Perylenequinones from an endophytic Alternaria sp. of Pinus ponderosa.

The differential solvent extraction and further purification of fractions of endophytic Alternaria sp. isolated from Pinus ponderosa led to the isolation of further two perylenequinone compounds as 3,6,6a,9,10-pentahydroxy-7,8-epoxy-4-oxo-4,5,6,6a,6b,7,8,9-octahydroperylene (1) and 3,6,6a,7,10-pentahydroxy-4,9-dioxo-4,5,6,6a,6b,7,8,9-octahydroperylene (2). Structure of compounds 1-2 was determined on the basis of detailed spectroscopic analysis, as well as by comparison with literature reports. The antimicrobial, antileismanial, antimalarial and cytotoxic activities of compound 1 and 2 were evaluated.

Breaking the resistance of Escherichia coli: Antimicrobial activity of Berberis lycium Royle.

The antimicrobial activity of root bark of Berberis lycium and its principal component berberine was tested against a panel of microbial strains using agar well diffusion test and further analyzed using micro-broth dilution method. Preliminary analysis, on the basis of zone of Inhibition (ZOI) showed that the methanolic extract of B. lycium was highly effective against Escherichia coli (ZOI 41 ± 1 mm). Among the bacterial strains E. coli was found to be most susceptible and among fungi Candida albicans was the most susceptible for berberine as well as the crude methanolic extract of the plant. Methanolic extract of the plant was more effective for E. coli (MIC 1.7 ± 1.18; MBC 2.4 ± 1.18) than berberine (MIC 3.5 ± 0.57) (p < 0.05), whereas berberine was more effective than crude extracts for C. albicans. In addition, E. coli showed the development of resistant colonies after 72 h when tested with berberine but the development of such colonies was not observed with the methanolic extract of the plant. This could be due to the presence of resistance breaking molecules in the crude methanolic extract of B. lycium. Also the MIC index of crude methanolic extract was 1.39 for E. coli, which showed the mode of action to be bactericidal. HPLC analysis revealed the presence of berberine at highest concentration in methanolic extract of the plant, followed by aqueous extract. Potentiation of this berberine by resistance breaking molecules in the crude extract could be a possible explanation for its strong effectiveness.

Gracilone, a new sesquiterpene lactone from Tanacetum gracile (Tansies).

The methanolic extract of the Tanacetum gracile afforded the isolation of new sesquiterpene lactone, named gracilone (1) along with four known compounds as 14α-taraxeran-3-one (2), 14α-taraxeran-3-ol (3), apigenin (4) and ß-sitosterol (5). The structure of compound 1 was elucidated on the basis of 1D, 2D NMR and MS spectroscopic analysis. Antimicrobial, antioxidant and anticancer activities of all compounds were evaluated, from which gracilone (1) showed a moderate antibacterial activity, while apigenin (4) showed comparatively more antibacterial activity against both gram-positive and gram-negative tested strains.

Crocetenone, a new rotenoid with an unusual trans-fused ring system from Iris crocea.

Crocetenone, a new rotenoid (1), along with five known compounds apocyanin (2), tectorigenin (3), 5,2',3'-trihydroxy-7-methoxy flavanone (4), tectoridin (5) and tectoridin glycoside (6), were isolated from the methanolic extract of the root of Iris crocea. The structure of compounds was elucidated on the basis of 1D- and 2D-NMR spectroscopic and MS analysis. Antibacterial and antioxidant activities of compounds 1-6 were evaluated. Crocetenone (1) showed a prominent antibacterial activity.

Antidiabetic activity of Artemisia amygdalina Decne in streptozotocin induced diabetic rats.

