyperalgesia, and aberrant or lack of nerve fibre sensation are all symptoms of DNP. These clinical characteristics will lead to worse quality of life, sleep disruption, depression, and increased mortality. Although the availability of numerous medications that alleviate the symptoms of DNP, the lack of long-term efficacy and unfavourable side effects highlight the urgent need for novel treatment strategies. This review paper systematically analysed the preclinical research on the treatment of DNP using plant phytochemicals that contain only tannins. A total of 10 original articles involved in in-vivo and in-vitro experiments addressing the promising benefits of phytochemical tannins on DNP were examined between 2008 and 2021. The information given implies that these phytochemicals may have relevant pharmacological effects on DNP symptoms through their antihyperalgesic, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant properties; however, because of the limited sample size and limitations of the studies conducted so far, we were unable to make definitive conclusions. Before tannins may be employed as therapeutic agents for DNP, more study is needed to establish the specific molecular mechanism for all of these activities along the pain pathway and examine the side effects of tannins in the treatment of DNP.

The possible role of ursolic acid in Covid-19: A real game changer.

Ursolic acid (UA) is a pentacyclic terpenoid is usually found in the fruit peels and stem bark as secondary metabolites. UA has antiviral, antibacterial, and antiparasitic properties. UA has a wide spectrum of pharmacological activities against different infections. Because of the greatest antiviral and anti-inflammatory properties of UA, so it could be a plausible therapeutic herbal medicine in Covid-19 treatment. Covid-19 is a recent worldwide virulent disease pandemic due to severe acute respiratory coronavirus disease 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The pathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection is related to the direct cytopathic effect and exaggerated immune response by which acute lung injury (ALI) and/or acute respiratory distress syndrome might be developed in critical cases. UA may inhibit main protease of SARS-CoV-2, and inhibits the interface flanked by SARS-CoV-2 viral proteins and its entry point commonly recognized as angiotensin converting enzyme 2 (ACE2). In addition, UA attenuates SARS-CoV-2-induced inflammatory reactions and oxidative stress.Therefore, UA could avert SARS-CoV-2 infection from causing ALI. This opinion proposed that UA might be a potential candidate therapy against Covid-19 and can mitigate post-Covid-19 complications such as lung fibrosis. In this regards, forthcoming studies are reasonable to substantiate the therapeutic role of UA in Covid-19. However, taken into account that Covid-19 is yet to be investigating for further evaluations, therefore, clinical trials are recommended regarding use and dose of UA in Covid-19 treatment, as well as secondary effects.