Effects of glycine betaine on plant growth and performance of Medicago sativa and Vigna unguiculata under water deficit conditions

Managing water consumption of the crops is one of the strategies which have been adopted locally and worldwide in current trends of sustainable agriculture. In addition to the low level of water resources in UAE because of the rare precipitation, no fresh, free-flowing water, rivers, lakes or streams. The present study was aimed to evaluate the effects of exogenous Glycine Betaine (GB) on Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) and Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata) within different levels of drought stress. A pot experiment was designed on a completely randomized block design (CRBD) with three replicates. Exogenous GB was applied as a foliar spray in three levels (0,100 and 200 ppm) five times with five days intervals. Drought stress starts within the second GB treatment in three levels (24h: 100% well-watered), (48h: 60% water deficit) and (72h: 40% water deficit) depending on the required quantity. Growth characteristics, pigment concentrations, biochemical content and Mineral nutrients levels were measured in response to the treatment variables. Results showed that the GB has a significant increment in Growth parameters, biochemical contents, and Mineral nutrients concentrations. The results of the present investigation suggested that the exogenous application of GB was improved the drought tolerance in Cowpea and has enhanced the Alfalfa performance under drought stress in both concentrations 100 and 200 ppm under drought stress of 60% of irrigations water.  In due of comparison of Cowpea and Alfalfa, it’s found from this study that GB has a better effect on the Cowpea under drought stress than Alfalfa

Evaluation of treated wastewater irrigation on the productivity of wheat

The major objective of this research work is to propose the initial environmental impact assessment concerning the utilization of treated wastewater for two different varieties of wheat production. The study analyzed the soil chemical composition before and after irrigation at two different depths (0-30 cm & 30-60 cm). Water chemical composition is also analyzed for controlled water, treated water of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain. Wheat plant chemical composition present in the head, root, and shoot for both the varieties is analyzed. The levels of Ca, Mg, Na and CI in soil have increased after irrigation with controlled water. The presence of cations and anions in the soil are slightly higher in the treated water of Abu Dhabi. Ca, Na, CI and SO4 are found to be significantly higher after irrigation with treated wastewater of Al Ain.  The plant chemical composition of head, root and shoot ND fiber, AD fiber, Crude protein and Macro elements have shown no significant differences across the three types of water and two varieties of wheat production. The correlations between RBS limits and the three types of water considered in the study are negative. The results revealed that the differences in chemical composition between RBS limits, controlled, treated wastewater of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain are statistically significant with particular reference to trace and heavy metals. Concerning water chemical composition, the study concludes that the correlation between controlled water and treated wastewater of Al Ain is strong when compared to Abu Dhabi

Effect of treated wastewater irrigation on plant growth and biochemical features of two wheat cultivars under elevated level of CO2 and UV-B radiation

Climate change is a serious problem affecting worldwide agricultural production and encourages researchers to investigate plant responses and grow crops under changed growing conditions. In arid and semiarid regions, treated wastewater is a common alternative source of water for irrigation. The proposed study examined the impact of irrigation with treated wastewater and the effects on the growth of wheat crops of environmental stress factors, including UV radiation and carbon dioxide. The experiment was conducted in a transparent Open Top Chambers facility and the treatments were administered in the hot UAE climate for ninety days. In order to understand the physiological mechanisms of plant adaptation under the conditions given, physiological and biochemical characteristics such as anti-oxidant enzymes have been assessed. The results revealed that the elevated CO2 level increased the growth parameters, whereas when compared to control, the UVB treatment affected plant growth. In the seedling process, established under regulated development, the differential response of antioxidant activity, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POX) activities were observed among intrinsic biochemical activity in the selected Wheat varieties. Our findings show that wheat varieties are suitable as industrial crops for the production of antioxidants under irrigation with treated wastewater because the quantity and quality of their yield have not been affected. This practice will contribute to a clean environment and the stress on freshwater will be reduced by its reuse

The influence of elevated CO2 concentrations and UVB radiation in antioxidant activity of selected Chenopodium quinoa varieties