Artemisia species have been extensively used for the management of diabetes in folklore medicine. The current study was designed to investigate the antidiabetic and antihyperlipidemic effects of Artemisia amygdalina. Petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, methanol, and hydroethanolic extracts of Artemisia amygdalina were tested for their antidiabetic potentials in diabetic rats. The effect of extracts was observed by checking the biochemical, physiological, and histopathological parameters in diabetic rats. The hydroethanolic and methanolic extracts each at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg b. w significantly reduced glucose levels in diabetic rats. The other biochemical parameters like cholesterol, triglycerides, low density lipoproteins (LDL), serum creatinine, serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT), serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT), and alkaline phosphatise (ALP), were found to be reduced by the hydroethanolic and methanolic extracts. The extracts also showed reduction in the feed and water consumption of diabetic rats when compared with the diabetic control. The histopathological results of treated groups showed the regenerative/protective effect on ß -cells of pancreas in diabetic rats. The current study revealed the antidiabetic potential of Artemisia amygdalina being effective in hyperglycemia and that it can effectively protect against other metabolic aberrations caused by diabetes in rats, which seems to validate its therapeutic traditional use.

Glycosylsphingolipids from Euonymus japonicus Thunb.

The stem bark of Euonymus japonicus Thunb. led to the isolation of three new glycosylsphingolipids (1-3), 1-O-[-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucopyranosyl]-(2S,3R,9E)-2-N-[(2R)-hydroxystearoyl]-octadecasphinga-9-ene (euojaposphingoside A, 1), 1-O-[ß-D-glucopyranosyl-(1→2)-ß-D-glucopyranosyl]-(2S,3R,4R,11E)-2-N-[(2R)-hydroxydocasanoyl]-octadecasphinga-11-ene (euojaposphingoside B, 2), 1-O-[ß-D-glucopyranosyl]-2'-O-[ß-D-glucopyranosyl]-(2S,3R,4R,11E)-2-N-[(2R)-hydroxytetracosanoyl]-octadecasphinga-11-ene (euojaposphingoside C, 3) along with three known glycosylsphingolipids (4-6), 1-O-[ß-D-glucopyranosyl]-(2S,3R,9E)-3-hydroxymethyl-2-N-[(2R)-hydroxynonacosanoyl)-tridecasphinga-9-ene (4), 1-O-[ß-D-glucopyranosyl]-(2S,3R,9E,12E)-2-N-[(2R)-hydroxytetracosanoyl] octadecasphinga-9,12-diene (5), 1-O-[ß-D-glucopyranosyl]-(2S,3R,5R,9E)-2-N-[tridecanoyl] nonacosasphinga-9-ene (6), lupeol (7), stigmasterol (8), sitosterol (ß and α) (9,10) and ß-carotene (11). The structure of all the compounds was achieved by spectroscopic and chemical data analysis. The antiplasmodial, antileismanial and cytotoxic activity of all compounds was tested.

Saponins from Glycine max Merrill (soybean).

Saponins are a diverse group of plant secondary metabolites with a wide array of activities, as well as a significant role in nutrition and health. Saponins occur as multi-component mixtures of compounds with very similar polarities. Soysaponins are a special group of saponins. These represent the main source of saponins in Glycine max (soybeans, Fabaceae). In a study of the chemical profiling of plants, to investigate the possible misidentification and authentication of dietary supplements, the hydro-alcoholic extract of G. max was investigated. Three new saponins, designated as soysaponins M1 (1), M2 (2) and M3 (3) along with seven known soysaponins (4-10) were isolated by normal and reverse phase liquid chromatography. All compounds were characterized by spectroscopic techniques including 2D NMR spectroscopy.

New alkylated benzoquinone from Iris nepalensis.

Chemical investigation of chloroform extract of rhizomes of Iris nepalensis yielded new alkylated 1,4-benzoquinone derivative (1). The structure of Compound 1 was established by analysis of spectroscopic data. Compound 1 was evaluated for cytotoxic activities against human cancer cell lines A549, HL-60, HCT116 and ZR-75. Compound 1 showed least cytotoxicity against HL-60, HCT116 and ZR-75-30.

9,10-seco-9,19-cyclolanostane triterpene from Salix caprea L. (goat willow).

Chemical investigation of low polar solvent extract of Salix caprea through chromatographic techniques led to the isolation of new triterpene as 1α,3ß,25-trihydroxy-9(11)-ene-16-one-9,10-seco-9,19-cyclolanostane (1) along with fatty alcohols. The structure of compound 1 was established by IR, HRESI/MS and NMR including 1D and 2D experiments. The compound 1 showed moderate in vitro antiplasmodial activity.

