Spray-dried powder of for control of rice sheath blight disease: Formulation protocol and efficacy testing in laboratory and greenhouse

A spray-dried powder containing Bacillus megaterium was developed and tested for control of rice sheath blight disease in the greenhouse. The formulation consisted of 20 ml of an endospore suspension of B. megaterium, 20% w/v of skim milk powder and 1.25% w/v of polyvinyl pyrrolidone k-90, that were mixed and spray dried at 120 °C. The powder displayed good physical characteristics, such as a low-moisture content and a high solubility in water. Bacterial viability in the powder was 3.5±0.1 × 1011 cfu/g after production and remained relatively stable (at 2.2±0.1 × 1010 cfu/g) after 12 months of storage at room temperature. In the laboratory, a 0.1% (w/v) aqueous solution of the formulation was effective in inhibiting the mycelia growth of Rhizoctonia solani (98.5±0.1% inhibition). Under greenhouse conditions, a 0.1% (w/v) aqueous solution applied by either spraying 1 day before inoculating R. solani or spraying 1, 7 and 15 days after inoculation of rice plants with R. solani was more effective in suppressing sheath blight disease than the blank formulation but was less effective than a chemical fungicide control

ANTI-INFLAMMATORY, ANTIBACTERIAL, AND ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITIES OF THAI MEDICINAL PLANTS

Objective: Acacia farnesiana (L.) Willd, Senna alata (L.) Roxb., Sesbania grandiflora (L.) Pers., Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels and Tabernaemontana divaricate (L.) R. Br. ex Roem. & Schult. are used in Thai traditional remedies to treat various disorders ranging from fever and pain to inflammation or microbial infections. However, there is a lack of scientific data on some of the biological activities. Methods: The present study was designed to compare the antibacterial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory effects of the five plants. Ethanolic extracts of A. farnesiana, S. alata, S. grandiflora, S. cumini, T. divaricata were firstly compared for antioxidant activity using free radical scavenging of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl and ferric reducing antioxidant power tests. Antibacterial activity indicated by minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) was determined using broth and agar dilution tests against aerobic and anaerobic pathogenic bacterial strains. The anti-inflammatory activity was evaluated in vitro using a lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated RAW 264.7 macrophage model.Results: All the tested extracts exerted antioxidant, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects. S. cumini and S. grandiflora extracts showed the highest free radical scavenging activities. S. cumini extract showed the highest activity against Staphylococcus aureus, S. epidermidis, and Corynebacterium diphtheriae. All extracts exerted anti-inflammatory activity as indicated by a reduction of interleukin (IL)-6 secretion and/or tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α production.Conclusion: Taken together, these findings suggest that the tested plants can be developed as effective herbal remedies for the treatment and prevention of inflammation or associated diseases as well as against bacterial infections.Â

BIOACTIVITIES OF THE THAI MEDICINAL AND EDIBLE PLANTS C. CAJAN, M. CITRIFOLIA AND O. AMERICANUM

Objective: Inflammation and oxidative stress are closely related and play a role in various diseases. If an infectious component plays a role, an antibacterial effect is of advantage. Thus, natural remedies which combine different bioactivities have a broader range of application.Methods: Here we elucidate the anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antibacterial effects of three edible and traditionally used Thai plants including leaves of Cajanus cajan, Morinda citrifolia and Ocimum americanum.Results: The extracts exerted significant anti-inflammatory activity in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-stimulated macrophages. C. cajan extract shows a broad spectrum of antibacterial activity against Gram positive and negative, aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, whereas M. citrifolia and O. americanum possess antibacterial activity only against anaerobic bacteria. Extracts of all three plants showed significant antioxidant effects.Conclusion: The three plants are potential herbal remedies or supplements for functional food for the treatment and prevention of inflammation, oxidative imbalance, and bacterial infections or associated diseases.Â

