Immunocontraceptive activity guided fractionation and characterization of active constituents of neem (Azadirachta indica) seed extracts

A novel approach for immunocontraception by intervention of local cell mediated immunity in the reproductive system by using single intrauterine application of neem oil has been described earlier. The reversible block in fertility was reported to last for 107–180 days in female Wistar rats (Upadhyay et al., 1990. Antifertility effects of neem oil by single intrauterine administration: A novel method of contraception. Proceedings Of The Royal Society Of London B 242, 175–180) and 7–11 months in monkeys (Upadhyay et al., 1994. Long term contraceptive effects of intrauterine neem treatment (IUNT) in bonnet monkeys: An alternative to intrauterine contraceptive devices. Contraception 49, 161–167). The present study, describes the identification and characterization of the biologically active fraction from neem seeds (Azadirachta indica A. Juss. Family Meliaceae), responsible for the above activity in adult female Wistar rats. Initial studies with the mechanically extracted oil and solvent extracts of neem seeds have revealed that the antifertility activity was present in constituents of low to intermediate polarity. A hexane extract of neem seeds was reported to be biologically active (Garg et al., 1994. Comparison of extraction procedures on the immunocontraceptive activity of neem seed extracts. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 22, 87–92). Subsequently, hexane extract was sequentially fractionated through the last active fraction using various separation techniques and tested for antifertility activity at each step. Preparative HPLC was used for isolating individual components of the active fraction in quantities, sufficient for characterization. An analytical HPLC method was developed for standardization of the fraction. The active fraction was identified to be a mixture of six components, which comprises of saturated, mono and di-unsaturated free fatty acids and their methyl esters. Dose response study was performed with the last active fractions. The antifertility activity with the active fraction was reversible in nature and it was completely active until 5% concentration. There was no systemic toxic effect following the administration of the active fraction. This study, for the first time, proposes an active fraction from neem seeds, responsible for long term and reversible blocking of fertility after a single intrauterine administration with high efficacy.     

海洋链霉菌Streptomyces sp. S598中抗菌活性产物的研究

目的 对海洋链霉菌Streptomyces sp. S598固体发酵提取物的抗菌成分进行研究。方法 采用葡聚糖凝胶Sephadex LH-20、反相柱色谱、硅胶柱层析及半制备HPLC等方法分离纯化该菌株的活性次级代谢产物,并通过ESI-MS、NMR等波谱技术结合文献对比鉴定其结构。结果 从10L固体发酵提取物中分离得到5个单体化合物,分别鉴定为缬氨霉素(1)、二活菌素(2)、亚油酸(3)、亚油酸甲酯(4)和油酸(5)。结论 海洋链霉菌Streptomyces sp. S598能代谢产生具有多种生物活性的化合物。化合物1对MRSA 28300和白念珠菌(ATCC10231)的MIC为1μg/mL,化合物2具有较强的广谱抗细菌活性,对肺炎链球菌、流感嗜血菌的MIC为0.125μg/mL,尤其具有显著的抗MRSA的活性,对MRSA     

天然药物——多糖的主要生物活性及分离纯化方法

多糖具有复杂的多方面的生物活性和功能。本文综述了多糖的抗肿瘤、抗病毒、抗炎等方面的主要生物活性。多糖是大分子物质,且不同于蛋白质等大分子,它的分离纯化方法与手段有其特殊性,而通过分离纯化获得的均一的多糖组分又是进行结构分析、药理和构效关系等研究的首要条件。本文根据文献报道并结合本实验室的工作经验对多糖的各种分离纯化方法进行了介绍。     

海洋中抗感染活性物质的研究进展

传染性疾病不断进化并对现有药物产生抗药性，而海洋环境对抵抗真菌性、寄生性、细菌性和病毒性疾病提供了新药研究的先导化合物。本文概述了近年来抗真菌、抗寄生生物、抗原生动物、抗细菌及抗病毒的海洋天然产物及其生物活性的研究进展．     

Multi-constituent synergism is responsible for anti-inflammatory effect of Azadirachta indica leaf extract

Context: Azadirachta indica A. Juss. (Meliaceaes) leaves have been used traditionally to treat swelling and rheumatism in Indian cultures.

