Compounds Related to Saudin and Three New Series of Diterpenoids from .

is a medicinal plant native to Ethiopia and sub-Saharan Africa and to the Arabian Peninsula. It is used traditionally in Saudi Arabia for the treatment of diabetes. Previous phytochemical analysis of this species has been limited to the identification of methylthiocoumarins.

Macrolides from rare actinomycetes: Structures and bioactivities.

Rare actinomycetes are a source of numerous diverse, biologically active secondary metabolites, including macrolides, which have been shown to display several antibiotic activities. The bioactivities and representative structures of 26 groups of macrolides from rare actinomycetes are presented in this review. The most interesting groups, with a wide range of biological activities, are ammocidins, bafilomycins, neomaclafungins, rosaramicins, spinosyns, and tiacumicins.

A neoclerodane orthoester and other new neoclerodane diterpenoids from Teucrium yemense chemistry and effect on secretion of insulin.

Teucrium yemense, a medicinal plant commonly grown in Saudi Arabia and Yemen, is traditionally used to treat infections, kidney diseases, rheumatism, and diabetes. Extraction of the dried aerial parts of the plant with methanol, followed by further extraction with butanol and chromatography, gave twenty novel neoclerodanes. Their structures, relative configurations and some conformations were determined by MS and 1-D and 2-D NMR techniques.

Stimulation of insulin secretion by 5-methylcoumarins and its sulfur analogues isolated from Clutia lanceolata Forssk.

Clutia lanceolata Forssk. (C. lanceolata) is a medicinal plant native to sub-Saharan Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.

Anti-inflammatory properties of an extract of M. ilicifolia in the human intestinal epithelial Caco-2 cell line.

Ethnopharmacology Relevance: Maytenus ilicifolia is a Celastracea plant used in traditional medicine to alleviate digestive tract inflammatory disorders.

Aim Of The Study: We investigated anti-inflammatory properties of M. ilicifolia crude extract towards Caco-2 cell line, as a model of Toll-like Receptor 2 (TLR-2) inflammatory pathway.

Neoclerodane Diterpenoids from Reehal Fatima, Teucrium yemense.

Teucrium yemense (Defl), locally known as Reehal Fatima, is a medicinal plant commonly grown in Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Phytochemical investigation of the aerial parts of T. yemense yielded six new neoclerodane diterpenoids, namely fatimanol A-E (1, 2, 3, 5, and 6) and fatimanone (4), and the known teulepicephin (7).

Isolation and characterisation of 13 pterosins and pterosides from bracken (Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn) rhizome.

Systematic phytochemical investigations of the underground rhizome of Pteridium aquilinum (L.) Kuhn (Dennstaedtiaceae) afforded thirty-five pterosins and pterosides. By detailed analysis of one- and two-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, circular dichroism (CD) and high-resolution mass spectrometric data, thirteen previously undescribed pterosins and pterosides have been identified.

A Metagenomics Approach to Evaluate the Impact of Dietary Supplementation with Ascophyllum nodosum or Laminaria digitata on Rumen Function in Rusitec Fermenters.

There is an increasing need to identify alternative feeds for livestock that do not compete with foods for humans. Seaweed might provide such a resource, but there is limited information available on its value as an animal feed. Here we use a multi-omics approach to investigate the value of two brown seaweeds, Ascophyllum nodosum (ASC) and Laminaria digitata (LAM), as alternative feeds for ruminants.

Potential sources of high value chemicals from leaves, stems and flowers of Miscanthus sinensis 'Goliath' and Miscanthus sacchariflorus.

Society demands chemicals from sustainable sources. Identification of commercially important chemicals in crops increases value in biorefineries and reduces reliance on petrochemicals. Miscanthus sinensis and Miscanthus sacchariflorus are high-yielding distinct plants, which are sources of high-value chemicals and bioethanol through fermentation.

Oxidative phenols in forage crops containing polyphenol oxidase enzymes.

Polyphenol oxidases (PPOs) are copper-containing enzymes that catalyze oxidation of endogenous monophenols to ortho-dihydroxyaryl compounds and of ortho-dihydroxyaryl compounds to ortho-quinones. Subsequent nucleophilic addition reactions of phenols, amino acids, and proteins with the electrophilic ortho-quinones form brown-, black-, or red-colored secondary products associated with the undesired discolouration of fruit and vegetables. Several important forage plants also exhibit significant PPO activity, and a link with improved efficiency of ruminant production has been established.

Relationship between grazing lamb growth rate and blood plasma analytes as profiled by gas chromatography with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-TOF/MS).

There can be considerable variation in the performance of individual lambs grazing on the same pasture. Gas chromatography with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-TOF/MS) was used to profile the relative abundances of metabolites in plasma from growing lambs to determine any correlation effects between plasma metabolites and liveweight gain. Analysis of relative abundance of 336 analyte clusters and liveweight gain revealed that the growth rates of female lambs were significantly positively correlated with 5 analyte clusters and negatively correlated with 5 other analyte clusters.

Extraction, structural characterisation and evaluation of hydroxycinnamate esters of orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata) as substrates for polyphenol oxidase.

Polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activity has been reported in orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata); however, to date, no endogenous substrates have been identified. In the present study, we report the isolation and structural elucidation of PPO substrates in this species. The free phenol fraction was extracted, separated by reverse-phase chromatography and six potential substrates, including two hydroxycinnamate esters, were identified by UV spectrometry, electrospray ionisation-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS(n)) and 1D and 2D NMR analyses ((1)H NMR, (13)C NMR, DEPT, COSY, HMQC and HMBC).

Application of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry metabolite profiling techniques to the analysis of heathland plant diets of sheep.

Little is known about how plant biochemistry influences the grazing behavior of animals consuming heterogeneous plant communities. The biochemical profiles of grassland species are mostly restricted to major nutritional characteristics, although recent developments in analytical techniques and data analysis have made possible the detailed analysis of minor components that may influence animal feeding preferences, performance, and health. In the present study, gas chromatography coupled with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GC-TOF/MS) was used to profile the abundances of metabolites in nine specific heathland plant groups and in three mixed forage diets containing 10, 20, or 30% heather (Calluna vulgaris) and also in plasma and feces from sheep offered one of the three diets.

The use of non-prion biomarkers for the diagnosis of Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies in the live animal.

Scrapie and bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) are major global concerns and the emergence of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) has caused turmoil for blood transfusion services and hospitals worldwide. Recent reports of iatrogenic CJD (iCJD) cases following blood transfusions from Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (TSE)-infected donors have fuelled this concern. Major diagnostic tests for BSE and scrapie are conducted post-mortem from animals in late stages of the disease.

Chemopreventive efficacy and pharmacokinetics of curcumin in the min/+ mouse, a model of familial adenomatous polyposis.

Curcumin, the major yellow pigment in turmeric, prevents the development of adenomas in the intestinal tract of the C57Bl/6J Min/+ mouse, a model of human familial APC. To aid the rational development of curcumin as a colorectal cancer-preventive agent, we explored the link between its chemopreventive potency in the Min/+ mouse and levels of drug and metabolites in target tissue and plasma. Mice received dietary curcumin for 15 weeks, after which adenomas were enumerated.