Customizable large-scale HPLC fraction collection using low-cost 3D printing.

High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is an invaluable technique that has been used for many decades for the separation of various molecules. The reproducible collection of eluates from these systems has been significantly improved via its automation by fraction collection systems. Current commercially available fraction collectors are not easily customizable, incompatible with other platforms, and come with a large cost barrier making them inaccessible to many researchers.

From Plant to Patient: A Historical Perspective and Review of Selected Medicinal Plants in Dermatology.

Skin conditions are a common health concern faced by patients of all ages. For thousands of years, plants have been used to treat various skin conditions, including acne, vitiligo, and psoriasis, to name a few. Today, with increasing patient preference for natural therapies, modern medicine is now more than ever incorporating age-old knowledge of herbal remedies useful in treating skin conditions into modern-day treatments.

Bacterial Persistence in Urinary Tract Infection Among Postmenopausal Population.

Importance: Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common in older-aged women. Our study examined bacterial persistence with commonly prescribed antibiotics. Bacterial growth was demonstrated despite antibiotic treatment.

High-Throughput Identification of Crystalline Natural Products from Crude Extracts Enabled by Microarray Technology and microED.

The structural determination of natural products (NPs) can be arduous because of sample heterogeneity. This often demands iterative purification processes and characterization of complex molecules that may be available only in miniscule quantities. Microcrystal electron diffraction (microED) has recently shown promise as a method to solve crystal structures of NPs from nanogram quantities of analyte.

Potent Antifungal Activity of Penta--galloyl-β-d-Glucose against Drug-Resistant , , and Other Non- Species.

Among fungal pathogens, infections by drug-resistant species continue to pose a major challenge to healthcare. This study aimed to evaluate the activity of the bioactive natural product, penta--galloyl-β-d-glucose (PGG) against multidrug-resistant (MDR) , MDR , and other MDR non- species. Here, we show that PGG has a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.

Cryptic Chemical Variation in a Marine Red Alga as Revealed by Nontargeted Metabolomics.

Many marine algae occupy habitats that are dark, deep, or encrusted on other organisms and hence are frequently overlooked by natural product chemists. However, exploration of less-studied organisms can lead to new opportunities for drug discovery. Genetic variation at the individual, species, genus, and population levels as well as environmental influences on gene expression enable expansion of the chemical repertoire associated with a taxonomic group, enabling natural product exploration using innovative analytical methods.

Soft QPCs: Biscationic Quaternary Phosphonium Compounds as Soft Antimicrobial Agents.

Quaternary ammonium compounds (QACs) serve as a first line of defense against infectious pathogens. As resistance to QACs emerges in the environment, the development of next-generation disinfectants is of utmost priority for human health. Balancing antibacterial potency with environmental considerations is required to effectively counter the development of bacterial resistance.

Botanical inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 viral entry: a phylogenetic perspective.

Throughout the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, the use of botanical dietary supplements in the United States has increased, yet their safety and efficacy against COVID-19 remains underexplored. The Quave Natural Product Library is a phylogenetically diverse collection of botanical and fungal natural product extracts including popular supplement ingredients. Evaluation of 1867 extracts and 18 compounds for virus spike protein binding to host cell ACE2 receptors in a SARS-CoV-2 pseudotyped virus system identified 310 extracts derived from 188 species across 76 families (3 fungi, 73 plants) that exhibited ≥ 50% viral entry inhibition activity at 20 µg/mL.

Mammea B/BA Isolated From the Seeds of L. (Calophyllaceae) is a Potent Inhibitor of Methicillin-Resistant .

remains a pathogen of high concern in public health programs worldwide due to antibiotic resistance and emergence of highly virulent strains. Many phytochemicals have demonstrated activity against and other Gram-positive bacteria, but the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values comparable to commonly used antibiotics are needed. In the present study, bio-guided fractionation of the ethanol extract of seeds of L.

Machine Learning Approaches to Identify Discriminative Signatures of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from Bacteria and Fungi Using SPME-DART-MS.

Point-of-care screening tools are essential to expedite patient care and decrease reliance on slow diagnostic tools (e.g., microbial cultures) to identify pathogens and their associated antibiotic resistance.

Synthesis, Stereochemical Confirmation, and Derivatization of 12(S),16ϵ-Dihydroxycleroda-3,13-dien-15,16-olide, a Clerodane Diterpene That Sensitizes Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus to β-Lactam Antibiotics.

Over the past decades, antibiotic resistance has grown to a point where orthogonal approaches to combating infections caused by resistant bacteria are needed. One such approach is the development of non-microbicidal small molecules that potentiate the activity of conventional antibiotics, termed adjuvants. The diterpene natural product 12(S),16ϵ-dihydroxycleroda-3,13-dien-15,16-olide, which we refer to as (-)-LZ-2112, is known to synergize with oxacillin against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Biofilm Production by Uropathogens in Postmenopausal Women with Recurrent and Isolated Urinary Tract Infection.

