Mesquite gum (Prosopis gum): Structure, properties & applications - A review

Extracellular Self- and Non-Self DNA Involved in Damage Recognition in the Mistletoe Parasitism of Mesquite Trees

Psittacanthus calyculatus parasitizes mesquite trees through a specialized structure called a haustorium, which, in the intrusive process, can cause cellular damage in the host tree and release DAMPs, such as ATP, sugars, RNA, and DNA. These are highly conserved molecules that primarily function as signals that trigger and activate the defense responses. In the present study, we generate extracellular DNA (exDNA) from mesquite (P. laevigata) tree leaves (self-exDNA) and P. calyculatus (non-self exDNA) mistletoe as DAMP sources to examine mesquite trees' capacity to identify specific self or non-self exDNA. We determined that mesquite trees perceive self- and non-self exDNA with the synthesis of O2•-, H2O2, flavonoids, ROS-enzymes system, MAPKs activation, spatial concentrations of JA, SA, ABA, and CKs, and auxins. Our data indicate that self and non-self exDNA application differs in oxidative burst, JA signaling, MAPK gene expression, and scavenger systems. This is the first study to examine the molecular biochemistry effects in a host tree using exDNA sources derived from a mistletoe.

Influence of Wheat-Mesquite (Prosopis L.) Composite Flour on Dough Rheology and Quality of Bread

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of wheat-mesquite composite flour on the rheology of dough and the quality of bread. The farinographic analysis showed a decrease in the development time and stability of the dough with an increase in the mixing tolerance index. The share of mesquite flour increased the value of loss and storage moduli and reduced the dough’s susceptibility to stress. The mesquite flour addition increased the bread volume by about 17% and the number of large pores >5 mm. The brightness of the crumb containing mesquite flour decreased from 75.3 to 58.6 and the proportion of yellow colour increased from 19.9 to 26.4 in relation to the control bread. The bread with mesquite flour had a significantly softer crumb during storage in comparison with wheat bread, indicating a reduction in the staling. These observations were also confirmed by lowering the disintegration enthalpy of the retrograded amylopectin from 3.33 J/g for the control sample to 1.95 J/g for the bread containing 10% of mesquite flour.

Current Insights into Phytochemistry, Nutritional, and Pharmacological Properties of Prosopis Plants

Prosopis is a regional cash crop that is widely grown in arid, semiarid, tropical, and subtropical areas. Compared with other legume plants, Prosopis is underutilized and has great potentialities. Prosopis not only is a good source of timber, construction, fencing material, and gum, but also can be applied for food, beverage, feed, and medicine. Prosopis contains numerous phytochemical constituents, including carbohydrates, proteins, fatty acids, minerals, and vitamins, while varieties of phenolic compounds have also been identified from different parts of Prosopis. Flavonoids (especially C-glycosyl flavonoids), tannins, catechin, 4′-O-methyl-gallocatechin, mesquitol, and quercetin O-glycosides are significant phenolic contents in Prosopis. Various extracts of Prosopis displayed a wide range of biological properties, such as antioxidant, antihyperglycemic, antibacterial, anthelmintic, antitumor, and anticancer. Additionally, Prosopis has the potential to be an ideal diet that contains abundant dietary fiber, minerals, galactomannans, and low-fat content. However, the bioactivity and pharmacological properties associated with Prosopis were influenced by the bioavailability of phytochemicals, various antinutritional compounds, and the interactions of protein and phenolic compounds. The bioavailability of Prosopis is mainly affected by phenolic contents, especially catechin. The antinutritional compounds negatively affect the nutritional qualities of Prosopis, which can be prevented by heating. The protein-phenolic compound interactions can help the human body to absorb quercetin from Prosopis. This literature review aimed to provide systematic information on the physical, biochemical, pharmacological, and nutritional properties and potential applications of Prosopis.

A strategy for the synthesis of low-molecular-weight welan gum by eliminating capsule form of Sphingomonas strains

Welan gum is widely used in food, concrete additives, and oil recovery. Here we changed the capsule form of Sphingomonas strains by knocked out the sortase gene (srtW). The obtained welan gum was mainly composed of mannose, glucose, rhamnose, and glucuronic acid at a molar ratio of 4.0:5.8:1.6:1, respectively. Meanwhile, the molecular weight of welan gum decreased sharply (about 68 kDa). Moreover, the low molecular weight (LMW) welan gum was characterized by FT-IR and NMR spectroscopy. The rheological results revealed that the LMW welan gum solution is a pseudoplastic fluid with a lower apparent viscosity. Furthermore, the oscillation test illustrated stable dynamic viscoelasticity within the temperature range of 5-68 °C and frequency range of 0.01-15 rad/s. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of LMW welan gum production and characterization. These results provide references for LMW welan gum applications, and likely applicable for other biopolymers production.

Surface Morphology and Physicochemical Characterization of Thermostable Moringa Gum: A Potential Pharmaceutical Excipient

An efficient protocol for physico-chemical characterization of gum exudates collected from the drumstick tree (Moringa oleifera Lam.) has been reported in the present study. Extraction of gum metabolites was done using a series of water, alcohol, acid, and alkali solvent systems. The gum was sparingly soluble in water at room temperature and formed a colloidal solution. Solubility of the gum gradually increased in the solvent gradient (80% ethanol, deionized water, 0.05 M HCl, and 0.05 M NaOH) at 90 °C. Further, electron microscopy revealed that the acetyl group is essential in maintaining the structural integrity, and deacetylation of gum resulted in formation of a mesh of scattered and fibrous particles. Treatment of gum with deionized water resulted in development of a hydrocolloidal matrix with a pore size of 0.5 μm, which upon deacetylation was reduced up to 0.2 μm. The polymer was amorphous in nature and showed maximum thermal stability in ethanol. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry of the gum polymer revealed that carbohydrate derivatives constituted its major part (>75%). Maximum carbohydrate concentration was obtained in the ethanol soluble fraction, along with fatty acids (10%) and secondary metabolites (9%). The results provided very first confirmation of the hydrocolloidal properties and thermostability of the gum exudates obtained from the drumstick tree, which can further be used to develop an eco-friendly and nontoxic bioligand.