Gum exudates of Acacia senegal linn is an alternative binding agent in Drosophila melanogaster culture for laboratory maintenance of stocks

The gum exudates of Acacia senegal Linn was utilized as a single agent or in combination with agar-agar in the formulation of Drosophila diet. Eight (8) corn-meal diets were formulated in two sets consisting of 15 – 40 % (w/w) A. senegal as a single binding agent or a mixture of A. senegal in the ratios of 1:5, 1:2, 1:1 and 2:1 to agar-agar per 100 g corn-meal diet. Biochemical markers of toxicity were analyzed spectrophotometrically. Standard methods of AOAC were employed to determine the physicochemical and proximate compositions of the formulated corn-meal diets. The results from this study showed high level of safety of the gum on adult Drosophila melanogaster (Harwich strain) of both sexes and of the same lineage. LC50 > 100 mg/g with insignificant mortality in all groups at varying concentration (1 – 100 mg/g) of the gum exudate was observed after 7 days of treatment. Significant increases in eclosion in the A. senegal – exposed flies at concentrations of 2, 4 and 5 mg/g diet was also observed after the treatment. A normal trend in locomotor activity was observed in all groups when flies were subjected to negative geotaxic assay, however, at concentrations of 50 mg/g there was an impairment in locomotion. The formulated A. Senegal containing diets have shown varying differences in physicochemical properties, even though no significant changes in the biochemical parameters including SOD1, Catalase and GST in all groups were seen. The collective findings of the present study revealed that the gum exudates of A. senegal L. may be a cost-effective alternative of agar-agar in corn-meal diet for laboratory maintenance of Drosophila melanogaster stocks

The effect of methanolic crude extract of ocimum gratisimum leaves on insulin resistance and glut-4 gene expression in monosodium glutamate induced obese rats

Obesity is a complex chronic global disease affecting people worldwide across all ages, sexes, ethnicities and nationalities. It is accompanied by remodeling of adipocyte, insulin resistance (IR) and type 2 diabetes. The present study was aimed to determine the effect of methanolic crude extract of Ocimum gratisimum leaves on insulin resistance and GLUT-4 gene expression in Monosodium induced obese Rats. Phytochemical screening of the crude extract of Ocimum gratisimum leaves was carried out before the grouping of animals. The study was conducted using thirty 30 male Wistar rats weighing between 100.0 – 150.0 g. The animals were divided into five groups of six each; Normal control (NC) rats, Obese control (DC) rats, Obese rats treated with Ocimum gratissimum (OG) 100 mg/kg B.W (OG-100), Obese rats treated with OG 200 mg/kg B.W (OG-200), Obese rats treated with orlistat 50 mg/kg B.W (OR-50). Obesity was induced by oral administration of 8 mg/g MSG for 7 days and animals were treated with respective doses orally for 1 week. The phytochemical screening of the crude extract of Ocimum gratisimum leaves revealed the presence of saponins, tannins, flavonoids, glycosides and the results obtained after induction of obesity with MSG showed significant (P<0.05) increase in weight of the rats. After 1 week of treatment with the extract, the weight, non-fasting blood glucose (NFBG) and HOMA-IR level of the rats decreased significantly (P<0.05) when compared to obese control rats. In addition, the level of serum insulin was increased significantly in all groups while fold expression of GLUT-4 gene was increased significantly (P<0.05) in OG-200 only. In conclusion, the use of methanolic crude extract of Ocimum gratissimum leaves can be a therapy in the treatment of obesity due to its significant hypoglycemic, anti hyperlipidemic and insulin resistance lowering properties

In vivo ameliorative effect of methanolic extract of Boswellia dalzielli Hutch (Mebdh) stem bark on Triton X-100 induced hyperlipidaemia

Hyperlipidemia is a major risk factor for coronary heart diseases and ischemia that leading to high rates of mortalities. Conventionally, hyperlipidemia is managed using agents that facilitate the clearance of total cholesterol (TC), triacylglycerides (TAG) and low density lipoprotein (LDL) from the body. Despite the use of these drugs, the disease still remained a global burden that affects the quality of life. The current study was done to investigate hypolipidemic properties of the methanolic extract of Boswellia dalzielli hutch (MEBDH) stem bark in rodents. The phytochemicals of the MEBDH were screened and determined qualitatively before performing acute toxicity study to determine the LD50 of the extract. Twenty five male albino rats 2-3 months old (150-210) g were distributed randomly into five groups [Group 1: normal control received 200 μL normal saline daily for 3 weeks, Group 2: hyperlipidemic control induced by a single dose of Triton X-100 (150 mg/kg body weight) subcutaneously, followed by oral administration of 200 μL normal saline daily for 3 weeks. Group 2 and 4: hyperlipidemic rats treated orally with MEBDH (200 and 400 mg/kg body weight) respectively for 21 days. Group 5: hyperlipidemic rats treated with Simvastatin (5 mg/kg body weight) daily throughout the experimental period as positive control]. Administration of the extract did not cause any mortality regardless of the dose. However, the extract caused significant (p<0.05) decrease in TC, TAG and LDL-cholesterol levels in the treated rats. The decrease observed is significantly lower than that of untreated rats. In contrast, the level of HDL increased significantly (p<0.05) after treating the rats with the MEBDH stem bark. The extract of MEBDH possessed hypolipidemic agents and could be the potential substitute hyperlipidemic agents with side effect.Keywords: Albino Rats, Atherosclerosis, Boswellia dalzielli hutch, Coronary Heart Disease, Hyperlipidemia, Triton X10

