Antigenotoxic effect of plant extracts

This report reviews our study of antigenotoxic compounds from medicinal and aromatic plants performed over several years. The studies of this type are aimed at understanding the protective mechanisms which may be relevant for the primary prevention of cancer and other mutation-related diseases. Antigenotoxic potential in this study is estimated with prokaryotic and eukaryotic tests measuring spontaneous and induced mutations, recombination, mutagenic repair, chromosomal aberrations and micronuclei. Our results indicate that monoterpenoids from sage act as modulators of DNA repair pathways, whereas sage antioxidants interfere with metabolic activation enzymes. The potential use of sage extracts in cancer prevention is discussed

Geographical and biological analysis of the water quality of Bovan Lake, Serbia

In this work we performed a complex geographical analysis of the Bovan Lake basin, Serbia, as well as an analysis of the physical, chemical and biological parameters of water reservoir during a one-year period. The basic sanitary characteristics and physical, chemical and biological parameters, necessary for understanding locality conditions, were studied, and the saprobity index, class of quality, index O/H, degree of saprobity, degree of trophicity and category based on the phosphatase activity index (PAI), were determined. Our results classify the ecosystem as polytrophic. The degree of saprobity is oligosaprobic - beta mesosaprobic, with a catarobic degree in winter, classifying the water as III - IV class of quality. Due to the presence of organic residues, a domination of heterotrophic bacteria in comparison to oligotrophic bacteria is evident. The ability of autopurification is weak. The results indicate the need for continual monitoring of the water quality and environmental protection of Bovan Lake

The anthropogenic impact on water quality of the river Danube in Serbia: Microbiological analysis and genotoxicity monitoring

The aim of this work was to examine the impact of urban wastewaters on the water quality of the Danube River in Serbia. Samples of water and sediments for microbiological analysis and genotoxicity monitoring were collected from 6 sites during spring and/or autumn 2010. Sanitary analysis, i.e. enumeration of total and fecal coliforms and intestinal enterococci, indicated moderate to critical fecal contamination, while organic load assessment (oligotroph to heterotroph ratio, index of phosphatase activity) revealed the category of moderately polluted water. Mercury-resistant bacteria were detected in all water samples, with high numbers at locations positioned downstream of Belgrade. There was no correlation of the microbiological parameters of the sediment and water samples. Genotoxicity monitoring, performed by the comet assay on hemocytes of mussels Sinanodonta woodiana, indicated a significant increase of DNA damage in mussels collected from the studied sites compared with the control group.Projekat ministarstva br. 173025 i br. 4300

Ispitivanje antivirusne aktivnosti ekstrakata žalfije Salvia officinalis L. (Lamiaceae)

In the present study, we examined cytotoxicity and extracellular and intracellular antiviral activity of frac­tionated extracts of wild and cultivated sage Salvia officinalis L. (Lamiaceae) in vitro using the WISH-VSV model system. Extracts were obtained by fractionating depigmented ethanol extracts of sage plants with supercritical CO2 at different pressures. Cytotoxicity was determined by examining cellular morphology in situ with the aid of a colorimetric micromethod and by cell staining with trypan blue. The fraction of distilled cultivated sage obtained at CO2 pressure of 300 bars and temperature of 60°C (149/3) was the most cytotoxic, with CTD10 44 μg/ml. That of non-distilled cultivated sage obtained at CO2 pressure of 500 bars and temperature of 100°C (144/5) was the least toxic (CTD10 199 μg/ml). Moreover, 144/5 had an antiviral effect at the intracellular level: when added 5 hours before VSV infection, it caused 100% reduction of CPE at concentrations of 99.5 and 199.0 μg/ml; when added after virus penetration had occurred, the same concentrations caused 35 and 60% reduction, respectively. The obtained results indicate that antiviral activity of 144/5 involves inhibition of the early steps of the virus infective cycle without a direct virucidal effect. Abbreviations: WISH - human amnion epithelial cells, VSV - vesicular stomatitis virus, HSV - herpes simplex virus, CPE - cytopathic effect, IS - selectivity index, TCID50 - tissue culture infective dose, CTD10 - 10% cytotoxic concentrations.U radu je ispitivana antiviralna aktivnost različito frakcionisanih ekstrakata divlje i gajene žalfije Salvia officinalis L. (Lamiaceae) u in vitro uslovima koristeći WISH-VSV model sistem. Ekstrakti su dobijeni frakcionisanjem depigmentisanog etanolnog biljnog ekstrakta pod različitim pritiskom CO2. Citotoksičnost je određivana praćenjem ćelijske morfologije in situ, i bojenjem ćelija sa tripan plavim. Frakcija gajene žalfije dobijena na CO2 pritisku od 300 bara i temperaturi od 60°C (149/3) je pokazala najveću citotoksičnost (CTD10 44 μg/ml). Frakcija nedestilisane gajene žalfije dobijena na CO2 pritisku od 500 bara i temperaturi od 100°C (144/5) je pokazala najmanju toksičnost (CTD10 199 μg/ml). Takođe, frakcija 144/5 je pokazala i antiviralni efekat na intracelularnom nivou: kada se ćelije tretiraju 5 sati pre VSV infekcije, redukcija CPE je bila 100% na koncentraciji od 99.5 i 199.0 μg/ml; kada se ćelije tretiraju posle ulaska virusa u ćeliju na istim koncentarcijama redukcija CPE iz­nosi 35% odnosno 60%. Dobijeni rezultati ukazuju da frakcija 144/5 ima antiviralnu aktivnost koja se ostvaruje krozinhibiciju ranih stupnjeva viralne infekcije bezdirektnog virucidalnog efekta

