Bioactive Compounds in Wild Asteraceae Edible Plants Consumed in the Mediterranean Diet

Plant Foods for Human Nutrition - Three wild edible plant species belonging to the Asteraceae family, Crepis vesicaria L. (s.l.), Sonchus asper (L.) Hill s.l., and Sonchus oleraceus L., usually...     

The impact of external knowledge sourcing on innovation outcomes in rural and urban businesses in the U.S.

This paper examines the relationship between external knowledge sourcing and a diverse set of innovation outcomes in rural and urban establishments in the U.S. Existing studies in the broader knowledge management literature principally examine firms in a single industry, overwhelmingly rely on patent data to proxy for innovation, and cannot account for the innovations of businesses in rural American markets. By addressing these limitations using data from the 2014 Rural Establishment Innovation Survey of the USDA's Economic Research Service, this research provides novel insights into how externally acquired knowledge by American establishments may support innovation. Results of the analysis suggest that external knowledge sourcing may specifically promote product, process, and green innovation in U.S. firms. While collective results when external sources of information are divided by industry orientation fail to show that sources outside of a firm's industry play a dominant role in the innovation processes of American establishments in general, findings provide evidence for an outsized impact of these relationships within rural establishments specifically and suggest that external knowledge sourcing from extra‐industry organizations is most critical for promoting successful innovation in rural firms. Results additionally indicate that knowledge sourcing from non‐local organizations may be more important for supporting innovation in rural compared to urban markets.     

Genome-wide in silico analysis of SOD genes in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology - Superoxide dismutases (SODs) are a group of enzymes that play essential roles in catalyzing the dismutation of superoxide radicals to protect cells from...     

Identification,partial characterization,and use of grey mullet ( Mugil cephalus ) vitellogenins for the development of ELISA and biosensor immunoassays

Vitellogenin (Vtg) has proven to be a sensitive and simple biomarker in determining sex, sexual maturity, and xenoestrogenic effects in fish. Thus, our investigation has been focused on identification, partial characterization, and quantification of grey mullet (Mugil cephalus) Vtg through the use of a variety of biochemical and immunological analytical techniques. Mullet is considered both a promising aquaculture candidate and an important species for improving sediment quality in polyculture systems. In the first part of this work, grey mullet Vtg was purified from plasma of 17β-estradiol (E2)-induced male fish by a one-step chromatographic protocol, and partially characterized. Specific polyclonal antibodies were then raised against the mullet Vtg, and both an indirect ELISA and an optical immunosensor were set up and validated to quantify plasma Vtg. The indirect ELISA and the optical immunosensor assay developed showed linear measuring in the range 56.8–1047.1 ng mL−1 and 70–739 ng mL−1 Vtg concentrations in standard solutions, respectively. The results obtained suggest that the indirect ELISA allows Vtg detection over a wide dynamic range, thus resulting more suitable for rapid and sensitive sample screening. Therefore, we suggest that the direct immunosensor is a promising tool which needs more investigation to improve the sensitivity.     

Marine Anticancer Agents: An Overview with a Particular Focus on Their Chemical Classes

The marine environment is a rich source of biologically active molecules for the treatment of human diseases, especially cancer. The adaptation to unique environmental conditions led marine organisms to evolve different pathways than their terrestrial counterparts, thus producing unique chemicals with a broad diversity and complexity. So far, more than 36,000 compounds have been isolated from marine micro- and macro-organisms including but not limited to fungi, bacteria, microalgae, macroalgae, sponges, corals, mollusks and tunicates, with hundreds of new marine natural products (MNPs) being discovered every year. Marine-based pharmaceuticals have started to impact modern pharmacology and different anti-cancer drugs derived from marine compounds have been approved for clinical use, such as: cytarabine, vidarabine, nelarabine (prodrug of ara-G), fludarabine phosphate (pro-drug of ara-A), trabectedin, eribulin mesylate, brentuximab vedotin, polatuzumab vedotin, enfortumab vedotin, belantamab mafodotin, plitidepsin, and lurbinectedin. This review focuses on the bioactive molecules derived from the marine environment with anticancer activity, discussing their families, origin, structural features and therapeutic use.     

Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of Momordica charantia seed essential oil

The essential oil obtained from the seeds of Momordica charantia was analyzed by GC/MS. Twenty-five components, representing 90.9% of the oil, were identified. The main constituents were trans-nerolidol, apiole, cis-dihydrocarveol and germacrene D. Furthermore, the oil was tested for its antibacterial and antifungal activities. Staphylococcus aureus was found to be the most sensitive microorganism with MIC values <500 microg/ml.     

A new acylated quercetin glycoside and other secondary metabolites from Helleborus foetidus

A new acylated flavonol glycoside, quercetin 3-O-(2-trans-caffeoyl)-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl-(1-->2)-beta-D-glucopyranoside (1), together with the known 25R,26-[(beta-D-glucopyranosyl)oxy]-22alpha-hydroxy-5beta-furostan-3-beta-yl O-alpha-l-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->4)-beta-D-glucopyranoside (2), anemonin (3), beta-D-glucosyl-p-hydroxyphenylethyl alcohol (4), and 1-beta-O-caffeoyl-D-glucose (5) were isolated from Helleborus foetidus leaves and identified on the basis of detailed spectral analysis.     

A new kaurane diterpene dimer from Parinari campestris

A new kaurane diterpene dimer, 15-oxozoapatlin-13alpha-yl-10'alpha,16'alpha-dihydroxy-9'alpha-methyl-20'-nor-kauran-19'-oic acid gamma-lactone-17'-oate (1), together with the known 13-hydroxy-15-oxozoapatlin (2), 10alpha,13alpha,16alpha,17-tetrahydroxy-9alpha-methyl-15-oxo-20-nor-kauran-19-oic acid gamma-lactone (3), 2alpha,10alpha,13alpha,16alpha,17-pentahydroxy-9alpha-methyl-15-oxo-20-nor-kauran-19-oic acid (19,10)-lactone (4), 3alpha,10alpha,13alpha,16alpha,17-pentahydroxy-9alpha-methyl-15-oxo-20-nor-kauran-19-oic acid gamma-lactone (5), and 1beta,16alpha,17-trihydroxy-ent-kaurane (6) were isolated from the leaves of Parinari campestris and identified on the basis of detailed spectral analysis, including 2D NMR spectrometry and ESI-MS.