The chemopreventive properties of isothiocyanate isolated from the seeds of moringa oleifera lam

Isothiocyanates (ITCs) are a group of plant phytochemicals believed to have numerous therapeutic properties. In the current study, Glucomoringin Isothiocyanate (GMG-ITC) was isolated and purified from the seeds of Moringa oleifera Lam. and used to treat Diethylnitrosamine-Induced Liver Cancer in rats. We observed that GMG-ITC treatment attenuated liver damage and significantly prevented the release of liver enzymes into blood plasma. In addition, the treatment significantly increased total antioxidant capacity of liver cancer induced rats that could have decreased the level of alanine amino transferase (ALT) and aspartate amino transferase (AST) in the blood. Thus, we postulate that pure isothiocyanate from the seeds of M. oleifera has potential anti-Liver Cancer activity

Neuroprotective effects of glucomoringin-isothiocyanate against H₂O₂-Induced cytotoxicity in neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cells

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) are pathological conditions characterised by progressive damage of neuronal cells leading to eventual loss of structure and function of the cells. Due to implication of multi-systemic complexities of signalling pathways in NDDs, the causes and preventive mechanisms are not clearly delineated. The study was designed to investigate the potential signalling pathways involved in neuroprotective activities of purely isolated glucomoringin isothiocyanate (GMG-ITC) against H₂O₂-induced-induced cytotoxicity in neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cells. GMG-ITC was isolated from Moringa oleifera seeds, and confirmed with NMR and LC-MS based methods. Gene expression analysis of phase II detoxifying markers revealed significant increase in the expression of all the genes involved, due to GMG-ITC pre-treatment. GMG-ITC also caused significant decreased in the expression of NF-kB, BACE1, APP and increased the expressions of IkB and MAPT tau genes in the differentiated cells as confirmed by multiplex genetic system analysis. The effect was reflected on the expressed proteins in the differentiated cells, where GMG-ITC caused increased in expression level of Nrf2, SOD-1, NQO1, p52 and c-Rel of nuclear factor erythroid factor 2 (Nrf2) and nuclear factor kappa-B (NF-kB) pathways respectively. The findings revealed the potential of GMG-ITC to abrogat

A Meta-analysis on the Effectiveness of Extracellular Vesicles as Nanosystems for Targeted Delivery of Anticancer Drugs

While the efficacy of anticancer drugs is hampered by low bioavailability and systemic toxicity, the uncertainty remains whether encapsulation of these drugs into natural nanovesicles such as extracellular vesicles (EVs) could improve controlled drug release and efficacy for targeted tumor therapy. Thus, we performed a meta-analysis for studies reporting the efficacy of EVs as nanosystems to deliver drugs and nucleic acid, protein, and virus (NPV) to tumors using the random-effects model. The electronic search of articles was conducted through Cochrane, PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, and Clinical Trials Registry from inception up till September 2022. The pooled summary estimate and 95% confidence interval of tumor growth inhibition, survival, and tumor targeting were obtained to assess the efficacy. The search yielded a total of 119 studies that met the inclusion criteria having only 1 clinical study. It was observed that the drug-loaded EV was more efficacious than the free drug in reducing tumor volume and weight with the standardized mean difference (SMD) of −1.99 (95% CI: −2.36, −1.63; p < 0.00001) and −2.12 (95% CI: −2.48, −1.77; p < 0.00001). Similarly, the mean estimate of tumor volume and weight for NPV were the following: SMD: −2.30, 95% CI: −3.03, −1.58; p < 0.00001 and SMD: −2.05, 95% CI: −2.79, −1.30; p < 0.00001. Treatment of tumors with EV-loaded anticancer agents also prolonged survival (HR: 0.15, 95% CI: 0.10, 0.22, p < 0.00001). Furthermore, EVs significantly delivered drugs to tumors as revealed by the higher concentration at the tumor site (SMD: −2.73, 95% CI: −3.77, −1.69; p < 0.00001). This meta-analysis revealed that EV-loaded drugs and NPV performed significantly better in tumor growth inhibition with improved survival than the free anticancer agents, suggesting EVs as safe nanoplatforms for targeted tumor therapy

Isothiocyanate from Moringa oleifera seeds mitigates hydrogen peroxide-induced cytotoxicity and preserved morphological features of human neuronal cells.