Acylated flavonol glycosides from Epimedium elatum, a plant endemic to the Western Himalayas.

Herba Epimedii is a well-known Botanical preparation used over long time in traditional Chinese medicine. The extracts and chemical constituents from Epimedium species are aphrodisiac as well as to treat many ailments. Chemical investigation of lonely species growing in Kashmir Himalaya Epimedium elatum was undertaken to evaluate its chemical profile. Two unusual substituted acylated flavonol glycosides named Elatoside A (1) and Elatoside B (2) have been isolated from the ethanolic extract of E. elatum along with 23 previously known ones (3-25). All isolates were evaluated for antimicrobial and PPAR-γ ligand binding activity, and some of them appeared to be modestly active.

5, 6-Dihydropyranobenzopyrone: a previously undetermined antioxidant isolated from Polygonum amplexicaule.

AIM: To study the chemical constituents and their bioactivity of Polygonum amplexicaule. METHODS: The isolation of compounds was achieved by chromatographic techniques and structure of the isolates was established by UV, IR, HRESI-MS and NMR including 1D and 2D experiments. RESULTS: Bioassay-guided fractionation of an ethanolic extract of Polygonum amplexicaule led to the isolation of a hitherto unidentified compound, 5, 6-dihydropyranobenzopyrone (1) along with nine previously known compounds (2-10). Compounds 2-10 were identified as amplexicine (2), catechin (3), rutin (4), quercetin-3-O-ß-D-galactopyranoside (5), chlorogenic acid (6), galloyl glucose (7), caffeic acid (8), gallic acid (9) and scopletin (10). CONCLUSION: Compound 1 is new. Compounds 1-10 exhibited considerable antioxidant activity in a 1, 1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging assay.

Titanium Dioxide Nanofibers and Microparticles Containing Nickel Nanoparticles.

The present study reports on the introduction of various nanocatalysts containing nickel (Ni) nanoparticles (NPs) embedded within TiO2 nanofibers and TiO2 microparticles. Typically, a sol-gel consisting of titanium isopropoxide and Ni NPs was prepared to produce TiO2 nanofibers by the electrospinning process. Similarly, TiO2 microparticles containing Ni were prepared using a sol-gel syntheses process. The resultant structures were studied by SEM analyses, which confirmed well-obtained nanofibers and microparticles. Further, the XRD results demonstrated the crystalline feature of both TiO2 and Ni in the obtained composites. Internal morphology of prepared nanofibers and microparticles containing Ni NPs was characterized by TEM, which demonstrated characteristic structures with good dispersion of Ni NPs. In addition, the prepared structures were studied as a model for hydrogen production applications. The catalytic activity of the prepared materials was studied by in situ hydrolysis of NaBH4, which indicated that the nanofibers containing Ni NPs can lead to produce higher amounts of hydrogen when compared to other microparticles, also reported in this paper. Overall, these results confirm the potential use of these materials in hydrogen production systems.

Acylated flavonol glycoside from Platanus orientalis.

The ethylacetate and n-butanol fractions of ethanolic extract of Platanus orientalis leaves led to the isolation of new acylated flavonol glycoside as 3',5,7-trihydroxy-4'-methoxyflavonol 3-[O-2-O-(2,4-Dihydroxy)-E-cinnamoyl-α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→6)-ß-D-glucopyranosyl (1→2)]-ß-D-glucopyranoside, along with seven known compounds. All the compounds were characterized by NMR including 2D NMR techniques. The isolates were evaluated for NF-κB, nitric oxide (NO), aromatase and QR2 chemoprevention activities and some of them appeared to be modestly active.

Amplexicine, an antioxidant flavan-3-ol from Polygonum amplexicaule.

Bioassay guided fractionation of an ethanolic extract of Polygonum amplexicaule D. Don led to the isolation of amplexicine, a new flavan-3-ol (1), along with khellactone (2). The structure of the isolates was established by UV, IR, HRESI/MS and NMR, including 1D and 2D experiments. Compound 1 exhibited considerable antioxidant activity in a 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical-scavenging assay.