Some pharmacological studies on Vicia faba cotyledons grown in Egypt

The pharmacological properties of the cotyledons ofVicia faba Rebaya 40, which is a local selection crop grown in Egypt, have been investigated.The daily intraperitoneal administration of the alcoholic extract for about one month, affecting the blood picture and caused some clinical symptoms e.g. pale mucous membranes, loose bowels, loss of appetite and drowsiness. Post-mortem examination showed flabby heart muscles and engorgement of the heart with blood. Animals showed also intestinal congestion, peritonitis and congested internal organs.The M.L.D. and L.D.₅₀ were estimated in mice and rats. The alcoholic extract of the cotyledons has a stimulant action on the isolated mouse intestine, and uterus at different stages of sex cycle. The extract, in small doses, stimulates the isolated frog's heart, whereas, inhibition followed by stimulation was obtained with larger doses. It, moreover, raised the blood pressure after an initial drop specially when smaller doses were used, but larger doses, on the other hand, lowered it to an extent depending on the dose used.

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Zusammenfassung Die pharmakologischen Eigenschaften der Reservestoffe vonVicia faba L. Rebaya 40 Kotyledonen, eines selektiven Stammes in Ägypten, wurden untersucht. Die tägliche intraperitoneale Untersuchung der Wirkung des alkoholischen Extraktes während eines Monats ergab Beeinflussung des Blutbildes und das Auftreten einiger klinischer Symptome, z.B. fahle schleimige Membranen, flüssigen Stuhlgang, Appetitlosigkeit, Schläfrigkeit. Postmortale Untersuchung ergab schlaffe Herzmuskulatur und Überfüllung des Herzens mit Blut. Die Tiere zeigten auch intestinale Blutstauung, Peritonitis und Blutandrang in den inneren Organen. Das M.L.D. und L.D.₅₀ wurden bei Mäusen und Ratten geschätzt. Der alkoholische Extrakt der Reservestoffe besitzt stimulierende Wirkung auf die isolierten Mäuseeingeweide und auf den Uterus in verschiedenen Stadien des Geschlechtszyklus. Kleinere Dosen des Extraktes stimulieren das Froschherz, wohingegen auf Reizung mit stärkeren Dosen Hemmung erfolgte. Diese erhöhten außerdem den Blutdruck nach anfänglichem Abfall, besonders wenn schwächere Dosen angewendet wurden. Stärkere Dosen andererseits verringerten den Blutdruck, entsprechend den angewendeten Dosen.

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Résumé Les propriétés pharmacologiques des cotylédons duVicia faba Rebaya 40, qui est une culture loca LE EN Egypt, on été étudiées.L'administration intra peritonale d'un extrait alcoolique pendant un mois, a affecté la pression artérielle et a causé certains symptomes cliniques eg: pâleur de la membrane nuceuse, diarrheé, perte de l'appétit et sensation de vertige. l'examen post-morteum a révélé un relachement des muscles cardiaques et und congestion du coeur. Les animaux ont également révélé une congestion intestinale, une peritonite et une congestion des organes internes.La M.L.D. et LD₅₀ ont été estimeés sur des rats et des souris. L'extrait alcoolique de l'endosperme, a une action stimulante sur l'intestin isolé de la souris et de l'uterus à différents stages du cycle ovarien. L'extrait, en petites doses, stimule le coeur-isolé de la grenouille, tandis que de larges doses causent tout d'abord une diminution suivie par une stimulation du coeur de grenouille.Il élève la pression artérielle après une diminution initiale, lorsque de petites sont utiliseés, mais au contraire avec de larges doses, la pression artérielle diminue suivant la dose utilisée.

     

Efficacy of olive mill waste water and its derivatives in the suppression of crown gall disease of bitter almond

Olive mill waste water (OMW) and some of its indigenous bacterial strains were tested in vitro and in planta for their efficacy against crown gall disease caused by Agrobacterium tumefaciens. OMW and polyphenols displayed a high level of antibacterial activity, however the volatile fraction was less efficient as only a bacteriostatic effect was observed. In pot experiments, the percentage of bitter almond rootstock showing symptoms of crown gall was significantly reduced with the dosage rate of OMW 1% as compared to the control (highly natural infected soil treated with water). Five indigenous bacterial strains isolated from OMW exhibited an antagonistic effect against the bacterium. Based on the gene 16S rRNA sequence analysis, one isolate showed 99.2% similarity to known sequences of Bacillus subtilis, one isolate demonstrated high percentage similarities (99.3%) to the genera Bacillus pumilis, and two isolates were associated with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia and Pseudomonas putida 100% and 99.6% similarities respectively. Among these bacteria, the strain B1 proved efficient against the soil borne pathogen in vitro and pot experiments. Our study in controlled conditions suggested that the addition of OMW to soil exerts significant disease suppressiveness against A. tumefaciens. Thabet Yangui and Ali Rhouma contributed equally to this work and are regarded as joint first authors.     