Ecosystems have been affected by climate change. Both agriculture and environmental changes are correlated with various features since climate change is the main cause of abiotic and biotic stress, which affects crop plants. Climate change and its severe impact on plant productivity showed great intensity due to the effects of abiotic stress. In the present investigation, we selected two quinoa varieties to study the response to future climatic factors such as eCO2, enhanced UVB radiation, and UVB+eCO2 combined effects in open-top chambers in the hot climate of the UAE. The treatments were administered for 90 days in the hot UAE weather conditions and the experiment was carried out in a transparent OTC facility. The response of the studied quinoa varieties was measured by analyzing their non-enzymatic antioxidant and antioxidant enzyme activities. Our findings showed that quinoa varieties are suitable as industrial crops for their levels of antioxidants under stimulating climatic conditions because the quantity and quality of their yield have not been affected. Based on the results obtained in the present investigation, further study is warranted for screening more varieties with the addition of climate change factors such as temperature and humidity to find more tolerant varieties of quinoa suitable for future climatic conditions

Response of two different Phoenix dactylifera cultivars to future climate conditions

Plants are naturally exposed to various environmental stresses that affect their growth and development. As a desert plant, Phoenix dactylifera (date palm) has developed strategies to protect itself from most abiotic stresses. However, projected climate changes and the interaction between the various abiotic stressors will have profound effects on date palm adaptation and production In the present study, the two date palm cultivars, Sultana and Zamli cultivars were exposed to elevated levels of CO2 and enhanced UVB radiation and non-enzymatic antioxidants (total phenols, α-tocopherol, reduced glutathione content) and antioxidant enzyme activities (polyphenol oxidase, peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase) activities were analysed. The results showed that the Sultana cultivar is tolerant to future climate conditions. However, more biotic stress and yield parameters are needed for the identification of biotic stress tolerant date palm cultivars

THE CHEMOADJUVANT POTENTIAL OF PERGULARIA DAEMIA (FORSK.) ON EXPRESSION PATTERN IN EXPERIMENTAL ORAL CARCINOGENESIS

Abstract Pergularia daemia (Family: Asclepiadaceae), is a perennial herb growing widely along the road sides of India. Traditionally, the plant is utilized in many disease conditions. These findings provide valuable information that might help in the selection of possible biomarkers that can be used in early detection of the alarming problem of oral cancer in Southeast Asia. Topical application of DMBA for 14 weeks induced buccal pouch tumours that showed aberrant expression of cytokeratins, a marker for epithelial carcinomas. This was associated with increased cell proliferation and evasion of apoptosis as revealed by upregulation of proliferating cell nuclear antigen, NF-κB, mutant p53, Bcl-2 and downregulation of Bax and caspase 3 protein expression. Our findings clearly suggest that PDME may play a role as a novel chemopreventive or therapeutic agent for oral carcinogenesis. Key words: Pergularia daemia, Chemoadjuvant, RT-PCR, Western Blottin

ANTIPROLIFERATIVE POTENTIAL OF PERGULARIA DAEMIA (FORSK.) ON HUMAN ORAL EPIDERMOID CARCINOMA (KB) CELLS BY INDUCING APOPTOSIS AND MODIFYING OXIDANT ANTIOXIDANT STATUS

Objective:  Management  of  cancer  without  any  side  effects  is  still  a  challenge  for  the medicinal  system.  This  leads  to  an  increasing  search  for  improved  anticancer  drugs. Few  of  plant  products  have  been  used  in  traditional  medicine  for  thousands  of  years and  have  been  drawing  of  great  deal  of  attention  to  suppress  cancer. The  main  objective  of  this  study  is to  evaluate  the  antiproliferative  effect  of  Pergularia  daemia  (Forsk)  against  KB  cells.Methods:  Different  concentrations  of  areal  part  of  Pergularia  daemia  methanolic extract  (10,20,40,80,160,320 µg/ml)  were  subjected  to  cytotoxic  study.  The antiproliferative  effect  of  PDME  was  determined  by  MTT  assay,  analysis  of  ROS generation,  mitochondrial  membrane  potential,  cell  cycle  arrest  and  antioxidant  status.Result:  Increased  level  of  intracellular  ROS,  lipid  peroxidation  marker  (TBARS),  DNA damage  (comet  assay),  apoptotic  death  and  cell  cycle  arrest  in  PDME  treated  cells. Whereas  decreased  activity  of  antioxidants  and  altered  mitochondrial  membrane potential  were  observed  in  PDME  treated  cells.Conclusion: The  current  investigation  suggested  that  the  phyto constituents  of Pergularia  daemia  responsible  for  anticancer  activity.  Thus  the  long  term  consumption of  Pergularia  daemia  could  be  considered  and  promoted  as  a  adjuvant  therapy  for various  malignancy.Â