Objective: To fractionate A. indica leaf extracts using bioactivity guided manner for identification of the active anti-inflammatory principles.

Materials and methods: Polarity-gradient sequential extracts (petroleum ether, chloroform, methanol, and water) of A. indica leaves were screened for their anti-inflammatory potential using the carrageenan-induced rat paw edema model (1?g/kg). The chloroform extract was sequentially fractionated to obtain n-hexane (F-1), n-hexane-chloroform (F-2), and chloroform (F-3) fractions and their inhibitory effect on rat paw edema was evaluated (500?mg/kg). Inhibitory effect of F-2 on granuloma formation, plasma interleukin (IL-1), and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) was assessed at the doses of 100, 200, and 400?mg/kg using the cotton pellet assay in rats. Three sub-fractions (SF-1, SF-2, and SF-3) were obtained upon chromatography of F-2, and their inhibitory effect on cyclooxygenase was assessed at 200?µg/mL concentration. The sub-fractions were subjected to gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC-MS).

Results: All the extracts showed significant anti-inflammatory effect; however, chloroform extract was the most effective against paw edema (53.25% inhibition). The three fractions of chloroform extract showed significant effect, while F-2 being the most potent (51.02%). F-2 demonstrated dose-dependent inhibition of granuloma and cytokines. Interestingly, all the sub-fractions of F-2 inhibited COX-1 and COX-2 with almost equal potential. GC-MS revealed that chemically the sub-fractions were totally different from each other.

Discussion and conclusion: Anti-inflammatory effect of A. indica is a result of cumulative and synergistic effects of diversified constituents with varying polarities that collectively exert the effect via suppression of cyclo-oxygenases and cytokines (IL-1 and TNF-α).     

Beta-glucans from edible and medicinal mushrooms: Characteristics,physicochemical and biological activities

One of the main active components from mushrooms was recently identified as β-glucan. Health-promoting β-glucans are an auspicious group of polysaccharides. β-Glucans from different sources such as cereals, yeast and grass have previously been documented. However, information on mushroom β-glucan is limited. This review summarizes the extraction, purification, quantification, and structural characterization of β-glucans, along with chemical and biological activities from this compound from mushrooms, and the current status of this research area with a view for future directions.     

Hazard identification of cis/trans-zearalenone through the looking-glass

Among the food-related health issues, the presence of contaminants has a prominent role, due to the wide range of exogenous compounds that can occur in food commodities and to their large differences in structure and biological activity. A comprehensive assessment of the related risk is thus actually demanding in terms of time and facilities involved. In this context, the use of computational strategies can be an effective choice for supporting the hazard identification procedure at the early stage. In this work, we focused on the food contaminant zearalenone by comparing the trans and cis isomers, respectively the well-known mycoestrogen and its still largely understudied isomer. We estimated the possible effects exerted by human metabolism on the xenoestrogenicity of cis-ZEN by using a validated in silico strategy based on docking simulations and rescoring procedures. Similarly, the exploitation of the most promising enzymatic detoxifying routes designed for trans-ZEN – which relies on the enzyme lactono hydrolase from Clonostachys rosea – has been assessed for the cis-isomer as well. Our results showed that both isomers can act as functional analogues with respect to xenoestrogenic activity, and several cis-ZEN metabolites with high biological potential have been identified. On the contrary, in spite of the high degree of structural analogy, the cis isomer showed a pattern of interaction with the degrading enzyme in stark contrast with that observed for trans-ZEN. For these reasons, the outcomes presented herein strongly support the inclusion of cis-ZEN in further studies of occurrence, metabolism and bioactivity assessment, and suggest the need for a dedicated handling for the cis isomer in risk assessment studies.     

