antitumor activity of compounds from against C6 glioma cancer cells: identification of natural lead for further evaluation.

A HP20 resin-based unique method was adopted to get an active fraction of the hydroalcoholic extract of roots. The fraction showed potent cytotoxicity against cancer cell line and was further subjected to detailed phytochemical investigation to obtain ten biomarkers. The isolated compounds were also tested for the cytotoxicity against the C6 glioma cell line using MTT assay.

Discovery and preclinical development of IIIM-160, a Bergenia ciliata-based anti-inflammatory and anti-arthritic botanical drug candidate.

Objective: Bergenia ciliata (Haw.) Sternb. is used in the Indian traditional system of medicine to treat various ailments including rheumatism and to heal wounds.

Present drug-likeness filters in medicinal chemistry during the hit and lead optimization process: how far can they be simplified?

During the past decade, decreasing the attrition rate of drug development candidates reaching the market has become one of the major challenges in pharmaceutical research and drug development (R&D). To facilitate the decision-making process, and to increase the probability of rapidly finding and developing high-quality compounds, a variety of multiparametric guidelines, also known as rules and ligand efficiency (LE) metrics, have been developed. However, what are the 'best' descriptors and how far can we simplify these drug-likeness prediction tools in terms of the numerous, complex properties that they relate to?

Non-enzymatic browning in citrus juice: chemical markers, their detection and ways to improve product quality.

Citrus juices are widely consumed due to their nutritional benefits and variety of pharmacological properties. Non-enzymatic browning (NEB) is one of the most important chemical reactions responsible for quality and color changes during the heating or prolonged storage of citrus products. The present review covers various aspects of NEB in citrus juice viz.

Ameliorative Effect of Hydroethanolic Leaf Extract of Byrsocarpus coccineus in Alcohol- and Sucrose-Induced Hypertension in Rats.

Hypertension remains a major health problem worldwide considering the prevalence of morbidity and mortality. Plants remain a reliable source of efficacious and better tolerated drugs and botanicals. This study was designed to investigate the effect of the chemo-profiled hydroethanolic leaf extract of Byrsocarpus coccineus in ethanol- and sucrose-induced hypertension.

NF-κB down-regulation and PARP cleavage by novel 3-α-butyryloxy-β-boswellic acid results in cancer cell specific apoptosis and in vivo tumor regression.

The present study relates to the induction of apoptosis thereof cytotoxicity and anti-cancer activity displayed by semi-synthetic analog of Boswellic acid i.e. 3-α-Butyryloxy-β-boswellic acid (BOBA).

Purification and characterization of a cold active alkaline protease from Stenotrophomonas sp., isolated from Kashmir, India.

A Psychrotolerant alkaline protease producing bacterium IIIM-ST045 was isolated from a soil sample collected from the Thajiwas glacier of Kashmir, India and identified as Stenotrophomonas sp. on the basis of its biochemical properties and 16S ribosomal gene sequencing. The strain could grow well within a temperature range of 4-37°C however, showed optimum growth at 15°C.

Understanding histone deacetylases in the cancer development and treatment: an epigenetic perspective of cancer chemotherapy.

Cancer is a pathologic condition that involves genetic and epigenetic events culminating in neoplastic transformation. Alteration in epigenetic events that regulate the transcriptional activity of genes associated with various signaling pathways can influence multiple stages of tumorigenesis. In cancer cells, an imbalance often exists between histone acetyl transferase and histone deacetylase (HDAC) activities, and current research focuses actively on seeking competitive HDAC inhibitors (HDACi) for chemotherapeutic intervention.

A novel cyano derivative of 11-keto-β-boswellic acid causes apoptotic death by disrupting PI3K/AKT/Hsp-90 cascade, mitochondrial integrity, and other cell survival signaling events in HL-60 cells.

Intervention of apoptosis is a promising strategy for discovery of novel anti-cancer therapeutics. In this study, we examined the ability of a novel cyano derivative of 11-keto-β-boswellic acid, that is, butyl 2-cyano-3,11-dioxours-1,12-dien-24-oate (BCDD) to induce apoptosis in cancer cells. BCDD inhibited cell proliferation with 48 h IC(50) of 0.

A novel parthenin analog exhibits anti-cancer activity: activation of apoptotic signaling events through robust NO formation in human leukemia HL-60 cells.

This study describes the anti-cancer activity of P19, an analog of parthenin. P19 induced apoptosis in HL-60 cells and inhibited cell proliferation with 48h IC50 of 3.5μM.

Analysis of SSR dynamics in chloroplast genomes of Brassicaceae family.

Simple sequence repeats (SSRs) are present abundantly in most eukaryotic genomes. They affect several cellular processes like chromatin organization, regulation of gene activity, DNA repair, DNA recombination, etc. Though considerable data exists on using nuclear SSRs to infer phylogenetic relationships, the potential of chloroplast microsatellites (cpSSR), in this regard, remains largely unexplored.

Molecular cloning and characterization of amylase from soil metagenomic library derived from Northwestern Himalayas.

The increasing demand for novel biocatalysts stimulates exploration of resources from soil. Metagenomics, a culture independent approach, represent a sheer unlimited resource for discovery of novel biocatalysts from uncultured microorganisms. In this study, a soil-derived metagenomic library containing 90,700 recombinants was constructed and screened for lipase, cellulase, protease and amylase activity.

Molecular insight into the immune up-regulatory properties of the leaf extract of Ashwagandha and identification of Th1 immunostimulatory chemical entity.

Withania somnifera, commonly called Ashwagandha in the Indian traditional system of medicine has been reported for several pharmacological activities. This study demonstrates, for the first time, the potential role of the chemically standardized leaf extract of W. somnifera (WSL) and it's identified component in activating immune system.

Application of a multiplex PCR assay for the detection of Shigella, Escherichia coli and Shiga toxin-producing Esch. coli in milk.

A multiplex PCR (mPCR) assay using previously known genetic markers of Shigella, Escherichia coli and Shiga-toxic Esch. coli was standardized. uidA gene was targeted for the common detection of Esch.

Immune modulation and apoptosis induction: Two sides of antitumoural activity of a standardised herbal formulation of Withania somnifera.

Deregulated apoptosis and suppressed tumour reactive immunity render tumour cells to grow amok in the host body. Traditionally used botanicals may offer potential anticancer chemo-immunotherapeutic leads. We report in this study a chemically standardised herbal formulation (WSF) of Withania somnifera possessing anticancer and Th1 immune up-regulatory activities.

Induction of apoptosis by a synergistic lignan composition from Cedrus deodara in human cancer cells.

AP9-cd, a synergistic lignan mixture from Cedrus deodara (Pinaceae) consisting of (-)-wikstromal, (-)-matairesinol and dibenzyl butyrolactol, depicted cytotoxic effects against numerous human cancer cell lines reported previously. The aim of this study was to investigate the mechanism of cell death in human cancer cells. The viability, morphological and ultrastructural changes in Molt-4 cells were investigated.