Karanjin

Assessment of biorational larvicides and botanical oils against Culex quinquefasciatus Say (Diptera: Culicidae) larvae in laboratory conditions

Mosquitoes are known vectors that transmit deadly diseases to millions of people across the globe. The reliance on synthetic insecticides has been the sole way to combat mosquito vectors for decades. In recent years, the extensive use of conventional insecticides in mosquito suppression has led to significant pesticide resistance and serious human health hazards. In this light, investigating the potential application of biorational compounds for vector management has drawn significant attention. We, hereby, evaluated the efficacy of three microbial derivative biorational insecticides, abamectin, spinosad, and buprofezin, and two botanical oils, neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss) and karanja oil (Pongamia pinnata Linn.) against the Culex quinquefasciatus under laboratory conditions. The fourth-instar C. quinquefasciatus larvae were exposed to different concentrations of the selected larvicides and lethality was estimated based on LC50 and LT50 with Probit analysis. All larvicides showed concentration-dependent significant effects on survival and demonstrated larvicidal activity against C. quinquefasciatus larvae. However, abamectin exerted the highest toxicity (LC50 = 10.36 ppm), exhibited statistically significant effects on C. quinquefasciatus larval mortality, followed by spinosad (LC50 = 21.32 ppm) and buprofezin (LC50 = 56.34 ppm). Abamectin caused larval mortality ranged from 30.00 to 53.33 % and 53.00-70.00 % at 06 and 07 h after treatment (HAT), respectively. In the case of botanicals, karanja oil (LC50 = 216.61 ppm) was more lethal (more than 1.5 times) and had a shorter lethal time than neem oil (LC50 = 330.93 ppm) and showed a classic pattern of relationship between concentrations and mortality over time. Overall, the present study highlighted the potential of deploying new generation biorational pesticides and botanicals in mosquito vector control programs.

Mushroom tyrosinase enzyme catalysis: synthesis of larvicidal active geranylacetone derivatives against Culex quinquesfasciatus and molecular docking studies

The grindstone process, which uses tyrosinase as a catalyst, was used to create analogues of geranylacetone. Tyrosinase was used to prepare the Mannich base under favourable reaction conditions, resulting in a high yield. All synthesized compounds were characterized using FTIR, Nuclear magnetic resonance, and mass spectral analyses. The active geranylacetone derivatives (1a-l) were investigated for larvicidal activity against Culex quinquefasciatus; compound 1b (LD50:20.7 μg/mL) was noticeably more effective than geranylacetone (LD50: >100 μg/mL) and permethrin (LD50: 24.4 μg/mL) lead compounds because of their ability to kill larvae and use them as pesticides. All compounds (1a-1l) were found to be low toxic, whereas compounds 1b, 1d, and 1k were screened for antifeedant screening of non -aquatic target for the toxicity measurement against marine fish Oreochromis mossambicus at 100 μg/mL caused 0% mortality in within 24 h. Molecular docking studies of synthesised compound 1b and permethrin docked with 3OGN, compound 1b demonstrated a greater binding affinity (-9.6 kcal/mol) compared to permethrin (-10.5 kcal/mol). According to these results, the newly synthesised geranylacetone derivatives can serve as lead molecules of larvicides agents.

The cytotoxicity of karanjin toward breast cancer cells is involved in the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway

Karanjin is a bioactive furanoflavonoid with various pharmacological activities including anticancer activities. However, the effect and the related mechanism of karanjin in breast cancer (BC) have not been revealed. The potential targets of karanjin and BC were predicted using SwissTargetPrediction and GeneCards databases, respectively. The overlapping targets between karanjin and BC were identified using the Venn diagram. DAVID database was used for the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment pathway analysis. Cell viability, proliferation, and apoptosis were examined by MTT (3-(4, 5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2, 5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide), EdU (5-ethynyl-2'-deoxyuridine) incorporation, and TUNEL (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP digoxigenin nick-end labeling) assays, respectively. The protein levels were measured by western blot analysis. We screened out 28 overlapping targets between karanjin and BC. KEGG analysis showed that the targets of karanjin in BC were associated with the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/protein kinase B (Akt) pathway. Karanjin inhibited cell viability and impeded the proliferative ability of BC cells. Moreover, karanjin treatment induced apoptosis in BC cells. Additionally, karanjin treatment blocked the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway and activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway reversed the antitumor effect of karanjin on BC cells. In conclusion, karanjin exerted antitumor activity in BC cells by regulating the PI3K/Akt signaling pathway.