Preserved bioactivity and tunable release of a SDF1-GPVI bi-specific protein using photo-crosslinked PEGda hydrogels

Chemokine-induced stem cell recruitment is a promising strategy for post myocardial infarction treatment. Injection of stromal cell-derived factor 1 (SDF1) has been shown to attract bone marrow-derived progenitor cells (BMPCs) from the blood that have the potential to differentiate into cardiovascular cells, which support angiogenesis, enabling the improvement of myocardial function. SDF1-GPVI bi-specific protein contains a glycoprotein VI (GPVI)-domain that serves as an anchor for collagen type I (Col I) and III, which are exposed in the wall of injured vasculature. In this study, we generated a cytocompatible hydrogel via photo-crosslinking of poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate that serves as a reservoir for SDF1-GPVI. Controlled and sustained release of SDF1-GPVI was demonstrated over a period of 7 days. Release features were modifiable depending on the degree of the crosslinking density. Functionality of the GPVI-domain was investigated using a GPVI-binding ELISA to Col I. Activity of the SDF1-domain was tested for its CXCR4 binding potential. Preserved functionality of SDF1-GPVI bi-specific protein after photo-crosslinking and controllable release was successfully demonstrated in vitro supporting the implementation of this drug delivery system as a powerful tool for therapeutic protein delivery in the treatment of cardiovascular ischemic disease.     

Characterization of grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idella) IL-17D: Molecular cloning,functional implication and signal transduction

Although the roles of IL-17 family members during inflammation have been extensively studied in mammals, their knowledge in lower vertebrates is limited. In particular, the biological activities of fish IL-17 and their functional roles are largely unknown. In this study, we cloned grass carp IL-17D (gcIL-17D) and found that its putative protein possessed the conserved features of IL-17 family members. Tissue distribution analysis showed that gcIL-17D was preferentially expressed in the mucosal tissues, including skin, gill and intestine. Subsequently, the involvement of gcIL-17D in inflammatory response was demonstrated by examining the expression profiles of gcIL-17D in head kidney and head kidney leukocytes following in vivo bacterial infection and in vitro LPS treatment, respectively. Furthermore, recombinant gcIL-17D (rgcIL-17D) was prepared in grass carp kidney cells and was able to promote the gene expression of some pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, TNF-α and CXCL-8) in grass carp primary head kidney cells, revealing gcIL-17D can function as a pro-inflammatory cytokine. Moreover, rgcIL-17D appeared to activate NF-κB signaling by modulating the phosphorylation of IκBα and up-regulated CXCL-8 mRNA expression possibly through NF-κB pathway. Our data shed new light on the functional role of teleost IL-17D in inflammatory response.     

小鼠白细胞介素23基因在毕赤酵母中的诱导表达及初步活性研究

目的:克隆小鼠白细胞介素23(mice interlecukin-23,mIL-23)基因,构建高效稳定的毕赤酵母表达菌株,并对得到的蛋白进行生物活性的初步测定。方法:采用聚合酶链式反应(PCR)技术从pcDNA3-mIL-23上分别扩增获得IL-23的两亚基p19和p40,并通过重叠PCR(over-lap PCR)技术获得含有连接子的p1940,构建pPICZαA-IL-23重组质粒;采用甲醇诱导毕赤酵母表达重组蛋白,MTT方法检测诱导表达蛋白的促淋巴细胞增殖情况。结果:SDS-PAGE分析显示在诱导24小时和36小时后的上清及24～96小时的沉淀中均可以检测到约70 kD的诱导条带。Western blot印迹法证实了重组蛋白为特异性蛋白。上清和沉淀中表达的重组蛋白IL-23能促进外周血单个核细胞的增殖,OD570 nm分别达到(0.235±0.029)和(0.216±0.035),而未刺激的对照组只有(0.135±0.008)和(0.164±0.017)。结论:成功构建出mIL-23的酵母表达载体,诱导产生的蛋白可以明显地促进外周血单个核细胞的增殖。