Geographical and biological analysis of the water quality of Moravica spring in the Sokobanjska Moravica drainage basin, Serbia

In this work we performed a geographical analysis of the Moravica spring locality in the Sokobanjska Moravica drainage basin in Serbia, as well as an analysis of the physical, chemical, and biological parameters of the water during a one-year period. The basic sanitary characteristics and physical, chemical, and biological parameters, necessary for understanding locality conditions, were studied, and the saprobity index, class of quality, O/H index, degree of saprobity, degree of trophicity, and category based on the phosphatase activity index (PAI) were determined. Our results point to the need for continual monitoring of the water quality in the spring locality

Geographical and biological analysis of the water quality of Moravica spring in the Sokobanjska Moravica drainage basin, Serbia

In this work we performed a geographical analysis of the Moravica spring locality in the Sokobanjska Moravica drainage basin in Serbia, as well as an analysis of the physical, chemical, and biological parameters of the water during a one-year period. The basic sanitary characteristics and physical, chemical, and biological parameters, necessary for understanding locality conditions, were studied, and the saprobity index, class of quality, O/H index, degree of saprobity, degree of trophicity, and category based on the phosphatase activity index (PAI) were determined. Our results point to the need for continual monitoring of the water quality in the spring locality

Protective effect of Gentiana lutea root and leaf extracts against heterocyclic aromatic amines IQ and PhIP produced in thermally processed meat

During high-temperature cooking of protein rich foods, especially meat and fish, heterocyclic aromatic amines can be formed. These amines are a class of potent mutagens that can cause alterations in the structure of DNA and chromosomes. In recent decades, research has been focused on investigating plants and their phytochemicals as potential antimutagens. The aim of this study was to examine the anti-genotoxic effect of methanolic root and leaf extracts of Gentiana lutea against the food mutagens 2-amino-3-methylimidazo[4,5-f]quinoline (IQ) and 2-amino-1-methyl-6-phenylimidazo[4,5-b]pyridine (PhIP) produced in thermally processed meat. To determine the protective potential of extracts, the alkaline comet assay was applied. The results obtained indicated strong anti-genotoxic effect of both extracts against the tested mutagens. The highest inhibition of IQ-induced genotoxicity was recorded for leaf extract (72%). Regarding PhiP, root extract achieved inhibition of 80% of DNA damage, so was more successful than leaf extract. The data obtained in this study stimulates further research of G. lutea extracts and its constituents as potential dietary supplements in improving human health. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.Conference of 60th International Meat Industry Conference, MEATCON 2019 ; Conference Date: 22-25 September 2019; Conference Code:15329

Seasonal variations of microbiological parameters of water quality of the Velika Morava river Serbia

In this study, we investigated the level of sanitary pollution and organic contamination of the Velika Morava River, the largest river in central Serbia. Samples of water for microbiological analysis were collected at 5 sites, monthly, from April 2010 to February 2011. Sanitary analysis, i.e. enumeration of total and fecal coliforms and intestinal enterococci, indicated moderate to critical fecal contamination, while organic load assessment (oligotroph to heterotroph ratio, index of phosphatase activity) revealed the category of moderately polluted water. We also investigated seasonal variations of these groups of bacteria and the factors that could contribute to these differences. Our results showed that the micro- biological quality of the water in the Velika Morava River during different seasons is affected by numerous factors such as unequal loading of wastewaters, solar irradiation, and relations of flow/dilution and rainfall/runoff. [Acknowledgments. This study was financially supported by the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Serbia: projects No 173025, No 177045 and No 043002.