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Kharwar RN, Sharma VK, Mishra A, Kumar J, Singh DK, Verma SK, Gond SK, Kumar A, Kaushik N, Revuru B, Kusari S. Harnessing the Phytotherapeutic Treasure Troves of the Ancient Medicinal Plant Azadirachta indica (Neem) and Associated Endophytic Microorganisms. PLANTA MEDICA 2020; 86:906-940. [PMID: 32126583 DOI: 10.1055/a-1107-9370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Azadirachta indica, commonly known as neem, is an evergreen tree of the tropics and sub-tropics native to the Indian subcontinent with demonstrated ethnomedicinal value and importance in agriculture as well as in the pharmaceutical industry. This ancient medicinal tree, often called the "wonder tree", is regarded as a chemical factory of diverse and complex compounds with a plethora of structural scaffolds that is very difficult to mimic by chemical synthesis. Such multifaceted chemical diversity leads to a fantastic repertoire of functional traits, encompassing a wide variety of biological activity and unique modes of action against specific and generalist pathogens and pests. Until now, more than 400 compounds have been isolated from different parts of neem including important bioactive secondary metabolites such as azadirachtin, nimbidin, nimbin, nimbolide, gedunin, and many more. In addition to its insecticidal property, the plant is also known for antimicrobial, antimalarial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antipyretic, hypoglycaemic, antiulcer, antifertility, anticarcinogenic, hepatoprotective, antioxidant, anxiolytic, molluscicidal, acaricidal, and antifilarial properties. Notwithstanding the chemical and biological virtuosity of neem, it has also been extensively explored for associated microorganisms, especially a class of mutualists called endophytic microorganisms (or endophytes). More than 30 compounds, including neem "mimetic" compounds, have been reported from endophytes harbored in the neem trees in different ecological niches. In this review, we provide an informative and in-depth overview of the topic that can serve as a point of reference for an understanding of the functions and applications of a medicinal plant such as neem, including associated endophytes, within the overall theme of phytopathology. Our review further exemplifies the already-noted current surge of interest in plant and microbial natural products for implications both within the ecological and clinical settings, for a more secure and sustainable future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ravindra N Kharwar
- Mycopathology and Microbial Technology Laboratory, Department of Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
| | - Vijay K Sharma
- Mycopathology and Microbial Technology Laboratory, Department of Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
- Medical School of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, P. R. China
| | - Ashish Mishra
- Mycopathology and Microbial Technology Laboratory, Department of Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
| | - Jitendra Kumar
- Mycopathology and Microbial Technology Laboratory, Department of Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
- Medical School of Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, P. R. China
| | - Dheeraj K Singh
- Mycopathology and Microbial Technology Laboratory, Department of Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
| | - Satish K Verma
- Mycopathology and Microbial Technology Laboratory, Department of Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India
| | | | - Anuj Kumar
- Department of Botany, Buddha PG College, Kushinagar, India
| | - Nutan Kaushik
- Amity Food and Agriculture Foundation, Amity University, Noida, India
| | - Bharadwaj Revuru
- Institute of Environmental Research (INFU), Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Technische Universität Dortmund, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Souvik Kusari
- Institute of Environmental Research (INFU), Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Technische Universität Dortmund, Dortmund, Germany
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Caesar LK, Nogo S, Naphen CN, Cech NB. Simplify: A Mass Spectrometry Metabolomics Approach to Identify Additives and Synergists from Complex Mixtures. Anal Chem 2019; 91:11297-11305. [PMID: 31365233 DOI: 10.1021/acs.analchem.9b02377] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
In fields ranging from environmental toxicology to drug discovery, it is critical to identify how multiple chemical compounds interact to perturb biological systems. Isolation-based approaches fail to incorporate multiconstituent interactions, such as synergy. We have developed an approach called "Simplify", which identifies mixture constituents that interact to achieve biological effects. Simplify combines biological and mass spectrometric data sets and uses an "activity index" to predict mixture interactions. Using the plant Salvia miltiorrhiza as a case study, we employed Simplify to identify four individual constituents that contribute to antimicrobial activity, three additives and one synergist. Our study is the first to enable identification of unknown synergists prior to isolating them, demonstrating the ability of the Simplify workflow to predict key contributors to the biological effect of a complex mixture. While utilized for natural products discovery in this study, this approach is expected to prove useful across multiple disciplines that rely on mixture analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lindsay K Caesar
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Patricia A. Sullivan Science Building , University of North Carolina at Greensboro , Greensboro , North Carolina 27402 , United States
| | - Sabina Nogo
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Patricia A. Sullivan Science Building , University of North Carolina at Greensboro , Greensboro , North Carolina 27402 , United States
| | - Cassandra N Naphen
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Patricia A. Sullivan Science Building , University of North Carolina at Greensboro , Greensboro , North Carolina 27402 , United States
| | - Nadja B Cech
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Patricia A. Sullivan Science Building , University of North Carolina at Greensboro , Greensboro , North Carolina 27402 , United States
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