Plant Derived Bioactive Compounds, Their Anti-Cancer Effects as an Alternative Target Treatment Strategy for Breast Cancer: An Updated Overview

For decades, cancer has been a major public health concern worldwide owing to its high mortality rate. Many therapeutic strategies have come up in the scientific world, but it\u27s pitiful to know that synthetic chemotherapeutic agents either cause adverse effects or cancer cells develop resistance to these agents. Plant-derived chemotherapeutic agents present a wide range of therapeutics and most are yet to be discovered. In the current review, we have discussed the tumoricidal properties of Mucuna pruriens (seed), Withania coagulans (berry), Anacyclus pyrethrum (rhizome), Arachis hypogea (leaf), Rhizaoma polygoni (root) and Terminalia chebula (fruit). We have also tried to summarize the latest research in cancer chemoprevention and treatment using the bioactive components from these natural plants. Pharmaceutical developmental challenges and opportunities in bringing the phytochemicals into the market are also explored. The authors wish to expand this research area not only for their scientific soundness, but also for their potential-yet-affordable druggability

Quinazolinones linked amino acids derivatives as a new class of promising antimicrobial, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory agents

Two series of amino acids conjugated quinazolinones (1a-h and 2a-h) were synthesized by acid-amine coupling and the structures of all the compounds were confirmed through spectroscopic techniques such as IR, NMR and HRMS. The synthesized compounds were evaluated for their antimicrobial, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Biological evaluation study revealed that, the compounds 1f, 2f, 2g and 1g showed good antioxidant activity with 50% of the inhibition concentration (IC50) values 35, 20, 30 and 40 µg/mL, respectively, much better than the standard BHT (IC50 = 45 µg/mL). The compounds 1g, 2e and 2g found to have promising anti-inflammatory activity and almost all the synthesized compounds exhibited good antimicrobial activities (antibacterial and antifungal) against all the selected pathogenic bacteria and fungi. Conjugates containing Trp, Tyr and Pro have shown better activity than the rest of the analogues in the series. The structure-activity relationship was established for these compounds

COVID-19 PANDEMIC: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW ON THE CORONAVIRUSES OF ANIMALS AND SARS-CoV-2

Coronaviruses (CoVs), classified into four genera, viz., alpha-, beta-, gamma-, and Delta- CoV, represent an important group of diverse transboundary pathogens that can infect a variety of mammalian and avian species including humans, animals, poultry, and non-poultry birds. CoVs primarily infect lung and gut epithelial cells, besides monocytes and macrophages. CoVs have high mutation rates causing changes in host specificity, tissue tropism, and mode of virus excretion and transmissions. The recent CoV zoonoses are SARS, MERS, and COVID-19 that are caused by the transmission of beta-CoVs of bats to humans.  Recently, reverse zoonoses of the COVID-19 virus have been detected in dogs, tigers, and minks. Beta-CoV strains also infect bovine (BCoV) and canine species (CRCoV); both these beta-CoVs might have originated from a common ancestor. Despite the high genetic similarity between BCoV, CRCoV, and HCoV-OC43, these differ in species specificity. Alpha-CoV strains infect canine (CCoV), feline (FIPV), swine (TGEV and PEDV), and humans (HCoV229E and NL63). Six coronavirus species are known to infect and cause disease in pigs, seven in human beings, and two in dogs. The high mutation rate in CoVs is attributed to error-prone 3′-5′ exoribonuclease (NSP 14), and genetic recombination to template shift by the polymerase. The present compilation describes the important features of the CoVs and diseases caused in humans, animals, and birds that are essential in surveillance of diverse pool of CoVs circulating in nature, and monitoring interspecies transmission, zoonoses, and reverse zoonoses

Research Article A new Informatics Framework for Evaluating the Codon Usage Metrics, Evolutionary Models and Phylogeographic reconstruction of Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) in different regions of Asian countries

Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) is a major devastating viral disease, majorly affecting the tomato production globally. The disease is majorly transmitted by the Whitefly. The Begomovirus (TYLCV) having a six major protein coding genes, among them the C1/AC1 is evidently associated with viral replication. Owing to immense role of C1/AC1 gene, the present study is an initial effort to elucidate the factors shaping the codon usage bias and evolutionary pattern of TYLCV-C1/AC1 gene in five major Asian countries. Based on publically available nucleotide sequence data the Codon usage pattern, Evolutionary and Phylogeographic reconstruction was carried out. The study revealed the presence of significant variation between the codon bias indices in all the selected regions. Implying that the codon usage pattern indices (eNC, CAI, RCDI, GRAVY, Aromo) are seriously affected by selection and mutational pressure, taking a supremacy in shaping the codon usage bias of viral gene. Further, the tMRCA age was 1853, 1939, 1855, 1944, 1828 for China, India, Iran, Oman and South Korea, respectively for TYLCV-C1/AC1 gene. The integrated analysis of Codon usage bias, Evolutionary rate and Phylogeography analysis in viruses signifies the positive role of selection and mutational pressure among the selected regions for TYLCV (C1/AC1) gene

