GREEN SYNTHESIS OF SILVER NANOBIOCONJUGATES FROM PIPER BETLE LEAVES AND ITS ANTICANCER ACTIVITY ON A549 CELLS

ABSTRACTObjective: This study focused on the anticancer effect of silver nanobioconjugates synthesis from betel leaf extract and its major component eugenol(EU) and its non-conjugated form.Methods: The silver nanobioconjugates were synthesized from betel leaf extract and its active compound EU under sunlight exposure. The anticanceractivity of nanobioconjugates was tested and reported in lung adenocarcinoma (A549 cell line). The non-toxicity of the conjugates was further affirmedin human peripheral blood lymphocytes as non-cancerous cells. The anticancer activity was analyzed by cell viability (3(4,5-dimethly-thiazol-2-yl)2,5-diphenyltetrazoliumbromideassay)and staining techniques(acridineorange/ethidiumbromide),whichwerecarried outin both the cancerousandnon-cancerouscells. The phase of cell death wasanalyzedbyflowcytometry.Results: The activity of nanobioconjugates was mediated by apoptosis as an evidence of low viability and nuclear fragmentation in lung cancer cellline. The cell cycle analysis also confirmed the efficiency of silver nanobioconjugates; the data reveal that the phenolic compound of betel leaves haspotent anticancer activity against the cancer cells in the form of nano, when compared with the non-conjugates.Conclusion: The study demonstrated the synthesized silver nanobioconjugates have potent anticancer activity than their non-nano form.Keywords: Betel leaves, Eugenol, Silver nanoparticles, Anticancer, A549 cells

INVESTIGATION ON THE MECHANISM OF ACTION OF THE LEAVES OF TRIANTHEMA PORTULACASTRUM ON HUMAN PATHOGENS

Objective: Many of the plants are used for medicinal purposes in human health needs. Trianthema portulacastrum has got many medicinal values andalso a dietary plant, being used in Ayurveda. It exhibits nephroprotective, diuretic, anti-cancerous, antihelmintic, antipyretic, analgesic properties,anti-inflammatory activity, and also antibacterial activity. The objective of this study is to determine the mechanism of action of the leaves ofT. portulacastrum on human pathogens.Methods: The mechanism has been analyzed by membrane permeability, time-kill kinetics, hemolytic activity, DNA binding ability, post antibioticeffect, and bacterial membrane damage by scanning electron microscopy.Results: This study reveal that the flavonoid and methanol fractions of T. portulacastrum have potent antibacterial activity against Staphylococcusaureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae. The leaves of T. portulacastrum has been proved as a safer drug indicating its noncytotoxic property and found tokill the bacterial cells by permeating the membrane and damage the DNA of the bacterial cells.Conclusion: This study proved the mode of antibacterial action of T. portulacastrum on S. aureus and K. pneumoniae indicating its antibacterialefficacy on human pathogens.Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus, Postantibiotic, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Trianthema portulacastrum

Male infertility in spinal cord trauma

Every year there are 10 thousand new cases of patients victimized by spinal cord trauma (SCT) in the United States and it is estimated that there are 7 thousand new cases in Brazil. Eighty percent of patients are fertile males. Infertility in this patient group is due to 3 main factors resulting from spinal cord lesions: erectile dysfunction, ejaculatory disorder and low sperm counts. Erectile dysfunction has been successfully treated with oral and injectable medications, use of vacuum devices and penile prosthesis implants. The technological improvement in penile vibratory stimulation devices (PVS) and rectal probe electro-ejaculation (RPE) has made such procedures safer and accessible to patients with ejaculatory dysfunction. Despite the normal number of spermatozoa found in semen of spinal cord-injured patients, their motility is abnormal. This change does not seem to be related to changes in scrotal thermal regulation, frequency of ejaculation or duration of spinal cord damage but to factors related to the seminal plasma. Despite the poor seminal quality, increasingly more men with SCT have become fathers through techniques ranging from simple homologous insemination to sophisticated assisted reproduction techniques such as intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP), Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM) Department of UrologySan Francisco Home School Section of UrologyUNIFESP, EPM, Department of UrologySciEL