Extracts from Marine Macroalgae and Opuntia ficus-indica Cladodes Enhance Halotolerance and Enzymatic Potential of Diazotrophic Rhizobacteria and Their Impact on Wheat Germination Under Salt Stress

Soil salinity, which affects more than 6% of the earth’s land surface and more than 20% of its irrigated areas, is a major threat to agriculture. Diazotrophic bacteria are among the functional groups of soil microbiota that are threatened by this abiotic stress, as their activity is mostly inhibited by salt stress. Seventy bacterial strains with distinct characteristics were isolated from soils by using N-free Jensen’s selective medium. Based on their ability to produce metabolites of agricultural interest, four strains were selected and identified as Flavobacterium johnsoniae, Pseudomonas putida, Achromobacter xylosoxidans, and Azotobacter chroococcum. The selected strains were grown at different NaCl concentrations (0–600 mmol L~(-1) in N-free broth and 0–2 000 mmol L~(-1) in Luria-Bertani medium) in the presence and absence of glycine betaine (GB), aqueous and hydro-alcoholic extracts from marine macroalgae, Ulva lactuca and Enteromorpha intestinalis, and Opuntia ficus-indica cladodes. The selected bacterial strains, GB, and the aforementioned extracts were tested for their ability to promote the germination of wheat (Triticum durum) seeds at 0–300 mmol L~(-1) NaCl. Compared with the results obtained with the synthetic osmoprotectant GB, the extracts from O. ficus-indica, U. lactuca, and E. intestinalis significantly promoted bacterial growth and seed germination under salt stress.     

Effects of growing region and maturity stages on oil yield and fatty acid composition of coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) fruit

Changes on oil yield and fatty acid profiles were studied during maturation of coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.) fruits cultivated in Menzel Temime and Oued Beja, Tunisia. Oil and petroselinic acid biosynthesis proceeded at a steady rate up to 16 DAF in Oued Beja and in 33 DAF in Menzel Temime. The first results show that a rapid oil accumulation started at newly formed fruits and continued until their full maturity. During fruit maturation, fatty acid profiles varied significantly among the growing regions and stages of maturity. Petroselinic acid had the highest amount at the 16th and the 33th DAF, in Oued Beja and Menzel Temime, respectively. In Oued Beja, at full maturity, the main fatty acids were petroselinic acid (80.90 ± 9.45%), followed by oleic (14.79 ± 2.25%), palmitic (3.50 ± 0.65%) and stearic (0.49 ± 0.09%) acids. Fatty acid profile of fruits cultivated in Menzel Temime showed that in fully ripe fruit, petroselinic acid is the main compound (80.86 ± 7.23%) followed by oleic (14.83 ± 2.05%), palmitic (3.27 ± 3.12%) and stearic (0.31 ± 0.05%) acids. In both growing region, fruit development resulted mainly in an increase of petroselinic acid and a decrease of palmitic acid. Saturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids decreased significantly and monounsaturated fatty acids increased during maturation of fruit. Oil composition at the first four stages of maturity has a healthy and nutritionally value and the last stages were with important economic and industrial applications. Coriander fruit is potentially an important source of petroselinic which have numerous industrial applications.     

Resistance of Medicago truncatula to salt stress is related to glutamine synthetase activity and sodium sequestration

The response to salinity may largely vary not only among species but even cultivars or lines of the same species. Knowledge of the reasons underlying these differential responses can be critical in breeding programs to obtain lines with enhanced performance under salinity. In this work, the responses to salt stress of three Medicago truncatula lines with contrasting salt resistance, TN6.18 (sensitive), Jemalong (reference line), and TN8.20 (resistant), have been assessed by analyzing a full array of nodule parameters (water relations, carbohydrates, ion concentrations, and enzyme activities). The aim of this work was to look for the most important criteria conferring resistance to the M. truncatula‐Sinorhizobium symbiosis under salinity. The resistance of M. truncatula to salt stress was related to nodule osmotic adjustment due to both sequestration of sodium and accumulation of soluble carbohydrates and free amino acids following protein degradation, together with an adequate nitrogen metabolism due to maintaining relatively high glutamine synthetase activity (GS) and stimulation of NADH‐dependent glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH). Glutamine synthetase activity differed clearly between the three studied lines. Thus, it may have a key role in the resistance of Medicago truncatula to salt stress.