The first study on analysis of the codon usage bias and evolutionary analysis of the glycoprotein envelope E2 gene of seven Pestiviruses

Background and Aim: Pestivirus, a genus of the Flaviviridae family, comprises viruses that affect bovines, sheep, and pigs. Symptoms, including hemorrhagic syndromes, abortion, respiratory complications, and deadly mucosal diseases, are produced in infected animals, which cause huge economic losses to the farmers. Bovine viral diarrhea virus-1, bovine viral diarrhea virus-2, classical swine fever virus, border disease virus, Bungowannah, Hobi-like, and atypical porcine pestivirus belonging to the Pestivirus genus were selected for the study. This study aimed to estimate the codon usage bias and the rate of evolution using the glycoprotein E2 gene. Furthermore, codon usage bias analysis was performed using publicly available nucleotide sequences of the E2 gene of all seven Pestiviruses. These nucleotide sequences might elucidate the disease epidemiology and facilitate the development of designing better vaccines. Materials and Methods: Coding sequences of the E2 gene of Pestiviruses A (n = 89), B (n = 60), C (n = 75), D (n = 10), F (n = 07), H (n = 52), and K (n = 85) were included in this study. They were analyzed using different methods to estimate the codon usage bias and evolution. In addition, the maximum likelihood and Bayesian methodologies were employed to analyze a molecular dataset of seven Pestiviruses using a complete E2 gene region. Results: The combined analysis of codon usage bias and evolutionary rate analysis revealed that the Pestiviruses A, B, C, D, F, H, and K have a codon usage bias in which mutation and natural selection have played vital roles. Furthermore, while the effective number of codons values revealed a moderate bias, neutrality plots indicated the natural selection in A, B, F, and H Pestiviruses and mutational pressure in C, D, and K Pestiviruses. The correspondence analysis revealed that axis-1 significantly contributes to the synonymous codon usage pattern. In this study, the evolutionary rate of Pestiviruses B, H, and K was very high. The most recent common ancestors of all Pestivirus lineages are 1997, 1975, 1946, 1990, 2004, 1990, and 1990 for Pestiviruses A, B, C, D, F, H, and K, respectively. This study confirms that both mutational pressure and natural selection have played a significant role in codon usage bias and evolutionary studies. Conclusion: This study provides insight into the codon usage bias and evolutionary lineages of pestiviruses. It is arguably the first report of such kind. The information provided by the study can be further used to elucidate the respective host adaptation strategies of the viruses. In turn, this information helps study the epidemiology and control methods of pestiviruses

Zinc oxide nanoparticles prepared through microbial mediated synthesis for therapeutic applications: a possible alternative for plants

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) synthesized through biogenic methods have gained significant attention due to their unique properties and potential applications in various biological fields. Unlike chemical and physical approaches that may lead to environmental pollution, biogenic synthesis offers a greener alternative, minimizing hazardous environmental impacts. During biogenic synthesis, metabolites present in the biotic sources (like plants and microbes) serve as bio-reductants and bio-stabilizers. Among the biotic sources, microbes have emerged as a promising option for ZnO-NPs synthesis due to their numerous advantages, such as being environmentally friendly, non-toxic, biodegradable, and biocompatible. Various microbes like bacteria, actinomycetes, fungi, and yeast can be employed to synthesize ZnO-NPs. The synthesis can occur either intracellularly, within the microbial cells, or extracellularly, using proteins, enzymes, and other biomolecules secreted by the microbes. The main key advantage of biogenic synthesis is manipulating the reaction conditions to optimize the preferred shape and size of the ZnO-NPs. This control over the synthesis process allows tailoring the NPs for specific applications in various fields, including medicine, agriculture, environmental remediation, and more. Some potential applications include drug delivery systems, antibacterial agents, bioimaging, biosensors, and nano-fertilizers for improved crop growth. While the green synthesis of ZnO-NPs through microbes offers numerous benefits, it is essential to assess their toxicological effects, a critical aspect that requires thorough investigation to ensure their safe use in various applications. Overall, the presented review highlights the mechanism of biogenic synthesis of ZnO-NPs using microbes and their exploration of potential applications while emphasizing the importance of studying their toxicological effects to ensure a viable and environmentally friendly green strategy