Genome sequencing and analysis uncover the regulatory elements involved in the development and oil biosynthesis of Pongamia pinnata (L.) - A potential biodiesel feedstock

Due to rapid industrialization, the consumption of petro-products has increased, while fossil fuel resources have been gradually depleted. There has been a resurgence of interest in plant-derived biofuels as a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels for the purpose of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Pongamia pinnata L., which is also known as Millettia pinnata is an oil-yielding, leguminous tree with a large and complex genome. Despite its multiple industrial applications, this orphan tree species has inconsistent yields and a limited understanding of its functional genomics. We assessed physiological and morphological characteristics of five high-yielding pongamia accessions and deduced important yield descriptors. Furthermore, we sequenced the genome of this potential biofuel feedstock using Illumina HiSeq, NextSeq, and MiSeq platforms to generate paired-end reads. Around 173 million processed reads amounting to 65.2 Gb were assembled into a 685 Mb genome, with a gap rate of 0.02%. The sequenced scaffolds were used to identify 30,000 gene models, 406,385 Simple-Sequence-Repeat (SSR) markers, and 43.6% of repetitive sequences. We further analyzed the structural information of genes belonging to certain key metabolic pathways, including lipid metabolism, photosynthesis, circadian rhythms, plant-pathogen interactions, and karanjin biosynthesis, all of which are commercially significant for pongamia. A total of 2,219 scaffolds corresponding to 29 transcription factor families provided valuable information about gene regulation in pongamia. Similarity studies and phylogenetic analysis revealed a monophyletic group of Fabaceae members wherein pongamia out-grouped from Glycine max and Cajanus cajan, revealing its unique ability to synthesize oil for biodiesel. This study is the first step toward completing the genome sequence of this imminent biofuel tree species. Further attempts at re-sequencing with different read chemistry will certainly improve the genetic resources at the chromosome level and accelerate the molecular breeding programs.

Network analysis for elucidating the mechanisms of Shenfu injection in preventing and treating COVID-19 combined with heart failure

Background

The emergence of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has led to millions of infections and is exerting an unprecedented impact on society and economies worldwide. The evidence showed that heart failure (HF) is a clinical syndrome that could be encountered at different stages during the progression of COVID-19. Shenfu injection (SFI), a traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) formula has been widely used for heart failure therapy in China and was suggested to treat critical COVID-19 cases based on the guideline for diagnosis and treatment of COVID-19 (the 7th version) issued by National Health Commission of the People's Republic of China. However, the active components, potential targets, related pathways, and underlying pharmacology mechanism of SFI against COVID-19 combined with HF remain vague.

Objective

To investigate the effectiveness and possible pharmacological mechanism of SFI for the prevention and treatment of COVID-19 combined with HF.

Methods

In the current study, a network analysis approach integrating active compound screening (drug-likeness, lipophilicity, and aqueous solubility models), target fishing (Traditional Chinese Medicine Systems Pharmacology, fingerprint-based Similarity Ensemble Approach, and PharmMapper databases), compound-target-disease network construction (Cytoscape software), protein-protein interaction network construction (STRING and Cytoscape software), biological process analysis (STRING and Cytoscape plug-in Clue GO) and pathway analysis (Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes pathway enrichment analysis) was developed to decipher the active ingredients, potential targets, relevant pathways, and the therapeutic mechanisms of SFI for preventing and treating COVID-19 combined with HF.

Results

Finally, 20 active compounds (DL ≥ 0.18, 1≤Alog P ≤ 5, and −5≤LogS ≤ −1) and 164 relevant targets of SFI were identified related to the development of COVID-19 combined with HF, which were mainly involved in three biological processes including metabolic, hemostasis, and cytokine signaling in immune system. The C-T-D network and reactome pathway analysis indicated that SFI probably regulated the pathological processes of heart failure, respiratory failure, lung injury, and inflammatory response in patients with COVID-19 combined with HF through acting on several targets and pathways. Moreover, the venn diagram was used to identify 54 overlapped targets of SFI, COVID-19, and HF. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis showed that 54 overlapped targets were highly enriched to several COVID-19 and HF related pathways, such as IL-17 signaling pathway, Th17 cell differentiation, and NF-kappa B signaling pathway.

Conclusions

A comprehensive network analysis approach framework was developed to systematically elucidate the potential pharmacological mechanism of SFI for the prevention and treatment of SFI against COVID-19 combined with HF. The current study may not only provide in-depth understanding of the pharmacological mechanisms of SFI, but also a scientific basis for the application of SFI against COVID-19 combined with HF.