A DNA Vaccine against Chikungunya Virus Is Protective in Mice and Induces Neutralizing Antibodies in Mice and Nonhuman Primates

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is an emerging mosquito-borne alphavirus indigenous to tropical Africa and Asia. Acute illness is characterized by fever, arthralgias, conjunctivitis, rash, and sometimes arthritis. Relatively little is known about the antigenic targets for immunity, and no licensed vaccines or therapeutics are currently available for the pathogen. While the Aedes aegypti mosquito is its primary vector, recent evidence suggests that other carriers can transmit CHIKV thus raising concerns about its spread outside of natural endemic areas to new countries including the U.S. and Europe. Considering the potential for pandemic spread, understanding the development of immunity is paramount to the development of effective counter measures against CHIKV. In this study, we isolated a new CHIKV virus from an acutely infected human patient and developed a defined viral challenge stock in mice that allowed us to study viral pathogenesis and develop a viral neutralization assay. We then constructed a synthetic DNA vaccine delivered by in vivo electroporation (EP) that expresses a component of the CHIKV envelope glycoprotein and used this model to evaluate its efficacy. Vaccination induced robust antigen-specific cellular and humoral immune responses, which individually were capable of providing protection against CHIKV challenge in mice. Furthermore, vaccine studies in rhesus macaques demonstrated induction of nAb responses, which mimicked those induced in convalescent human patient sera. These data suggest a protective role for nAb against CHIKV disease and support further study of envelope-based CHIKV DNA vaccines

Modulatory effects of <i>Moringa oleifera</i> extracts against hydrogen peroxide-induced cytotoxicity and oxidative damage

Studies have demonstrated that the induction of oxidative stress may be involved in oxidative DNA damage. The present study examined and assessed the hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-mediated DNA damage in human tumor KB cells and also assessed the ability of Moringa oleifera leaf extracts to inhibit the oxidative damage. H2O2 imposed a stress on the membrane lipids which was quantified by the extent of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) formed. The leaf extracts caused a very significant inhibition of the extent of LPO formation and enhanced the activity of antioxidative enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) in KB cells. The comet assay was employed to study the DNA damage and its inhibition by the leaf extracts. H2O2 caused a significant increase in the number of cells bearing comets, resulting in significant DNA damage. The leaf extracts significantly reduced the incidence of comets in the oxidant stressed cells. The extent of cytotoxicity of H2O2 in the presence and the absence of leaf extracts studied in KB tumor cells by the MTT assay showed that H2O2 caused a marked decrease in the viability of KB cells where as the leaf extracts effectively increased the viability of assaulted KB cells. The observed cytoprotective activity is probably due to the antioxidant properties of its constituents, mainly phenolics. Total phenolics showed higher correlation with antioxidant activity. The leaf extracts showed higher antioxidant activity than the reference compound. These results suggest that the inhibition by the leaf extracts on oxidative DNA damage could be attributed to their free radical scavenging activities and the effect evidenced in KB cells can be in part correlated to a modulation of redox-sensitive mechanisms. </jats:p

Induction of DNA damage by the leaves and rhizomes of Curcuma amada Roxb in breast cancer cell lines

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate DNA damage inducing effect of the methanolic extract of both the leaves and the rhizomes of Curcuma amada (C. amada) against breast cancer cell lines MCF-7 and MDA MB 231 and analyze the active components present in the methanolic extract of the leaves and the rhizomes.MethodsThe DNA damage induced in yeast was assessed using diphenylamine method. The DNA damage induced by the extracts in cell lines was assessed using single cell gel electrophoresis (Comet assay). Various phytochemicals present in the leaves and the rhizomes were analysed using various chromatographic and spectral studies. A normal non-cancer cell line HBL-100 and an eukaryotic model organism yeast was also used for comparison.ResultsThe results indicated that the methanolic extract of both the leaves and the rhizomes of C. amada induced cell death in the breast cancer cell lines MCF-7 and MDA MB 231. The extracts showed less DNA damage in yeast and HBL-100 cells. The phytochemical investigation revealed the presence of more amounts of terpenoids and steroids in both the leaves and rhizomes.ConclusionsThe results indicated that the methanolic extract of leaves of rhizomes of C. amada possess genotoxic and cytotoxic activity against the breast cancer cell lines