Bioconversion of piceid to resveratrol by selected probiotic cell extracts

Resveratrol exerts several pharmacological activities, including anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, cardioprotective, or antioxidant effects. However, due to its occurrence in plants more in glycosidic form as piceid, the bioavailability and bioactivity are limited. The enzymatic potential of probiotics for the transformation of piceid to resveratrol was elucidated. Cell extract from Bifidobacteria (B.) infantis, B. bifidum, Lactobacillus (L.) casei, L. plantarum, and L. acidophilus was evaluated for their effect in this bioconversion using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) as analytical tool. Cell extract of B. infantis showed the highest effect on the deglycosylation of piceid to resveratrol, already after 30 min. Cell extracts of all other tested strains showed a significant biotransformation with no further metabolization of resveratrol. The conversion of piceid to resveratrol is of importance to increase bioavailability and bioactivity as shown for anti-inflammation in this study. Cell extracts from probiotics, especially from B. infantis, may be added to piceid containing products, for achieving higher biological effects caused by the bioactivity of resveratrol or by health promoting of the probiotics. These findings open a new perspective of novel combination of cell extracts from probiotics and piceid, in health-promoting pharmaceutical and food products

Preclinical In Vitro

Molecular imaging probes such as PET-tracers have the potential to improve the accuracy of tumor characterization by directly visualizing the biochemical situation. Thus, molecular changes can be detected early before morphological manifestation. The A3 adenosine receptor (A3AR) is described to be highly expressed in colon cancer cell lines and human colorectal cancer (CRC), suggesting this receptor as a tumor marker. The aim of this preclinical study was the evaluation of [F]FE@SUPPY as a PET-tracer for CRC using in vitro imaging and in vivo PET imaging. First, affinity and selectivity of FE@SUPPY and its metabolites were determined, proving the favorable binding profile of FE@SUPPY. The human adenocarcinoma cell line HT-29 was characterized regarding its hA3AR expression and was subsequently chosen as tumor graft. Promising results regarding the potential of [F]FE@SUPPY as a PET-tracer for CRC imaging were obtained by autoradiography as 2.3-fold higher accumulation of [F]FE@SUPPY was found in CRC tissue compared to adjacent healthy colon tissue from the same patient. Nevertheless, first in vivo studies using HT-29 xenografts showed insufficient tumor uptake due to (1) poor conservation of target expression in xenografts and (2) unfavorable pharmacokinetics of [F]FE@SUPPY in mice. We therefore conclude that HT-29 xenografts are not adequate to visualize hA3ARs using [F]FE@SUPPY.(VLID)481541

Strain-induced structure and oxygen transport interactions in epitaxial La<inf>0.6</inf>Sr<inf>0.4</inf>CoO<inf>3−δ</inf> thin films

AbstractThe possibility to control oxygen transport in one of the most promising solid oxide fuel cell cathode materials, La0.6Sr0.4CoO3−δ, by controlling lattice strain raises questions regarding the contribution of atomic scale effects. Here, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy revealed the different atomic structures in La0.6Sr0.4CoO3−δ thin films grown under tensile and compressive strain conditions. The atomic structure of the tensile-strained film indicated significant local concentration of the oxygen vacancies, with the average value of the oxygen non-stoichiometry being much larger than for the compressive-strained film. In addition to the vacancy concentration differences that are measured by isotope exchange depth profiling, significant vacancy ordering was found in tensile-strained films. This understanding might be useful for tuning the atomic structure of La0.6Sr0.4CoO3−δ thin films to optimize cathode performance.</jats:p

Strain-induced structure and oxygen transport interactions in epitaxial La 0.6 Sr 0.4 CoO 3− δ thin films

Abstract: The possibility to control oxygen transport in one of the most promising solid oxide fuel cell cathode materials, La0.6Sr0.4CoO3−δ, by controlling lattice strain raises questions regarding the contribution of atomic scale effects. Here, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy revealed the different atomic structures in La0.6Sr0.4CoO3−δ thin films grown under tensile and compressive strain conditions. The atomic structure of the tensile-strained film indicated significant local concentration of the oxygen vacancies, with the average value of the oxygen non-stoichiometry being much larger than for the compressive-strained film. In addition to the vacancy concentration differences that are measured by isotope exchange depth profiling, significant vacancy ordering was found in tensile-strained films. This understanding might be useful for tuning the atomic structure of La0.6Sr0.4CoO3−δ thin films to optimize cathode performance

Author Correction: Strain-induced structure and oxygen transport interactions in epitaxial La 0.6 Sr 0.4 CoO 3−δ thin films

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper