Short Total Synthesis of Ajoene

We describe a short total synthesis of ajoene, a major biologically active constituent of garlic. The instability of allicin as the only other known alternative starting material has led to the development of a reliable procedure for the synthesis of ajoene from simple building blocks that is also suitable for upscale operations.     

一颗大蒜的演讲

This article describes the nutrients, therapeutic health functions and dietary precautions of garlic in the first person, as well as causes and the elimination of its odor.     

天然大蒜油及合成大蒜素的气相色谱-质谱分析

利用气相色谱-质谱联用方法对天然大蒜油和合成大蒜素进行了分析和鉴定，给出了其主要组分及分布情况。对两者质谱图进行了比较，发现在合成大蒜素中含有微量的氯丙烯，据此发展了一种快速灵敏的分析方法，用来判断实际大蒜油样品中是否含有合成大蒜素。     

大蒜素包埋球对MBR混合液可滤性影响解析

本研究采用大蒜素为原料,将其包埋在海藻酸钠中,制成大蒜素包埋球(allicin entrapping beads, AEBs)并投加至膜生物反应器(membrane bioreactor, MBR)中,以探讨大蒜素的群体淬灭(quorum quenching, QQ)效应对MBR污泥混合液可滤性的影响。实验结果表明：QQ作用对污泥混合液性质影响显著,对MBR污染物去除影响较小;混合液中胞外聚合物(extracellular polymeric substances, EPS)和溶解性微生物代谢产物(soluble microbial products, SMP)含量降低;通过对修正污染指数(modified fouling index, MFI)检测表明,QQ可提高污泥混合液可滤性,该指标与胞外多糖浓度紧密相关。     

保健食品中大蒜素色谱检测方法的研究

以固体类、液体类、半固体类3类保健食品为研究对象,建立了气相色谱法测定保健食品中大蒜素的主要功效成分二烯丙基三硫醚(DATS)、二烯丙基二硫醚(DADS)含量的检测方法。考察了不同提取溶剂、提取方式、提取温度、提取时间的影响,并对3类保健食品样品进行高低两水平的加标回收实验。试样以丙酮水溶液(体积比8∶2)恒温水浴(超声)提取,经PEG-20M色谱柱(30 m×0.32 mm×0.5μm)分离,氢火焰离子化检测器(FID)测定,内标法计算含量。DATS与DADS的检出限分别为5.0、1.5 mg/kg,加标回收率分别为91%~109%、91%~108%。重复性RSD为2.6%~3.1%,再现性RSD为4.1%~8.4%。将该法与HPLC相比较,结果无显著性差异。该方法简便快速,结果准确可靠,适用于多种保健食品中大蒜素含量的检测。     

Inclusion of the allicin mimic S-p-tolyl t-butylthiosulphinate in β-cyclodextrin

Allicin, the active thiosulphinate present in freshly crushed garlic, has potent antimicrobial activity but is chemically labile. As part of a study aimed at producing stable allicin analogues as potential antimicrobial agents, the allicin mimic S-p-tolyl t-butylthiosulphinate was synthesised and complexed with β-cyclodextrin (β-CD). The inclusion complex, β-CD·S-p-tolyl t-butylthiosulphinate·12.5H₂O, was characterised by thermal analysis techniques (HSM, TG, DSC), powder X-ray diffraction and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The inclusion complex is dimeric (space group C222₁) with the guest disordered over three positions. Within each β-CD molecule of the dimer, each disordered guest component is located in the host cavity with the t-butyl group protruding slightly from the primary hydroxyl side, while the phenyl ring is situated near the secondary hydroxyl side and the thiosulphinate moiety is centrally located within the host cavity. Stereoselectivity of guest inclusion is implicit in the disordered model, which reflects a 2:1 ratio of S- and R-enantiomers in the β-CD cavity.     

Parasitological and Biochemical Efficacy of the Active Ingredients of Allium sativum and Curcuma longa in Schistosoma mansoni Infected Mice

The active ingredients allicin and curcumin have a wide range of actions against fungi, bacteria, and helminths. Therefore, the study was aimed to evaluate the efficacy of allicin (AL) and curcumin (CU) as antischistosomal drugs and their biochemical effects in normal and Schistosoma mansoni-infected mice. Praziquantel (PZQ) was administrated for two successive days while AL or CU was given for two weeks from the week 7th postinfection (PI). The possible effect of different regimens on Schistosoma worms was evaluated by measuring the percentage of the recovered worms, tissue egg load, and oogram pattern. Serum alanine transaminase activity and levels of triglycerides, cholesterol, and uric acid were measured. Liver tissue malondialdehyde and reduced glutathione levels besides, the activities of glutathione-S-transferase, superoxide dismutase and catalase were assessed for the oxidative/antioxidant condition. DNA electrophoresis of liver tissue was used to indicate the degree of fragmentation. There was a significant reduction in the recovered worms and egg load, with a marked change of oogram pattern in all treated groups with PZQ, AL, and CU in comparison with infected-untreated mice. PZQ, AL, and CU prevented most of the hematological and biochemical disorders, as well as significantly improved the antioxidant capacity and enhanced DNA fragmentation in the liver tissue of schistosomiasis mice compared to the infected-untreated group. These promising results suggest that AL and CU are efficient as antischistosomal drugs, and it would be beneficial to test their combination to understand the mechanism of action and the proper period of treatment leading to the best result.     

Alliin Lyase (Alliinase) from Garlic (Allium sativum)

The garlic plant (Allium sativum) alliinase (EC 4.4.1.4), which catalyzes the synthesis of allicin, was purified to homogeneity from bulbs using various steps, including hydrophobic chromatography. Molecular and biochemical studies showed that the enzyme is a dimer of two subunits of MW 51.5 kDa each. ItsK _m using synthetic S-allylcysteine sulfoxide (+isomer) as substrate was 1.1 mM, its pH optimum 6.5, and its isoelectric point 6.35. The enzyme is a glycoprotein containing 6% carbohydrate. N-terminal sequences of the intact polypeptide chain as well as of a number of peptides obtained after cyanogen bromide cleavage were obtained. Cloning of the cDNAs encoding alliinase was performed by a two-step strategy. In the first, a cDNA fragment (pAli-1-450 bp) was obtained by PCR using a mixed oligonucleotide primer synthesized according to a 6-amino acid segment near theN- terminal of the intact polypeptide. The second step involved screening of garlic λgt11 and λZAPII cDNA libraries withpAli-1, which yielded two clones; one was nearly full length and the second was full length. These clones exhibited some degree of DNA sequence divergence, especially in their 3′ noncoding regions, suggesting that they were encoded by separate genes. The nearly full length cDNA was fused in frame to a DNA encoding a signal peptide from a wheat gliadin, and expressed inXenopus oocytes. This yielded a 50 kDa protein that interacted with the antibodies against natural bulb alliinase. Northern and Western blot analyses showed that the bulb alliinase was highly expressed in bulbs, whereas a lower expression level was found in leaves, and no expression was detected in roots. Strikingly, the roots exhibited an abundant alliinase activity, suggesting that this tissue expressed a distinct alliinase isozyme with very low homology to the bulb enzyme.