Mycobiont-specific primers facilitate the amplification of mitochondrial small subunit ribosomal DNA: a focus on the lichenized fungal genus (Ascomycota, Parmeliaceae) in Iceland.

The fungal mitochondrial small subunit (mtSSU) ribosomal DNA is one of the most commonly used loci for phylogenetic analysis of lichen-forming fungi, but their primer specificity to mycobionts has not been evaluated. The current study aimed to design mycobiont-specific mtSSU primers and highlights their utility with an example from the saxicolous lichen-forming fungal genus Essl. in Iceland.

Novel methods to characterise spatial distribution and enantiomeric composition of usnic acids in four Icelandic lichens.

Usnic acid is an antibiotic metabolite produced by a wide variety of lichenized fungal lineages. The enantiomers of usnic acid have been shown to display contrasting bioactivities, and hence it is important to determine their spatial distribution, amounts and enantiomeric ratios in lichens to understand their roles in nature and grasp their pharmaceutical potential. The overall aim of the study was to characterise the spatial distribution of the predominant usnic acid enantiomer in lichens by combining spatial imaging and chiral chromatography.

Structure-Based Discovery of Dual-Target Hits for Acetylcholinesterase and the α7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptors: In Silico Studies and In Vitro Confirmation.

Despite extensive efforts in the development of drugs for complex neurodegenerative diseases, treatment often remains challenging or ineffective, and hence new treatment strategies are necessary. One approach is the design of multi-target drugs, which can potentially address the complex nature of disorders such as Alzheimer's disease. We report a method for high throughput virtual screening aimed at identifying new dual target hit molecules.

Ethnopharmacology of the club moss subfamily Huperzioideae (Lycopodiaceae, Lycopodiophyta): A phylogenetic and chemosystematic perspective.

Ethnopharmacological Relevance: The most speciose subfamily Huperzioideae (Lycopodiaceae, Lycopodiophyta) contains about 276 species, and some (ca. 20 species) have traditionally been used for the treatment of e.g.

Exopolysaccharides from Cyanobacterium aponinum induce a regulatory dendritic cell phenotype and inhibit SYK and CLEC7A expression in dendritic cells, T cells and keratinocytes.

Regular bathing in the Blue Lagoon has beneficial effects on psoriasis. Previously, we showed that exopolysaccharides (EPS-Ca) secreted by Cyanobacterium aponinum, a dominating organism in the Blue Lagoon, increased IL-10 secretion by human dendritic cells (DCs). In addition, co-culturing allogeneic CD4 T cells with DCs matured in the presence of EPS-Ca increased differentiation of T cells into T regulatory cells at the cost of the disease inducing Th17 cells.

Novel Approach for the Search for Chemical Scaffolds with Dual Activity with Acetylcholinesterase and the α7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor-A Perspective for the Treatment of Neurodegenerative Disorders.

Neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, belong to the group of the most difficult and challenging conditions with very limited treatment options. Attempts to find new drugs in most cases fail at the clinical stage. New tactics to develop better drug candidates to manage these diseases are urgently needed.

Impact of dibenzocyclooctadiene lignans from Schisandra chinensis on the redox status and activation of human innate immune system cells.

Redox signaling has been established as an essential component of inflammatory responses, and redox active compounds are of interest as potential immunomodulatory agents. Dibenzocyclooctadiene lignans isolated from Schisandra chinensis, a medicinal plant with widespread use in oriental medicine, have been implicated to possess immunomodulatory properties but their effects on the human innate immune system cells have not been described. In this contribution, data are presented on the impact of schisandrin, schisandrin B and schisandrin C on human monocytic cell redox status, as well as their impact on dendritic cell maturation and T cell activation capacity and cytokine production.

Infraspecific Variation of Huperzine A and B in Icelandic Huperzia selago Complex.

The alkaloids huperzine A and huperzine B were originally isolated from the Chinese club moss . They are known inhibitors of acetylcholinesterase, and especially huperzine A shows pharmaceutical potential for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Its supply heavily relies on natural plant sources belonging to the genus , which shows considerable interspecific huperzine A variations.

Galantamine is not a positive allosteric modulator of human α4β2 or α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors.

Background And Purpose: The alkaloid galantamine was originally isolated from the green snowdrop Galanthus woronowii and is currently marketed as a drug for treatment of mild to moderate dementia in patients with Alzheimer's disease. In addition to a well-documented proficiency to inhibit acetylcholinesterase, galantamine has been reported to increase neuronal nicotinic ACh (nACh) receptor function by acting as a positive allosteric modulator. Yet there remains controversy regarding these findings in the literature.

Authentication of Iceland Moss (Cetraria islandica) by UPLC-QToF-MS chemical profiling and DNA barcoding.

The lichen Cetraria islandica or Iceland Moss is commonly consumed as tea, food ingredients (e.g. in soup or bread) and herbal medicines.

DNA barcoding and LC-MS metabolite profiling of the lichen-forming genus Melanelia: Specimen identification and discrimination focusing on Icelandic taxa.

Taxa in the genus Melanelia (Parmeliaceae, Ascomycota) belong to a group of saxicolous lichens with brown to black foliose thalli, which have recently undergone extensive changes in circumscription. Taxa belonging to Parmeliaceae are prolific producers of bioactive compounds, which have also been traditionally used for chemotaxonomic purposes. However, the chemical diversity of the genus Melanelia and the use of chemical data for species discrimination in this genus are largely unexplored.

Secondary metabolites from cetrarioid lichens: Chemotaxonomy, biological activities and pharmaceutical potential.

Background: Lichens, as a symbiotic association of photobionts and mycobionts, display an unmatched environmental adaptability and a great chemical diversity. As an important morphological group, cetrarioid lichens are one of the most studied lichen taxa for their phylogeny, secondary chemistry, bioactivities and uses in folk medicines, especially the lichen Cetraria islandica. However, insufficient structure elucidation and discrepancy in bioactivity results could be found in a few studies.

The Genus Diphasiastrum and Its Lycopodium Alkaloids.

The genus Diphasiastrum includes at least 23 species distributed primarily across the northern temperate and subarctic areas of the world. These plants produce an array of lycopodium alkaloids, and some species such as Diphasiastrum complanatum have been used in traditional medicine for ages for various conditions. Hybridization is common in this group of plants and they have always been a challenge for taxonomists and other scientists studying them.

Dendritic cells matured in the presence of the lycopodium alkaloid annotine direct T cell responses toward a Th2/Treg phenotype.

Annotine is a lycopodane-type alkaloid isolated from the Icelandic club moss Lycopodium annotinum ssp. alpestre. Annotine does not inhibit acetylcholinesterase, as some other lycopodium alkaloids do, and other bioactivities have not been reported.

Exopolysaccharides from Cyanobacterium aponinum from the Blue Lagoon in Iceland increase IL-10 secretion by human dendritic cells and their ability to reduce the IL-17+RORγt+/IL-10+FoxP3+ ratio in CD4+ T cells.

Regular bathing in the Blue Lagoon in Iceland has beneficial effects on psoriasis. Cyanobacterium aponinum is a dominating member of the Blue Lagoon's microbial ecosystem. The aim of the study was to determine whether exopolysaccharides (EPSs) secreted by C.

A heteroglycan from the cyanobacterium Nostoc commune modulates LPS-induced inflammatory cytokine secretion by THP-1 monocytes through phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and Akt.

Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) have been consumed as food and used in folk medicine since ancient times to alleviate a variety of diseases. Cyanobacteria of the genus Nostoc have been shown to produce complex exopolysaccharides with antioxidant and antiviral activity. Furthermore, Nostoc sp.

Similar decline in mortality rate of older persons with and without type 2 diabetes between 1993 and 2004 the Icelandic population-based Reykjavik and AGES-Reykjavik cohort studies.

Background: A decline in mortality rates due to cardiovascular diseases and all-cause mortality has led to increased life expectancy in the Western world in recent decades. At the same time, the prevalence of type 2 diabetes, a disease associated with a twofold excess risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality, has been increasing. The objective of this study was to estimate the secular trend of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality rates in two population-based cohorts of older persons, with and without type 2 diabetes, examined 11 years apart.

[Early life residency associated with the risk of developing type 2 diabetes - the population-based Reykjavík study].

Introduction: Sedentary lifestyle and energy rich food have been associated with the risk of developing type 2 diabetes; limited data are available on environmental conditions in childhood on this risk later in life. The objective was to study if residency in the first 20 years of life affected the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Methods: In a cohort of 17811 men (48%) and women, mean age 53 years (range 33-81) participating in the population-based Reykjavík Study from 1967-91, 29% grew up in rural and 35% in coastal areas for an average of 20 years before moving to urban Reykjavík, but 36% lived in Reykjavík from birth.

Marchantin A, a macrocyclic bisbibenzyl ether, isolated from the liverwort Marchantia polymorpha, inhibits protozoal growth in vitro.

In vitro anti-plasmodial activity-guided fractionation of a diethyl ether extract of the liverwort species Marchantia polymorpha, collected in Iceland, led to isolation of the bisbibenzyl ether, marchantin A. The structure of marchantin A (1) was confirmed by NMR and HREIMS. Marchantin A inhibited proliferation of the Plasmodium falciparum strains, NF54 (IC(50)=3.

Synergistic cytotoxic effect of the microtubule inhibitor marchantin A from Marchantia polymorpha and the Aurora kinase inhibitor MLN8237 on breast cancer cells in vitro.

Macrocyclic bisbibenzyls are a class of characteristic compounds, exclusively produced by liverworts. They are attracting increasing attention due to their wide range of biological activities, including antibacterial, antifungal, and antioxidative properties as well as cytotoxicity. Marchantin A is a cyclic bisbibenzyl that has previously been isolated from Marchantia polymorpha and other liverwort species and has been shown to exert cytotoxic effects.

Effects of statin medication on mortality risk associated with type 2 diabetes in older persons: the population-based AGES-Reykjavik Study.

Objective: To examine if the beneficial effect of statin medication on mortality seen in randomised clinical trials of type 2 diabetes applies equally to observational studies in the general population of older people.

Design: A prospective, population-based cohort study.

Setting: Reykjavik, Iceland.

Acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activity of lycopodane-type alkaloids from the Icelandic Lycopodium annotinum ssp. alpestre.

The aim of this study was to investigate structures and acetylcholinesterase inhibitory activities of lycopodane-type alkaloids isolated from an Icelandic collection of Lycopodium annotinum ssp. alpestre. Ten alkaloids were isolated, including annotinine, annotine, lycodoline, lycoposerramine M, anhydrolycodoline, gnidioidine, lycofoline, lannotinidine D, and acrifoline, as well as a previously unknown N-oxide of annotine.

Glycemic status and brain injury in older individuals: the age gene/environment susceptibility-Reykjavik study.

Objective: To examine the association of glycemic status to magnetic resonance imaging indicators of brain pathological changes.

Research Design And Methods: This was a cross-sectional, population-based study of 4,415 men and women without dementia (mean age 76 years) participating in the Age Gene/Environment Susceptibility-Reykjavik Study. Glycemic status groups included the following: type 2 diabetes (self-report of diabetes, use of diabetes medications, or fasting blood glucose > or =7.

Unfavourable risk factors for type 2 diabetes mellitus are already apparent more than a decade before onset in a population-based study of older persons: from the Age, Gene/Environment Susceptibility-Reykjavik Study (AGES-Reykjavik).

We evaluated midlife risk factors of developing type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in late life in a population-based study of older persons. A cohort of 2,251 persons, aged 65-96, participated in AGES-Reykjavik in 2002-2004; all attended the Reykjavik Study 26 years earlier, at the mean age of 50. Based on glucometabolic status in 2002-2004 the participants are divided into a normoglycemic control group (n = 1,695), an impaired fasting glucose (IFG) group (n = 313) and T2DM group (n = 243).