Reactive oxygen species are well known for induction of oxidative stress conditions through oxidation of vital biomarkers leading to cellular death via apoptosis and other process, thereby causing devastative effects on the host organs. This effect is believed to be linked with pathological alterations seen in several neurodegenerative disease conditions. Many phytochemical compounds proved to have robust antioxidant activities that deterred cells against cytotoxic stress environment, thus protect apoptotic cell death. In view of that we studied the potential of glucomoringin-isothiocyanate (GMG-ITC) or moringin to mitigate the process that lead to neurodegeneration in various ways. Neuroprotective effect of GMG-ITC was performed on retinoic acid (RA) induced differentiated neuroblastoma cells (SHSY5Y) via cell viability assay, flow cytometry analysis and fluorescence microscopy by means of acridine orange and propidium iodide double staining, to evaluate the anti-apoptotic activity and morphology conservation ability of the compound. Additionally, neurite surface integrity and ultrastructural analysis were carried out by means of scanning and transmission electron microscopy to assess the orientation of surface and internal features of the treated neuronal cells. GMG-ITC pre-treated neuron cells showed significant resistance to H2O2-induced apoptotic cell death, revealing high level of protection by the compound. Increase of intracellular oxidative stress induced by H2O2 was mitigated by GMG-ITC. Thus, pre-treatment with the compound conferred significant protection to cytoskeleton and cytoplasmic inclusion coupled with conservation of surface morphological features and general integrity of neuronal cells. Therefore, the collective findings in the presence study indicated the potentials of GMG-ITC to protect the integrity of neuron cells against induced oxidative-stress related cytotoxic processes, the hallmark of neurodegenerative diseases

Apoptotic Potential of Glucomoringin Isothiocyanate (GMG-ITC) Isolated from <i>Moringa oleifera</i> Lam Seeds on Human Prostate Cancer Cells (PC-3)

Inhibition of several protein pathways involved in cancer cell regulation is a necessary key in the discovery of cancer chemotherapy. Moringa oleifera Lam is often used in traditional medicine for the treatment of various illnesses. The plant contains glucomoringin isothiocyanate (GMG-ITC) with therapeutic potential against various cancer cells. Therefore, GMG-ITC was evaluated for its cytotoxicity against the PC-3 prostate cancer cell line and its potential to induce apoptosis. GMG-ITC inhibited cell proliferation in the PC-3 cell line with IC50 value 3.5 µg/mL. Morphological changes as a result of GMG-ITC-induced apoptosis showed chromatin condensation, nuclear fragmentation, and membrane blebbing. Additionally, Annexin V assay showed proportion of cells in early and late apoptosis upon exposure to GMG-ITC in a time-dependent manner. Moreover, GMG-ITC induced a time-dependent G2/M phase arrest, with reduction of 39.1% in the PC-3 cell line. GMG-ITC also activates apoptotic genes including caspase, tumor suppressor gene (p53), Akt/MAPK, and Bax of the proapoptotic Bcl family. Early apoptosis proteins (JNK, Bad, Bcl2, and p53) were significantly upregulated upon GMG-ITC treatment. It is concluded that apoptosis induction was observed in PC-3 cells treated with GMG-ITC. These phenomena suggest that GMG-ITC from M. oleifera seeds could be useful as a future cytotoxic agent against prostate cancer

Acridine orange (AO, green) and propidium iodide (PI, red) double staining fluorescent micrographs of differentiated neuronal cells.

<p>(a) 4 h H₂O₂ treated cells, (b) 72 h myrosinase pre-treated plus 4 h H₂O₂ exposed cells, (c) 72 h 1.25 μg/ml GMG-ITC pre-treated plus 4 h H₂O₂ exposed cells, (d) untreated cells (normal control). The images were captured in multiple times and x20 magnification was used.</p

Neuroprotective effects of 7-geranyloxycinnamic acid from Melicope lunu ankenda leaves

Neurodegenerative diseases (NDDs) are chronic conditions that have drawn robust interest from the scientific community. Phytotherapeutic agents are becoming an important source of chemicals for the treatment and management of NDDs. Various secondary metabolites have been isolated from Melicope lunu-ankenda plant leaves, including phenolic acid derivatives. However, their neuroprotective activity remains unclear. Thus, the aim of this study is to elucidate the in vitro neuroprotective activity of 7-geranyloxycinnamic acid isolated from Melicope lunu-ankenda leaves. The neuroprotective activity was evaluated in differentiated human neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cells by monitoring cell viability using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT). Moreover, the potential to impair apoptosis in differentiated cells was investigated employing the Annexin V-FITC assay, acridine orange and propidium iodide (AO/PI) staining, and fluorescence microscopy. Morphological assessment and ultrastructural analysis were performed using scanning and transmission electron microscopy to evaluate the effect of 7-geranyloxycinnamic acid on surface morphology and internal features of the differentiated cells. Pre-treatment of neuronal cells with 7-geranyloxycinnamic acid significantly protected the differentiated SH-SY5Y cells against H2O2-induced apoptosis. Cytoskeleton and cytoplasmic inclusion were similarly protected by the 7-geranyloxycinnamic acid treatment. The present findings demonstrate the neuroprotective potential of 7-geranyloxycinnamic acid against H2O2-induced neurotoxicity in neuronal cells, which is an established hallmark of neuronal disorders