Polyphenolic extract of InsP 5-ptase expressing tomato plants reduce the proliferation of MCF-7 breast cancer cells

Impact of dietary polyphenols on neuroinflammation-associated disorders

Neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and associated dementia typically originate with altered protein folding and aggregation of their β structures in the neurons. This self-aggregation leads to glial activation in the brain, causing neuroinflammation and leads to neuronal death. According to statistics provided by WHO, there are around 50 million people with dementia worldwide and every year, 10 million more cases are projected to increase. Also, around 5-8 percentage of people who are aged above 60 globally has dementia or associated disorders. Over 82 million in 2030 and 152 in 2050 are expected to have dementia. Most of these patients fall into low-middle-income countries which makes it even more essential to find an affordable and effective treatment method. Polyphenols of different origin are studied for their potential role as anti-neuro-inflammatory molecules. This review would summarize recent advances in three widely researched dietary polyphenols projected as potential therapeutic agents for disorders like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, etc. They are Resveratrol, Catechins, and Tannins. The review would discuss the recent advances and challenges in using these polyphenols using specific examples as potential therapeutic agents against neuroinflammation associated disorders. An abstract of neuroinflammation-associated events and the effects by selected polyphenols.

Total flavone extract from Ampelopsis megalophylla induces apoptosis in the MCF‑7 cell line

Ampelopsis megalophylla has been found to demonstrate anticancer activities in human cancer cells; however, the effect of total flavone extract (TFE), commonly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine, remains unclear. Furthermore, there is limited information on its effects on breast cancer cell lines. The present study aimed to investigate the inhibitory effects of TFE in different human cancer cell lines. In addition, the underlying mechanisms and the signaling pathways involved were also investigated by determining tumor cell morphological changes, and differences in the cell cycle, apoptosis, mitochondrial transmembrane potential, and related protein expression levels in a breast cancer cell line. It was found that TFE inhibited proliferation in seven cancer cell lines (HeLa, A549, MCF-7, HepG2, A2780, SW620 and MDA-MB-231 and demonstrated a strong inhibitory effect on MCF-7 cell proliferation. Cell morphological changes were also observed and arrested at the G₂/M phase following treatment with TFE at different concentrations. In addition, TFE disrupted the mitochondrial membrane potential and upregulated the expression level of apoptotic proteins, including caspase-3, -8 and -9, the Bax/Bcl-2 ratio, and Apaf-1 in time-dependent manner. These results indicated that TFE induced apoptosis of the MCF-7 cells via a mitochondrial-mediated apoptotic pathway. In conclusion, TFE is potentially effective in treating breast cancer.

Involvement of Trichoderma harzianum Epl-1 Protein in the Regulation of Botrytis Virulence- and Tomato Defense-Related Genes

Several Trichoderma spp. are well known for their ability to: (i) act as important biocontrol agents against phytopathogenic fungi; (ii) function as biofertilizers; (iii) increase the tolerance of plants to biotic and abiotic stresses; and (iv) induce plant defense responses via the production and secretion of elicitor molecules. In this study, we analyzed the gene-regulation effects of Trichoderma harzianum Epl-1 protein during the interactions of mutant Δepl-1 or wild-type T. harzianum strains with: (a) the phytopathogen Botrytis cinerea and (b) with tomato plants, on short (24 h hydroponic cultures) and long periods (4-weeks old plants) after Trichoderma inoculation. Our results indicate that T. harzianum Epl-1 protein affects the in vitro expression of B. cinerea virulence genes, especially those involved in the botrydial biosynthesis (BcBOT genes), during the mycoparasitism interaction. The tomato defense-related genes were also affected, indicating that Epl-1 is involved in the elicitation of the salicylic acid pathway. Moreover, Epl-1 also regulates the priming effect in host tomato plants and contributes to enhance the interaction with the host tomato plant during the early stage of root colonization.