Stevia rebaudiana targeting α-amylase: An in-vitro and in-silico mechanistic study

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is the fastest growing metabolic disorder in the world. Recently, more attention is paid to the study of natural products due to side effects of synthetic drugs. Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni) is considered an encouraging starting point for the antidiabetic lead development. In the present study, the in vitro α-amylase inhibitory activity of the extracts of S. rebaudiana is investigated. In order to understand the molecular mechanism and future pharmacophore development, in silico study of secondary metabolites isolated from S. rebaudiana was carried out. Results indicated that water extract shows highest α-amylase inhibitory activity as compared to other extracts. Moreover, compound 20 (rebaudioside A) which has been previously reported and isolated from water extract showed the impressive binding profile with α-amylase. Therefore, our study suggests that S. rebaudiana could be used in the development of therapeutic drugs for the treatment of diabetes.     

Chemically characterised Pimenta dioica (L.) Merr. essential oil as a novel plant based antimicrobial against fungal and aflatoxin B1 contamination of stored maize and its possible mode of action

Abstract

The chemical characterisation of Pimenta dioica essential oil (PDEO) revealed the presence of 50 components, amongst which α-Terpineol (30.31%) was the major component followed by β-Linalool (6.75%) and γ-Terpinene (4.64%). The oil completely inhibited the growth of aflatoxin B₁ secreting strain Aspergillus flavus LHP-VS-8 and aflatoxin B₁ production at 2.5?µL/mL and 1.5?µL/mL, respectively. The oil caused dose dependent reduction of methylglyoxal (an AFB₁ inducer), enhanced leakage of Ca²⁺, Mg²⁺ and K⁺ ions and significantly reduced ergosterol content of fungal plasma membrane. During in situ experiments, PDEO exhibited complete protection of fumigated maize cob slices from fungal infestation without affecting seed germination. The chemically characterised PDEO is recommended as a plant based preservative and shelf life enhancer of food commodities by preventing fungal growth, AFB₁ production and lipid peroxidation. This is the first report on PDEO as inhibitor of AFB₁ secretion and methylglyoxal biosynthesis.     

Essential oil and fractions isolated of Laurel to control adults and larvae of cattle ticks

Abstract

This study, was to evaluate the acaricidal effect of the essential oil (EO) and fractions (FR) obtained from Laurus nobilis leaves on Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus. Eight fractions were obtained, however FR1: sabinene (37.83%), β-pinene (13.50%), 1,8-cineole (12.66%), α-pinene (12.56%) and FR8: α-terpineol (79.19%) were highlighted as to the larvicidal potential when submitted by Larval Packet Test. The EO was tested by the Adult Immersion Test, at concentrations of 200.00; 100.00 and 50.00?µL/mL caused mortality of engorged females, egg mass reduction and hatching inhibition. Two fractions are shown to be efficient in controlling larvae FR8 (LC₅₀?=?0.13?µL/mL, LC₉₉?=?0.51?µL/mL) and FR1 (LC₅₀?=?0.20?µL/mL, LC₉₉?=?0.56?µL/mL). The fractionation of EO was determinant to elucidate which compounds were responsible for the larvicidal potential. This study opens new perspectives to direct new bioassays with the compounds obtained in the fractionation, since they present high potential on cattle tick larvae.     

α-Mangostin exhibits antidepressant-like effects mediated by the modification of GABAergic,serotonergic and dopaminergic systems

Abstract

The present study explored the antidepressant-like activity of α-mangostin (α-MG) and the possible mechanism in this process in the tail suspension test (TST) in mice. The results revealed that α-MG (5?mg/kg, i.p.) exhibited markedly antidepressant-like activity, which could be reversed by pretreatment with haloperidol (a non-selective D₂ receptor antagonist), bicuculline (a competitive GABA antagonist), p-chlorophenylalanine (an inhibitor of 5-HT synthesis). Meanwhile, α-MG also effectively increased the brain DA, 5-HT and GABA levels in mice exposed to TST, indicating that the antidepressant-like effect of α-MG might be mediated by the GABAergic, serotonergic and dopaminergic systems.