Global transcriptome analysis reveals partial estrogen-like effects of karanjin in MCF-7 breast cancer cells

Karanjin, an abundantly occurring furanoflavonoid in edible and non-edible legumes, exerts diverse biological effects in vivo, and in vitro. Its potential as an anticancer agent is gaining traction following recent demonstrations of its anti-proliferative, cell cycle inhibitory, and pro-apoptotic effects. However, the genomic correlates of these activities are not known. In the present study we delineated the transcriptomic footprint of 10 μM karanjin in MCF-7 breast cancer cells, using next generation sequencing technology (RNA-seq). We show that karanjin-modulated gene-expression repertoire is enriched in several hallmark gene sets, which include early estrogen-response, and G2/M checkpoint genes. Genes modulated by karanjin overlapped with those modulated by 1 nM 17β-estradiol (E2), or 1 μM tamoxifen. The results suggest partial estrogen-like activity of karanjin, thereby presenting a caveat to its anticancer potential. Further investigations into its mechanisms of action are warranted to ascertain the true potential of karanjin in anticancer, or endocrine therapy.

Therapeutic importance and pharmacological activities of karanjin in the medicine for the treatment of Human disorders: A review through scientific data analysis

Backgrounds:

Plant and derived herbal drugs have been used in the traditional system of medicine for the treatment of various forms of human health complications since a very early age. Commercial products prepared from natural herbs have been always valuable for the society in the form of health supplement to medicament. In the ancient time, herbal products were mainly prepared from plants and their derived phytochemical. Plants contain a rich source of pure phytochemical called secondary metabolite and examples are flavonoids, glycosides, tannins and terpenoids etc. Plants and their parts including fruits, flowers, vegetables etc. are the best source of Flavonoid class phytochemicals.

Methods:

Present work summarized the scientific information of karanjin for their health beneficial aspects and pharmacological activities including its analytical aspects. In the present investigation, scientific data of karanjin have been collected from various scientific databases such as Google, Goggle Scholar, Science Direct and PubMed and analyzed to know the health beneficial aspects of karanjin in the medicine. Further pharmacological activity data has been collected and analyzed in the present work to know their biological potential in the medicine. Analytical methods used for the separation, isolation, and identification of karanjin for the standardization of different natural products have been also discussed in the present work.

Results:

Scientific data analysis signified the biological importance of Flavonoid class phytochemicals in the medicine as they are well known for their anti-ischemic, vasodilatory, anti-bacterial, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant, anti-viral, and anti-cancer activities. Scientific data analysis revealed the presences of karanjin in numerous medicinal plants such as Fordia cauliflora, Lonchocarpus latifolius, Millettia pinnata, Millettia pubinervis, Pongamia pinnata, and Tephrosia purpurea. Pharmacological activity data revealed the biological potential of karanjin against cancerous disorders, glucose metabolism abnormalities, gastrointestinal disorders, arthritis, inflammatory disorders, colitis, psoriasis and brain related disorders. However, analytical data signified the importance of RP-HPLC, TLC, HPTLC, UPLC-ESI-MS/MS and HSCCC techniques in the medicine for the quantification of karanjin in different samples.

Conclusion:

Presented information about karanjin in this review paper will be beneficial to the scientific peoples of the world to know the health beneficial aspects of karanjin in the medicine.

Quantification and Optimization of Ethanolic Extract Containing the Bioactive Flavonoids from Millettia pulchra Radix

Millettia pulchra is traditionally used for treating diseases, including joint pain, fever, anemia, and allergies. It is also a potential resource of natural flavonoid derivatives, which represents major constituents of this plant. This study aimed to isolate the major compounds from M. pulchra radix, develop and validate the HPLC-PDA method to determine their contents, and optimize its extraction. Four major flavonoid derivatives (karanjin, lanceolatin B, 2”,2”-dimethylpyrano-[5″,6″:7,8]-flavone, and pongamol) were isolated using silica gel column chromatography, crystallization techniques in large amounts with high purities (>95%). A simple, accurate high-performance liquid chromatography–photodiode array (HPLC–PDA) detection method has been developed and validated with significantly statistical impacts according to International Conference on Harmonization (ICH) guidelines. The Response Surface Methodology (RSM), Artificial Neural Network (ANN) models were employed to predictive performance and optimization of the extraction process. The optimized conditions for the extraction of major flavonoids were: extraction time (twice), solvent/material ratio (9.5), and ethanol concentration (72.5%). Our research suggests an effective method, which will be helpful for quality control in the pharmaceutical development of this species.