First complete chloroplast genomics and comparative phylogenetic analysis of Commiphora gileadensis and C. foliacea: Myrrh producing trees.

Commiphora gileadensis and C. foliacea (family Burseraceae) are pantropical in nature and known for producing fragrant resin (myrrh). Both the tree species are economically and medicinally important however, least genomic understanding is available for this genus. Herein, we report the complete chloroplast genome sequences of C. gileadensis and C. foliacea and comparative analysis with related species (C. wightii and Boswellia sacra). A modified chloroplast DNA extraction method was adopted, followed with next generation sequencing, detailed bioinformatics and PCR analyses. The results revealed that the cp genome sizes of C. gileadensis and C. foliacea, are 160,268 and 160,249 bp, respectively, with classic quadripartite structures that comprises of inverted repeat's pair. Overall, the organization of these cp genomes, GC contents, gene order, and codon usage were comparable to other cp genomes in angiosperm. Approximately, 198 and 175 perfect simple sequence repeats were detected in C. gileadensis and C. foliacea genomes, respectively. Similarly, 30 and 25 palindromic, 15 and 25 forward, and 20 and 25 tandem repeats were determined in both the cp genomes, respectively. Comparison of these complete cp genomes with C. wightii and B. sacra revealed significant sequence resemblance and comparatively highest deviation in intergenic spacers. The phylo-genomic comparison showed that C. gileadensis and C. foliacea form a single clade with previously reported C. wightii and B. sacra from family Burseraceae. Current study reports for the first time the cp genomics of species from Commiphora, which could be helpful in understanding genetic diversity and phylogeny of this myrrh producing species.

Conservation genetics of endangered medicinal plant Commiphora wightii in Indian Thar Desert.

To ascertain the conservation priorities and strategies for Commiphora wightii, an endangered medicinal plant of Indian Thar Desert, genetic diversity was estimated within and among different populations. The total of 155 amplification products were scored using ten each of RAPD and ISSR primers, exhibiting an overall 86.72% polymorphism across 45 individuals representing eight populations. The cumulative data of two markers were used to compute pair-wise distances. The Neighbor-Joining tree revealed high genetic differentiation among populations except Kiradu population. Nei's gene diversity (h) ranged between 0.082 and 0.193 with total diversity at species level is 0.294. Shannon's information index (I) ranged between 0.118 and 0.275 with an overall diversity of 0.439. Analysis of molecular variance showed more diversity among population level (56.65%) than at within population level (43.35%). The low gene flow value (Nm=0.349) and high coefficient of genetic differentiation (GST=0.589) and high fixation index (FST=0.566) demonstrated elevated genetic differentiation among the population and can be predicted that these populations are not in Hardy-Weinberg proportions. Principal Co-ordinate Analysis confirms that Akal population has become phylogenetically more distinct and less diverse than the rest of the samples. Mantel's test revealed no correlation between genetic and geographical distances of populations (R(2)=0.122). Overall highest diversity was observed in the population of Machiya Safari Park and Kiradu, while lowest in Akal population, later may constitute an evolutionary significant unit, having merit for special management.

Pharmacological properties of guggulsterones, the major active components of gum guggul.

Oleo gum resin secreted by Commiphora mukul, also known as gum guggul, has been used widely as an ayurvedic drug. Commiphora mukul is a short thorny shrub that is native to the Indian subcontinent. Oleo gum resin extracted by incision of the bark is a very complex mixture of gum, minerals, essential oils, terpenes, sterols, ferrulates, flavanones and sterones. Its active constituents, the Z- and E-guggulsterones, have been demonstrated to exhibit their biological activities by binding to nuclear receptors and modulating the expression of proteins involved in carcinogenic activities. Guggulsterones have also been reported to regulate gene expression by exhibiting control over other molecular targets including transcription factors such as nuclear factor (NF)-κB, signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) and steroid receptors. Considerable scientific evidence indicates the use of gum guggul as a therapeutic agent in the treatment of inflammation, nervous disorders, hyperlipidaemia and associated cardiac disorders such as hypertension and ischaemia, skin disorders, cancer and urinary disorders. This review highlights the taxonomic details, phytochemical properties and pharmacological profile of gum guggul.

Antioxidant and antibacterial activities of bark extracts from Commiphora berryi and Commiphora caudata.

This study investigates the in vitro antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of eight extracts obtained from the dried barks of Commiphora berryi and Commiphora caudata (Burseraceae). The radical scavenging activity was assessed by 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl hydrazyl (DPPH) and nitric oxide assays. The methanolic extracts of C. berryi and C. caudata showed significant DPPH radical scavenging activity, with IC50 values of 26.92 and 21.16 µg mL⁻¹, respectively, and low radical scavenging activity against the nitric oxide assay. The antimicrobial activity of the plants was tested against the Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. The ethyl acetate, chloroform and petroleum ether extracts of C. berryi showed good antibacterial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa, with a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.26 mg mL⁻¹, whereas the ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of C. caudata showed moderate antimicrobial activity with an MIC of more than 2.0 mg mL⁻¹ against P. aeruginosa compared to the petroleum ether and chloroform extracts, which showed an MIC of 1.1 mg mL⁻¹. The methanolic extracts of C. berryi and C. caudata also showed moderate cytotoxic activity against a human mammary carcinoma cell line (MCF-7), with values IC50 of 82.6 and 88.4 µg mL⁻¹, respectively.

Chemical characterization of a commercial Commiphora wightii resin sample and chemical profiling to assess for authenticity.

The gum resin of Commiphora wightii [(Hook. ex Stocks) Engl.] is an ayurvedic medicine for the treatment of arthritis, inflammation, obesity, lipid disorders, and cardiovascular diseases and is known as guggul. Morphologically, it is not easy to distinguish guggul from closely related gum resins of other plants. Reliability of the commercially available guggul is critical due to the high risk of adulteration. To check authenticity, a commercial guggul sample was investigated for its chemical markers and 17 metabolites were identified, including three new, 20(S),21-epoxy-3-oxocholest-4-ene (1), 8 ß-hydroxy-3,20-dioxopregn-4,6-diene (2), and 5-(13' Z-nonadecenyl)resorcinol (17) from the ethyl acetate soluble part. During the current study, compounds 14- 17 were identified as constituents of Mangifera indica gum, as an adulterant in the commercial guggul sample. This discovery highlighted the common malpractices in the trade of medicinal raw material in the developing world. The structures of the compounds were deduced by the spectroscopic technique and chemical methods, as well as by comparison with the reported data. The structure of 20(S),21-epoxy-3-oxocholest-4-ene (1) was also unambiguously deduced by single-crystal X-ray diffraction technique.