Objectives: The aims of this study were to assess the in vitro biofilm-producing capabilities of uropathogens grown from a postmenopausal urogynecologic population with isolated and recurrent urinary tract infection (UTI) and to determine whether the biofilm-producing bacterial phenotype was associated with recurrent infection.

Methods: This was an institutional review board-approved cross-sectional analysis within a large academic referral center. Uropathogens were cultured from postmenopausal women with either isolated or recurrent acute UTI and then screened for in vitro biofilm formation using crystal violet microtiter assays.

Development of Culinary and Self-Care Programs in Diverse Settings: Theoretical Considerations and Available Evidence.

Culinary-based self-care programs are innovative and increasingly utilized models for catalyzing behavior change and improving health and well-being. The content, duration, and delivery of existing programs vary considerably. Between January and August 2019, we developed a teaching kitchen and self-care curriculum, which was administered as part of a year-long worksite well-being program to employees at an academic healthcare system.

Ethnobotany of the Aegadian Islands: safeguarding biocultural refugia in the Mediterranean.

Background: The Aegadian Islands are located west of Trapani, Sicily. Once the site of bountiful tuna fisheries and fruit orchards (plums, peaches, apricots), grapevines, prickly pears, and grains, the local economy is now based on tourism, and many traditional agricultural and maritime practices have been abandoned. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the state of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) concerning the use of wild and cultivated plants and fungi for human health, food, maritime, and agricultural purposes on the islands of Levanzo, Favignana, and Marettimo and compare present-day practices with those documented in the past.

Castaneroxy A From the Leaves of Inhibits Virulence in .

Methicillin-resistant (MRSA) represents one of the most serious infectious disease concerns worldwide, with the CDC labeling it a "serious threat" in 2019. The current arsenal of antibiotics works by targeting bacterial growth and survival, which exerts great selective pressure for the development of resistance. The development of novel anti-infectives that inhibit quorum sensing and thus virulence in MRSA has been recurrently proposed as a promising therapeutic approach.

Collection, Extraction, and In Vitro Antibacterial Evaluation of Plants Used in Traditional Medicine.

Medicinal plants are used to treat infectious and inflammatory diseases in various traditional medical systems, and thus could represent a promising source of antimicrobials. To establish the scientific basis for the therapeutic actions of traditional plant medicines, we provide a general workflow for evaluating the anti-infective properties of crude extracts from plants. We provide guidance starting from plant collections in the field and the creation of herbarium voucher specimens, moving to the processing of plants by drying, grinding, and extracting the plant parts collected, and finally ending with the antimicrobial investigation of these plant extracts.

Cruciferous vegetables () confer cytoprotective effects in intestines.

Varieties and cultivars of the cruciferous vegetable are widely presumed to elicit positive influences on mammalian health and disease, particularly related to their indole and sulforaphane content. However, there is a considerable gap in knowledge regarding the mechanisms whereby these plant-derived molecules elicit their beneficial effects on the host. In this study, we examined the chemical variation between varieties and evaluated their capacity to both activate Nrf2 in the intestine and elicit cytoprotection.

An ethnopharmacological survey and comparative analysis of plants from the Sudhnoti District, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan.

Background: This is the first comprehensive report on the traditional and novel uses of medicinal plants practiced by the indigenous communities of the Sudhnoti district of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Pakistan. The area is rich in folklore and indigenous medicinal knowledge due to a unique tribal composition and socioeconomic conditions. This study aimed to document traditional knowledge of native plant use by the local communities, particularly those used for therapeutic purposes.

A Bibliographic Assessment Using the Degrees of Publication Method: Medicinal Plants from the Rural Greater Mpigi Region (Uganda).

In ethnopharmacological research, many field assessment tools exist. Yet, these miss that critical point of how to really determine which species merit the costly lab studies, e.g.

A Systematic Review of Plants With Antibacterial Activities: A Taxonomic and Phylogenetic Perspective.

Antimicrobial resistance represents a serious threat to human health across the globe. The cost of bringing a new antibiotic from discovery to market is high and return on investment is low. Furthermore, the development of new antibiotics has slowed dramatically since the 1950s' golden age of discovery.

Ethnobotany and the Role of Plant Natural Products in Antibiotic Drug Discovery.

The crisis of antibiotic resistance necessitates creative and innovative approaches, from chemical identification and analysis to the assessment of bioactivity. Plant natural products (NPs) represent a promising source of antibacterial lead compounds that could help fill the drug discovery pipeline in response to the growing antibiotic resistance crisis. The major strength of plant NPs lies in their rich and unique chemodiversity, their worldwide distribution and ease of access, their various antibacterial modes of action, and the proven clinical effectiveness of plant extracts from which they are isolated.