Characterization of cathepsin B-like gene from rice

In this study, a rice cDNA clone encoding a putative cysteine protease withsequence homology to mammalian cathepsin B has been isolated and characterized.Sequence analysis revealed that the gene designated OsCatB encodes a cysteine proteasethat belongs to the papain family without the consensus motif, ERFNIN. The resultsuggests that the OsCatB is the cathepsin B-like protein in rice. Among the cathepsin Blikeproteins in plants, the highest homology was occurred to the sequence of the barleycathepsin B. DNA blot analysis showed that the OsCatB gene belongs to a multiple genefamily in the rice genome. Expression analysis of the OsCatB revealed that the gene isexpressed in all organs of rice including the germinating seed. To elucidate OsCatB function, we generated knockout mutants by RNAi system. Microscopic analysis revealedthat knockout of the OsCatB gene caused an excessive cell death and suggested that thegene functions as an anti-cell-death component

Ayurveda - A glance

Ayurveda has the distinction of being the “oldest medical system known to man and the oldest and most comprehensive spiritual teachings in the worldâ€Â. Ayurveda is based on the principle of maintaining a balance between the interrelated relationships within the body and mind. It helps the patient to understand the benefits of knowing their body and mind and to live in intimate relationship with nature. Ayurvedic literature has remedies for age-related diseases like memory loss, osteoporosis, diabetic wounds, etc. for which no efficient medicine is available in modern therapy. Even though Ayurveda has a sound literature background, ironically its share in the global medicinal market is very less (0.5%). In order to promote Ayurveda in the international market, ayurvedic drugs should be available in standardized form, which is the minimum requirement for introducing a product in the Western market. Ayurvedic formulations should be standardized on the basis of active principle or major compound(s) along with fingerprints. There as great scope for India to achieve global leadership of traditional medicinal market through export of quality products from Ayurvedic medicinal system. This article gives an overview of Indian traditional medicinal system-Ayurveda. It also highlights the principle of ayurvedic therapy, current status of Ayurveda, the challenges faced by Ayurveda in the modern world and the need of science based research to overcome its drawbacks. According to Caraka -"The Science of life shall never attain finality. Therefore humility and relentless industry should characterize your endeavor and your approach to knowledge. The entire world consists of teachers for the wise and enemies for the fools. Therefore, knowledge, conducive to health, longevity, fame and excellence, coming from even an unknown source, should be received, assimilated and utilized with earnestness"

Effect of salt stress on expression of carotenoid pathway genes in tomato

Carotenoids, the naturally occurring isoprenoids form essential components of photosynthetic antenna and reaction centre complexes. Thus they play a significant role in absorption, dissipation and transfer of light energy for the process of photosynthesis. The effects of salt stress on carotenoid gene expression in tomato leaves were studied. For that tomato plants were subjected to different concentration of salt water. Morphological characters such as plant height, no. of fruits per plant, chlorophyll content and expression of four major carotenoid pathway genes such as phytoene synthase, phytoene desaturase, zeta carotene desaturase and lycopene beta cyclase were analysed. The quantitative expression analysis using real time PCR has shown a decrease in the expression of all the studied genes as the salt concentration increased. Among the different concentrations of NaCl used for the experiment, it was seen that 200 mM was most detrimental for the carotenoid gene expression. Lycopene beta cyclase, the enzyme that converts lycopene to beta carotene was seen to be highly affected compared to other genes studied showing a 1.87 fold inhibition in its expression at 200 mM NaCl

Preliminary Screening of Antimicrobial Properties of Few Medicinal Plants

Crude extracts were prepared from the leaves of ten medicinal plants viz., Alpinia galanga, Artabotrys uncinatus, Commelina benghalensis, Costus igneus, Euphorbia cyathopora, Justicia gendarussa, Kalanchoe pinnata, Panicum antidotale, Sauropus androgynous and Hibiscus using methanol as solvent and screened for their antibacterial activity against ten bacterial pathogens. The tested gram positive bacterial strains were Bacillus cerus, Bacillus megaterium, Micrococcus leuteus, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus lactis, and gram negative strains were Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Enterobacter aerogenes, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Salmonella typhimurium. Among the ten plants tested, the methanol extracts of Alpinia galanga, Artabotrys uncinatus, Costus igneus and Yellow Hibiscus exhibited higher antibacterial activity when compared to the other plant extracts. These four plant extracts were further used for the phytochemical analysis. Results of the phytochemical analysis indicated the presence of alkaloids, phenolic compounds and flavanoids. The antibacterial activities of the leaves were due to the presence of various secondary metabolite

Bioactivity assessment of indian origin-mangrove actinobacteria against candida albicans

Actinobacteria is found to have a potent metabolic activity against pathogens. The present study reveals the assessment of potent antifungal secondary metabolites from actinobacteria isolated from Indian marine mangrove sediments. The samples were collected from the coastal regions of Muthupet, Andaman and the Nicobar Islands. Identification was carried out using 16S rRNA analysis and biosynthetic genes (Polyketide synthase type I/II and Non-ribosomal peptide synthase) were screened. Actinobacteria were assayed for their antifungal activity against 16 clinical Candida albicans and the compound analysis was performed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry GC-MS. The 31 actinobacterial strains were isolated and 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that this ecosystem is rich on actinobacteria, with Streptomyces as the predominant genus. The PCR based screening of biosynthetic genes revealed the presence of PKS-I in six strains, PKS-II in four strains and NRPS in 11 strains. The isolated actinobacteria VITGAP240 and VITGAP241 (two isolates) were found to have a potential antifungal activity against all the tested C. albicans. GC-MS results revealed that the actinobacterial compounds were belonging to heterocyclic, polyketides and peptides. Overall, the strains possess a wide spectrum of antifungal properties which affords the production of significant bioactive metabolites as potential antibiotics. © 2018 by the authors.Acknowledgments: The authors gratefully acknowledge VIT University, Vellore for the support through Seed Grant for Research. We also thank A. Manikandan, Department of Biotechnology, VIT University for his valuable suggestion in separation of bioactive compounds and their bioactivity predictions of compounds. VV acknowledges FCT Project UID/Multi/04423/2013 and by the Structured Program of R&D&I INNOVMAR—Innovation and Sustainability in the Management and Exploitation of Marine Resources (reference NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000035, Research Line NOVELMAR), funded by the Northern Regional Operational Program (NORTE2020) through the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)

The emerging role of exosomes in innate immunity, diagnosis and therapy

Exosomes, which are nano-sized transport bio-vehicles, play a pivotal role in maintaining homeostasis by exchanging genetic or metabolic information between different cells. Exosomes can also play a vital role in transferring virulent factors between the host and parasite, thereby regulating host gene expression and the immune interphase. The association of inflammation with disease development and the potential of exosomes to enhance or mitigate inflammatory pathways support the notion that exosomes have the potential to alter the course of a disease. Clinical trials exploring the role of exosomes in cancer, osteoporosis, and renal, neurological, and pulmonary disorders are currently underway. Notably, the information available on the signatory efficacy of exosomes in immune-related disorders remains elusive and sporadic. In this review, we discuss immune cell-derived exosomes and their application in immunotherapy, including those against autoimmune connective tissue diseases. Further, we have elucidated our views on the major issues in immune-related pathophysiological processes. Therefore, the information presented in this review highlights the role of exosomes as promising strategies and clinical tools for immune regulation