Solanum torvum Sw. SOLANACEAE turkey berry Synonyms:

General Description.—Turkey berry is an erect spiny shrub that is also known by prickley solanum, shoo-shoo bush, devil’s fig, wild egg plant, boo, terongan, berenjena cimarrona, berenjena de gallina, berenjena silvestre, tabacón, pendejera, tomatillo, bâtard balengène, zamorette, friega-platos, and many other names (Howard 1989, Little and others 1974, Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk 2001). It is usually 2 or 3 m in height and 2 cm in basal diameter, but may reach 5 m in height and 8 cm in basal diameter. The shrub usually has a single stem at ground level, but it may branch on the lower stem. The stem bark is gray and nearly smooth with raised lenticels. The inner bark has a green layer over an ivory color (Little and others 1974). The plants examined by the author, growing on firm soil, had weak taproots and well developed laterals. The roots are white. Foliage is confined to the growing twigs. The twigs are gray-green and covered with starshaped hairs. The spines are short and slightly curved and vary from thick throughout the plant, including the leaf midrib, to entirely absent. The leaves are opposite or one per node, broadly ovate with the boarder entire or deeply lobed. The petioles are 1 to 6 cm long and the blades are 7 to 23 by 5 to 18 cm and covered with short hairs. The flowers are white, tubular with 5 pointed lobes, and grouped in corymbiform cymes. They are shed soon after opening. The fruits are berries that are yellow when fully ripe. They are thin-fleshed and contain numerous flat, round, brown seeds Range.—Turkey berry apparently is native from Florida and southern Alabama through the West Indies and from Mexico through Central America and South America through Brazil (Little and others 1974). Because of its rapid spread as a weed in disturbed lands, it is difficult to tell which populations are native and which are introduced. Turkey berry has been introduced and naturalized throughout tropical Africa, Asia, Australia, and th

Solanum persicifolium angustifolium Dunal in DC.

are lateral and contain up to 15 small, blue, violet, or rarely white flowers. The fruits are globose, red berries about 5 mm in diameter with the calyx still attached. Each contains several flattened, yellow seeds (author’s observation, Liogier 1995). Range.—Berenjena de playa is native to Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands (Liogier 1995). It is not known to have been planted or naturalized elsewhere. General Description.—Berenjena de playa, which means beach eggplant, is a semideciduous shrub usually about 2 m in height with a basal diameter of 1.5 cm. The species is also known as rubia. It may have a single or multiple stems and is supported by a stout taproot and many latera

Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research www.jpsr.pharmainfo.in EVALUATION OF ANTI-INFLAMMATORY ACTIVITY OF THE LEAF

Methanol extracts of Solanum trilobatum Linn Leaf were investigated for anti-inflammatory activity with acute and chronic models. In the doses of 100, 200 and 300 mg kg –1 exhibited significant (P < 0.05) anti-inflammatory activity in all the models tested. The methanol extracts of Solanum trilobatum Linn at 300 mg kg-1 showed maximum inhibition of 54.44 % in carrageenan-induced rat paw oedema while the standard drug indomethacin was 57.08 % after 3 hrs of carrageenan injection. On the other hand at 100, 200 and 300 mg kg-1 inhibited with dextran, histamine and serotonin-induced rat paw oedema significantly and dose-dependently compared with control group. In the chronic inflammatory model, at 200 and 300 mg kg-1 inhibited the granuloma weight by 22.65 %, whereas the indomethacin inhibited 28.37 %. Key words: Anti-inflammatory activity, carrageenan induced rat paw, cotton pellet induced granuloma, Solanum trilobatum

RESEARCH ARTICLE

www.phytokeys.co

A Novel Pathway for Sesquiterpene Biosynthesis from Z,Z-Farnesyl Pyrophosphate in the Wild Tomato

In the wild tomato Solanum habrochaites, the Sst2 locus on chromosome 8 is responsible for the biosynthesis of several class II sesquiterpene olefins by glandular trichomes. Analysis of a trichome-specific EST collection from S. habrochaites revealed two candidate genes for the synthesis of Sst2-associated sesquiterpenes. zFPS encodes a protein with homology to Z-isoprenyl pyrophosphate synthases and SBS (for Santalene and Bergamotene Synthase) encodes a terpene synthase with homology to kaurene synthases. Both genes were found to cosegregate with the Sst2 locus. Recombinant zFPS protein catalyzed the synthesis of Z,Z-FPP from isopentenylpyrophosphate (IPP) and dimethylallylpyrophosphate (DMAPP), while coincubation of zFPS and SBS with the same substrates yielded a mixture of olefins identical to the Sst2-associated sesquiterpenes, including (+)-a-santalene, (+)-endo-b-bergamotene, and (2)-endo-a-bergamotene. In addition, headspace analysis of tobacco (Nicotiana sylvestris) plants expressing zFPS and SBS in glandular trichomes afforded the same mix of sesquiterpenes. Each of these proteins contains a putative plastid targeting sequence that mediates transport of a fused green fluorescent protein to the chloroplasts, suggesting that the biosynthesis of these sesquiterpenes uses IPP an

