Optimizing Growth Conditions of Kluyveromyces marxianus for Mannan Production as a Bioemulsifier

 Background and objective: Mannan which is a linear glycoprotein with β-1,4 links carrying mannose units bind to proteins, includes natural amphiphiles and serves as a bioemulsifier. The aim of this study was optimization of growth and purification of Kluyveromyces marxianus for mannan production, which can use as a natural bioemulisifier.Material and methods: In this study, mannan production by Kluyveromyces marxianus was assessed using combinational method of fractional factorial design and response surface methodology optimization. Process variables include concentration of carbon source (15, 30, 45 g l-1) of glucose, and glycerol and methanol at 0, 2.5 and 5 gl-1), nitrogen source (yeast extract and peptone 4, 6 and 8 gl-1), as well as fermentation time (48, 96 and 144 h), pH (4, 6, 8) and agitation speed (150, 200 and 250 rpm).Results and conclusion: Results showed that four variables of carbon and nitrogen source concentrations, as well as fermentation time and pH included the greatest effects on mannan production. Optimization of the affecting factors using response surface methodology demonstrated appropriate conditions of mannan production by Kluyveromyces marxianus as 55.15 g l-1 of glucose, 9.35 g l-1 of yeast extract, pH of 4.99 and fermentation time of 168 h, which led to a mannan yield of 245.98 mg (100 ml)-1culture media.Conflict of interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest

Phytotherapy in aspergillus: An overview of the most important medicinal plants affecting aspergillus

Aspergillosis can cause wide range of diseases such as abortion, respiratory infections and food poisoning. The emergence of drug-resistant fungal species has caused attention to be focused on developing new therapies against fungi. Some plant species have been identified antifungal properties. Because of the importance of fungal diseases, such as Aspergillus, in this study the effect of antifungal medicinal plants native to Iran, was introduced. The review carried out by searching scientific databases such as Google Scholar, SID, etc, key words, including fungi, Aspergillus, herbs and Iran to relevant articles were searched and were studied. Diagram of the present review were as follows. Zataria multiflora Boiss., Thymus eriocalyx, Mentha pulegium, Satureia hortensis, Secale montanum, Artemisia, Petroselinum crispum, Acimum basilicum, Anethum graveolens, Mentha viridis, Cuminum cyminum, Cinnamomum zeylanicum, Aloe vera, Rosa damascena, Coriandrum sativum Origanum majorana, Myrtus Communis L and Glycyyrhiza glabra are the most important medicinal plants against Aspergillosis. Important compounds such as Carvacrol, Thymol, Palmitic acid, Apiol, Methyl chavicol, Caryophyllene oxide, Cimonene, Camphene, Mircen and Myrtenal, Menthol, Caryophyllene, Mentone and ect includes the active compounds of medicinal plants that have antibacterial and antifungi effects, which can be described as a combination of proven anti-Aspergillus context. © 2016, Sphinx Knowledge House. All rights reserved

Ethnobotanical identification of medicinal plants effective on toothache in Shiraz, south Iran

Pain is an unpleasant sensory experience which is developed by acute or potential tissue damage. Currently, some drugs such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin and ibuprofen, opioids such as morphine, meperidine, methadone, tramadol, buprenorphine, butorphanol, and nalbuphine as well as other drugs including tricyclic antidepressants and corticosteroids are being used to control pain. These drugs could cause side effects. Given the high prevalence of toothache and that a variety of plants are used to relieve toothache in Iranian traditional medicine, this study was conducted to document the data of medicinal plants effective on relief of toothache in Shiraz. In this study, the data on traditional treatments were gathered from the groceries across Shiraz between 23 July, 2015 and 23 October, 2015 by pre-developed questionnaires administered to the grocers by researcher. The data obtained from the questionnaires were meticulously tabulated and recorded and analyzed by Excel. Finally 20 plants from 14 families were identified as being used for toothache in Shiraz. Most plants effective on toothache were from Composite family. Aerial parts were (38%) were the most frequently used organs and concentrated extract (70%) was the most frequent traditional method of use in the studied region. Papaver tennifolium (37.03%) obtained the highest percentage of frequency of citation of the toothache-relieving plants in Shiraz. It is necessary to identify the effective substances in the medicinal plants native to Shiraz used to relieve toothache and to study these substances' therapeutic effects

Overview of medicinal plants used for cardiovascularsystem disorders and diseases in ethnobotany of differentareas in Iran

Background and Aims: Today, cardiovascular diseases are the prominent cause of death in industrialized countries which include a variety of diseases such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, thromboembolism, coronary heart disease, heart failure, etc. Recent research findings haveshown that not only the extent of cultivation and production of medicinal plants have not beenreduced, but also day-to-day production and consumption have increased. In traditional botanicalknowledge, herbal medicines are used for the treatment of cardiovascular disorders. In this study,we sought to gather and report medicinal plants used to treat these diseases in different regionsof Iran.Methods: The articles published about ethnobotanical study of cardiovascular diseases in variousregions of Iran, such as Arasbaran, Sistan, Kashan, Kerman, Isfahan Mobarakeh, Lorestan andIlam were prepared and summarized.Results: The results of ethnobotanical studies of various regions of Iran, such as Arasbaran, Sistan,Kashan, Kerman, Isfahan Mobarakeh, Lorestan and Ilam were gathered. The results showed thatsumac plants, barberry, yarrow, wild cucumber, horsetail, Eastern grape, hawthorn, wild rose,spinach, jujube, buckwheat, chamomile, chicory, thistle, Mary peas, nightshade, verbena, sorrel ,cherry, citrullus colocynthis, Peganum harmala, sesame and so many other plants are used for thetreatment of cardiovascular diseases and disorders.Conclusion: Herbal medicines are used effectively for some cardiovascular diseases. Rigoroustraining of patients to take precautions and drug interactions into account and to avoid thearbitrary use of medicinal plants is very important

Obesity Phytotherapy: Review of Native Herbs Used in Traditional Medicine for Obesity.