     

Yb3+掺杂稀土钽铌酸盐的晶体场从头计算研究

Yb³⁺掺杂晶体材料是重要的激光材料,在超短脉冲激光、大功率激光等领域有重要应用前景,但长期以来很难通过实验拟合确定Yb3+晶体场参数,尤其是低对称体系,从头计算是解决此问题的重要途经.本文介绍了适合计算稀土离子掺杂晶体的从头计算DV-Xα方法和有效哈密顿量模型,用该方法计算了Yb³⁺掺杂M型和M'型钽铌酸盐的晶场参数和旋轨耦合参数,得到的能级结构和实验能很好地符合,并发现了Yb³⁺掺杂钽铌酸盐的晶场强度参数随稀土原子序数呈现规律变化.表明结合DV-Xα计算和有效哈密顿量方法是计算Yb³⁺掺杂低对称钽铌酸盐晶体场的有效途径,结果显示Yb3+掺杂钽铌酸盐晶体有望成为新型全固态激光工作物质.     

饮用水中三氯甲烷与其他氯消毒副产物在活性炭上的吸附竞争研究

通过等温吸附实验，探究了三氯甲烷（CHCl₃）与二氯一溴甲烷（CHBrCl₂）、二氯乙酸（Cl₂CHCOOH）在活性炭上的竞争吸附关系，同时探究了在低浓度条件下CHBrCl₂和Cl₂CHCOOH浓度变化对活性炭吸附CHCl₃的影响。实验结果表明，活性炭吸附CHCl₃和CHBrCl₂符合Freundlich模型，对Cl₂CHCOOH的吸附符合Langmuir模型；活性炭对3种消毒副产物均为优先吸附，吸附能力由大到小依次为CHBrCl₂、CHCl₃、Cl₂CHCOOH；低浓度条件下，活性炭对消毒副产物的吸附效果随体系中物质种类的增加而降低；低浓度条件下，Cl₂CHCOOH的浓度变化对CHCl₃的吸附效果影响不大，但吸附效果随水体中CHBrCl₂浓度的升高而降低。     

高效液相色谱手性固定相法拆分BETTI碱及其衍生物对映体

在纤维素三（3,5-二甲基苯基氨基甲酸酯）（Chiralcel OD-H）和Pirkle型(R, R)-Whelk-O1手性柱上对手性氨基酚1-(α-氨基苄基)-2-萘酚（Betti 碱）及其衍生物1-(α-苄氨基苄基)-2-萘酚和1-(α-哌啶基苄基)-2-萘酚对映体分离进行了研究，分别考察了在正己烷流动相中，碱性添加剂、醇类添加剂的种类和浓度对手性拆分的影响。结果表明：溶质在Chiralcel OD-H柱上的分离效果好，而在(R, R)-Whelk-O1手性柱上只有1-(α-苄氨基苄基)-2-萘酚部分分离。研究了空间立体结构因素对手性分离的影响，初步探讨和比较了溶质在这2种手性柱上的手性识别机理。发现对(R, R)-Whelk-O1柱，溶质与固定相之间的吸引作用很小，而对于Chiralcel OD-H柱，溶质在手性空腔中的空间适应性很可能是手性识别的关键。     

Effect of Butyl α-Hydroxymethyl Acrylate Monomer Structure on the Morphology Produced via Aqueous Emulsion Polymerization-induced Self-assembly

Polymerization-induced self-assembly(PISA) is an efficient and versatile method to afford polymeric nano-objects with polymorphic morphologies. Compared to dispersion PISA syntheses based on soluble monomers, the vast majority of emulsion PISA formulations using insoluble monomers leads to kinetically-trapped spheres. Herein, we present aqueous emulsion PISA formulations generating worms and vesicles besides spheres. Two monomers with different butyl groups, n-butyl(n BHMA) and tert-butyl(t BHMA) α-hydroxymethyl acrylate, and thus possessing different water solubilities were synthesized via Baylis-Hillman reaction. Photoinitiated aqueous emulsion polymerizations of n BHMA and t BHMA employing poly(ethylene glycol) macromolecular chain transfer agents(macro-CTAs, PEG45-CTA, and PEG113-CTA) at 40 °C were systematically investigated to evaluate the effect of monomer structure and solubility on the morphology of the generated block copolymer nano-objects. Higher order morphologies including worms and vesicles were readily accessed for t BHMA, which has a higher water solubility than that of n BHMA. This study proves that plasticization of the core-forming block by water plays a key role in enhancing chain mobility required for morphological transition in emulsion PISA.