Summary Author for correspondence:

near-isogenic line

Research Article

journal published quarterly. The Aim of IJPBS is to publish peer reviewed research and review articles in less time without much delay in the developing field of Pharmaceutical and Biological sciences. One week from the date of manuscript submission author gets the decision of acceptance and if accepted the manuscript will be processed within 3 weeks (approx.) for publication

Summary

• It has been suggested that clonality provides reproductive assurance in crossfertilizing species subject to pollen limitation, relieving one of the main selective pressures favoring the evolution of self-fertilization. According to this hypothesis, cross-fertilizing species subject to pollen limitation should often be clonal. Here, we investigated the association between clonality and a genetic mechanism enforcing outcrossing, self-incompatibility, in Solanum (Solanaceae). • We collected self-incompatibility and clonality information on 87 species, and looked for an association between these two traits. To account for the contribution of shared evolutionary history to this association, we incorporated phylogenetic information from chloroplast (NADH dehydrogenase subunit F) sequence data. • We found that self-incompatibility is strongly associated with clonal reproduction: all self-incompatible species reproduce clonally, while the absence of clonality is widespread among self-compatible taxa. The observed correlation persists after taking into account shared phylogenetic history, assumptions about the evolutionary history of self-incompatibility, uncertainty associated with phylogeny estimation, and associations with life history (annual/perennial). • Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that clonality provides reproductive assurance, and suggest that the consequences of clonal growth in the evolution of plant reproductive strategies may be more significant than previously thought

Pharmacology Correspondence to Author:

www.ijpsr.com This article reviews, connected the gap between the folkloric use of Solanum nigrum and the results of evidence based experiments. Although Solanum nigrum is a rich source of one of plants most dreaded toxins solanine, it has appreciably monstrated its potential as a reservoir of antioxidants having hepatoprotective, anti-tumor, cytostatic, anti-convulsant, anti-ulcerogenic and anti-inflammatory.effects. The review encompasses in-vitro, in vivo and clinical studies done on Solanum nigrum, while examining.whether or not correct scientific measures have been taken in generating experimental evidences for its traditional uses. This review would afford research scientist to know how much is known and what is left undone in the investigation of Solanum nigrum. The compounds considered in this revieware flavonoids and other phenolics, alkaloids (especially indole terpenoid and purine alkaloids), essential oils and other terpenoids, cannabinoids, lucosinolates and isothiocyanates, and compounds having human hormone activity. Th

RESEARCH ARTICLE Open Access Identification and characterisation of CYP75A31, a new flavonoid 3’5’-hydroxylase, isolated from

Background: Understanding the regulation of the flavonoid pathway is important for maximising the nutritional value of crop plants and possibly enhancing their resistance towards pathogens. The flavonoid 3’5’-hydroxylase (F3’5’H) enzyme functions at an important branch point between flavonol and anthocyanin synthesis, as is evident from studies in petunia (Petunia hybrida), and potato (Solanum tuberosum). The present work involves the identification and characterisation of a F3’5’H gene from tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), and the examination of its putative role in flavonoid metabolism. Results: The cloned and sequenced tomato F3’5’H gene was named CYP75A31. The gene was inserted into the pYeDP60 expression vector and the corresponding protein produced in yeast for functional characterisation. Several putative substrates for F3’5’H were tested in vitro using enzyme assays on microsome preparations. The results showed that two hydroxylation steps occurred. Expression of the CYP75A31 gene was also tested in vivo, in various parts of the vegetative tomato plant, along with other key genes of the flavonoid pathway using real-time PCR. A clear response to nitrogen depletion was shown for CYP75A31 and all other genes tested. The content of rutin and kaempferol-3-rutinoside was found to increase as a response to nitrogen depletion in most parts of the plant, however the growth conditions used in this study did not lead to accumulation of anthocyanins