Obesity is an important disorders due to which 25 million deaths occur annually worldwide. Synthetic drugs for weight loss have low efficacy and high side effects. Apart from synthetic drugs in modern medicine, various other methods including the use of herbal medications are used to induce weight loss. Cambodia hoodia, green tea, Citrus aurantium, white beans, fenugreek, caffeine, ephedrine, capsaicin, yohimbine, chitosan, fitostreols, and guar gum have been studied in clinical trials and their effects have been confirmed. It seems necessary to study more to determine the effectiveness and safety of medicinal plants and herbal extracts as well as pharmaceutically active ingredients that may have the property of weight loss. In this article, we aimed to review recent knowledge about medicinal plants that are recommended for weight loss

An overview on the most important native medicinal plants against flour beetle

Contamination with pests is the main problems of stored food products and can defects them from harvest time until storage. Pests have high proliferation rate, global distribution, and sometimes damage foods up to a hundred percent. Nowadays plant materials are used for pest control in warehouses. Volatile essential oils are important compounds to combat fungal pathogens, insects, herbivores and pests in stored food products. Herbs and botanicals have insecticide and insect repellent properties and are good alternative to chemical insecticides. This paper was aimed to have an overview on the most important native medicinal plants against flour beetle. All required information was obtained by searching key words such as flour beetle, medicinal plant extracts or essential oils and Iran of published articles in authentic scientific databases such as Sciencedirect, Blackwell Wiley, Springer, Scopus, Pubmed, Google scholar and Scientific information database (SID) and Magiran. Eucalyptus globulus, Perovskia atriplicifolia, Azadirachta indica Adr. Juss, Artemisia sieberi Besser, Carum copticum C. B. Clarke, Cuminum cyminum L, Bunium persicum Boiss, Elletaria cardamomum Maton, Nerium oleander L, Lavandula officinalis L, Ferula assafoetida L, Rosmarinus officinalis L. Artemisia dracunculus L, Foeniculum vulgare, Satureja hortensis L, Zygophyllum fabago L, Delphinium persicum, Calotropis procera (Ait.) R. Br are the main medicinal plants can affect on flour beetle. They have various compounds and based on the results of phytochemical studies each of active compounds of medicinal plants could have potential anti pest effects against flour beetle. Therefore, it is recommended that all active ingredients are investigated in experimental and pharmacological studies and in case of positive effects, they used for production of natural anti pest compounds against the flour beetle

Comparison of Paraffin versus Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) in Children with Chronic Functional Constipation

Background Constipation is one of the most common disorders in children. The purpose of this study was to compare paraffin and polyethylene glycol (PEG) in the treatment of children with chronic constipation. Materials and Methods This study is a double-blind randomized trial. Total 160 children aged 2-12 years old with chronic constipation attending the pediatric clinic of Mousavi Hospital in Zanjan (Iran) were examined by the same pediatric gastroenterologist. They randomly received PEG solution (1cc/kg/day divided in two doses) or paraffin at the same dose. Patients were assessed regularly once a week up to one month and then monthly until 6 months. Data were analyzed by SPSS version 16 software. Results From children enrolled in the study, 43.1% were boys with mean age 5.27±1.3 years. The male to female ratio in Paraffin and PEG groups was similar (35/45 vs. 34/46; respectively, P-value= 1.27). The mean age of the participants in paraffin group and PEG group were 5.28±1.4 and 5.24±1.9 years, respectively. The good and intermediate response to PEG in comparison to paraffin were 11.3% and 38.8% vs. 23.8% and 35%; respectively (P=0.111). In children lower than 3 years old, the improvement after receiving paraffin was significantly higher (P=0.048). The frequency of adverse effects was similar and didn’t differ significantly between the two groups. Conclusion There was no significant difference between two groups (PEG and Paraffin groups) in terms of gender and adverse effects of drugs. However paraffin had better therapeutic effect among children less than 3 years of age

Identification of medicinal plants effective on sinusitis native to Shiraz province in Iran

Sinusitis is one of the most infectious diseases that affect holes around the nose such as frontal ethmoid sinuses, maxillary and sphenoid. Symptoms usually include nasal congestion and obstruction, feeling of pressure or fullness in the face, anterior or posterior nasal causing discharge, headaches, fever, swelling and erythema in forehead or cheek and cough. The symptoms might be edema and mucosal congestion, nasal drainage, posterior nasal discharge, nasal septum deviation and polyps. The medicinal plants identified for instance are Amygdalus scoparia Spach, Echinophora platyloba DC., Haplophyllum perforatum L, Lavandula stoechas L, Borago officinalis, Matricaria recutita, Descurainia Sophia (L.) Schr and Haplophyllum perforatum L to treat sinusitis in Shiraz. Many of these plants have antioxidant activity and contain bioactive compounds such as flavonoids, flavonoids, polyphenols, anthocyanins, tannins and many other pharmaceutical bioactive ingredients that have effects on sinusitis. This paper aims to review the recently published papers in this topic