A Natural Wonder Drug Helps to Prevent Cancer: Garlic Oil

Garlic is one of the oldest and popular spices in the World that also contain very good nutritional value. Garlic has a wide spectrum of actions not only is it antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal and antiprotozoan but it also has beneficial effects on the cardiovascular and immune systems. They contain unique oil which is very easily digested and is stable to oxidative stress and for this reasons they are useful and healthy for consumption. Several epidemiological and experimental studies suggest that garlic oil has been thought to bring about its anticarcinogenic effect and other pharmacological properties through a number of mechanisms, such as the scavenging of radicals, increasing glutathione levels, increasing the activities of enzymes such as glutathione S transferase, catalase, incubation of cytochrome p450 2E1, DNA repair mechanisms, prevention of chromosomal damage etc. Future research should standardize the dosage of garlic and type. Several hypotheses suggest that the anticancer mechanism may be due to DNA repair mechanism, prevention of chromosomal damage, antiproliferative effect and alteration of the cell cycle. Garlic and garlic oil should be considered as one of the most valuable food for good quality of life in general

Early Doxorubicin Myocardial Injury: Inflammatory, Oxidative Stress, and Apoptotic Role of Galectin-3

Doxorubicin (DOXO) is an effective drug that is used in the treatment of a large number of cancers. Regardless of its important chemotherapeutic characteristics, its usage is restricted because of its serious side effects; the most obvious is cardiotoxicity, which can manifest acutely or years after completion of treatment, leading to left ventricular dysfunction, dilated cardiomyopathy, and heart failure. Galectin 3 (Gal-3) is a beta galactoside binding lectin that has different roles in normal and pathophysiological conditions. Gal-3 was found to be upregulated in animal models, correlating with heart failure, atherosclerosis, and myocardial infarction. Male C57B6/J and B6.Cg-Lgals3 <tm 1 Poi>/J Gal-3 knockout (KO) mice were used for a mouse model of acute DOXO-induced cardiotoxicity. Mice were given DOXO or vehicle (normal saline), after which the mice again had free access to food and water. Heart and plasma samples were collected 5 days after DOXO administration and were used for tissue processing, staining, electron microscopy, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). There was a significant increase in the heart concentration of Gal-3 in Gal-3 wild type DOXO-treated mice when compared with the sham control. There were significantly higher concentrations of heart cleaved caspase-3, plasma troponin I, plasma lactate dehydrogenase, and plasma creatine kinase in Gal-3 KO DOXO-treated mice than in Gal-3 wild type DOXO-treated mice. Moreover, there were significantly higher heart antioxidant proteins and lower oxidative stress in Gal-3 wild type DOXO-treated mice than in Gal-3 KO DOXO-treated mice. In conclusion, Gal-3 can affect the redox pathways and regulate cell survival and death of the myocardium following acute DOXO injury

GC-MS Assisted Phytoactive Chemical Compounds Identification and Profiling with Mineral Constituents from Biologically Active Extracts of Aerva javanica (Burm. f) Juss. ex Schult.

Aerva javanica (Burm. f) Juss. ex Schult. (Family: Amaranthaceae) family is one of the traditional medicinal plant growing in the United Arab Emirates. Apart from studies related to some medicinal properties, phytochemical, GC MS compound characterization and biological activities still to be investigated. An experiment was conducted to determine the possible bioactive components with their chemical structures and elucidation of phytochemicals from the aerial parts of the plant. The macro and micro-mineral constituents and antioxidant activities were also evaluated. Aerial parts of A. javanica were extracted sequentially with hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, acetone, methanol by cold percolation method. Free radical scavenging and antioxidant properties of methanolic extract were evaluated by using in vitro antioxidant assays such as hydroxyl radical scavenging activity, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radicals, superoxide radical scavenging activity and ABTS radical scavenging activity. Primary phytochemical and micro-macro element was tested using standard protocol. The chemical characterization was done with the help of Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS), and the mass spectra of the total compounds in the extract were matched with the National Institute of Standard and Technology (NIST) library. Mineral constituents were identified and estimated by ICP-OES. Ninety-nine metabolites were obtained by GC-MS anslysis; indole was found to be major components followed by 2-Chlorallyl diethyldithiocarbamate (CDEC), Carbaril, Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, Quinoline, 4H-Cyclopentadef] phenanthrene, 2-Bis(2-chloroethylamino)]-tetrahydro-2H-1,3,2-oxazaphosphorine-2-oxi de, Phenobarbital, 1H-Indole, 2-methyl-, 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin Disulfide, diphenyl. The presence of various bioactive compounds in the extract validates the traditional medicinal uses of this plant