CHARACTERIZATION, ANTIMICROBIAL, AND METABOLIC ACTIVITY OF GREEN AND CHEMICALLY SYNTHESIZED ZINC OXIDE NANOPARTICLES

Objectives: The aim of the present study is a synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) by green and chemical method. The nanoparticles were tested for their antimicrobial, antibiofilm activity, biocompatibility, and hemolysis activity. Methods: We have synthesized ZnONPs both by green and chemical synthesis using the coprecipitation method. To understand the functional group, absorbance, crystalline nature, size, and shape of the synthesized particles, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy were done. Antibacterial activity was carried out using different bacterial strains. The cytotoxicity of synthesized nanoparticles was checked using MTT assay with Klebsiella pneumoniae. Antibiofilm activities of both synthesized nanoparticles were done using Staphylococcus aureus and to assess the toxicity of nanoparticles at the cellular level, hemolysis assay was performed. Results: The yield of nanoparticles in green synthesis was much higher when compared to chemical synthesis. Spectral results showed that the synthesized nanoparticles were ZnONPs. Antibacterial, antibiofilm, and hemolysis assay showed that green nanoparticles were more potent than chemical nanoparticles. Conclusion: Hence, green synthesis provides an advantage over chemical synthesis as it is cost effective, environmentally friendly, and easily scaled up for large-scale synthesis

Putting your best cyber identity forward - An analysis of 'Success Stories' from a Russian Internet marriage agency

This article analyses the profiles of a sample of Russian women seeking partners from western countries collected from the website of an Internet marriage agency The popular viewpoint is that such women, in possible collusion with the agency, use the anonymity of the Internet to create an image of a perfect partner for a western male. Taking the information at face value, the article compares single women seeking partners to women featured in a 'Success Stories' section. The study finds that although most of the self-reported information is not significantly different across the two groups, women from major cities (which are the locations of 'romance tours') are twice as likely to be successful. Surprisingly, standard factors valued in marriage markets do not matter. The findings are interpreted as evidence of the importance of face-to-face meetings and as partial support for the authenticity of the data included in the profiles

CHARACTERIZATION, ANTIMICROBIAL, AND METABOLIC ACTIVITY OF GREEN AND CHEMICALLY SYNTHESIZED ZINC OXIDE NANOPARTICLES

Objectives: The aim of the present study is a synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) by green and chemical method. The nanoparticles were tested for their antimicrobial, antibiofilm activity, biocompatibility, and hemolysis activity.&#x0D; Methods: We have synthesized ZnONPs both by green and chemical synthesis using the coprecipitation method. To understand the functional group, absorbance, crystalline nature, size, and shape of the synthesized particles, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy were done. Antibacterial activity was carried out using different bacterial strains. The cytotoxicity of synthesized nanoparticles was checked using MTT assay with Klebsiella pneumoniae. Antibiofilm activities of both synthesized nanoparticles were done using Staphylococcus aureus and to assess the toxicity of nanoparticles at the cellular level, hemolysis assay was performed.&#x0D; Results: The yield of nanoparticles in green synthesis was much higher when compared to chemical synthesis. Spectral results showed that the synthesized nanoparticles were ZnONPs. Antibacterial, antibiofilm, and hemolysis assay showed that green nanoparticles were more potent than chemical nanoparticles.&#x0D; Conclusion: Hence, green synthesis provides an advantage over chemical synthesis as it is cost effective, environmentally friendly, and easily scaled up for large-scale synthesis.</jats:p