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Topic Review
Biological Activities of Mucuna Pruriens
Mature fruits of M. pruriens were harvested from Fort Hare University’s Research Farm located in Alice, South Africa. The collected seeds were pulverized in a standard process and taken to the laboratory for crude extraction and further treatments. Cytotoxic, antimalarial, and trypanocidal effects of crude extracts obtained from ethanol and water were tested, while the total phenolic, proanthocyanidin, and flavonoid contents of the aqueous extracts as well as their pharmacological activities were determined in vitro using 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl ethanol (DPPH), ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), and 2,2′-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulphonic acid) (ABTS) assays. Although the extracts showed mild antiparasitic (antiplasmodial and trypanocidal) effects, results from the cytotoxic experiment revealed that M. pruriens is not toxic to human cervix adenocarcinoma (HeLa) cells when tested using 50 µg/mL of extracts. It was observed that the seeds were remarkably rich in phenol (3730.1 ± 15.52 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g) compared to flavonoids (63.03 ± 1.95 mg quercetin equivalent (QE)/g) and proanthocyanidin (18.92 ± 1.09 mg catechin equivalent (CE)/g). Also, the antioxidant activities of the extracts were comparable to those of the standard antioxidant drugs (rutin and gallic acid) used, in a concentration-dependent manner. There was a direct relationship between phenolic acid content and antioxidant effects. It is therefore suggested that M. pruriens seeds be incorporated into human diets as a supplement to promote healthy living. Pharmaceutical industries with a particular interest in natural phenolic acids should consider using seeds of M. pruriens as pharmaceutical precursors. 
  • 1.2K
  • 09 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Discriminative Measurement for Radon Isotopes
Radon and thoron measurement studies have been widely conducted and reported all over the world. Generally, the techniques used relate to the passive nuclear track detectors. Though some surveys shown that passive monitors for radon are sensitive to thoron, and hence the measured results might be probably overestimated the radon concentration. This study investigated the radon and thoron measurement in domestic and international using passive radon-thoron discriminative measuring device, commercially named RADUET. This paper attempts to provide an understanding and evident roadmap for discriminative measurements of radon isotopes.
  • 1.2K
  • 05 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Techniques of Making Edible Coatings
Edible coatings are made from natural food-grade materials, such as hydrocolloids (polysaccharides, proteins), lipids, and emulsifiers, produced with different techniques, such as dipping (immersing), spraying, spreading, brushing, pressing them/thermoforming, or extrusion. The most used method for coating is immersing, where food is dipped in a liquid containing food matrices, forming a film around the food and protecting all the components present.
  • 1.2K
  • 15 Sep 2023
Topic Review
Mouth Pain in Horses
Mouth pain in horses, specifically that caused by bits, is evaluated as a significant welfare issue. The conscious experiences of pain generated within the body generally, its roles, and its assessment using behaviour, as well as the sensory functionality of the horse’s mouth, are outlined as background to a more detailed evaluation of mouth pain. Bit-induced mouth pain elicited by compression, laceration, inflammation, impeded blood flow, and the stretching of tissues is considered. Observable signs of mouth pain are behaviours that are present in bitted horses and absent or much less prevalent when they are bit-free. It is noted that many equestrians do not recognise that these behaviours indicate mouth pain, so that the magnitude of the problem is often underestimated. 
  • 1.2K
  • 19 Jan 2022
Topic Review
Vestigiality
Vestigiality is the retention during the process of evolution of genetically determined structures or attributes that have lost some or all of the ancestral function in a given species. Assessment of the vestigiality must generally rely on comparison with homologous features in related species. The emergence of vestigiality occurs by normal evolutionary processes, typically by loss of function of a feature that is no longer subject to positive selection pressures when it loses its value in a changing environment. The feature may be selected against more urgently when its function becomes definitively harmful, but if the lack of the feature provides no advantage, and its presence provides no disadvantage, the feature may not be phased out by natural selection and persist across species. Examples of vestigial structures (also called degenerate, atrophied, or rudimentary organs) are the loss of functional wings in island-dwelling birds; the human vomeronasal organ; and the hindlimbs of the snake and whale. The human appendix is no longer considered vestigial.
  • 1.2K
  • 24 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Alternative Splicing
Alternative splicing (AS) is a critical post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism used by more than 95% of transcribed human genes and responsible for structural transcript variation and proteome diversity.
  • 1.2K
  • 18 Mar 2021
Topic Review
Medicinal Value of Black Mulberry
Roughly 100 species of Morus have been described, such as Morus alba (white mulberry), Morus rubra (red mulberry), and Morus nigra (black mulberry). The mulberry plant is monoecious or dioecious, reaching up to 10–12 m in height. Morus nigra (Moraceae family) is commonly distributed in Asia, Africa, Europe, and America. Given its therapeutic properties, the leaves, root barks, branches, and fruits are traditionally used in medicinal preparations to manage diabetes mellitus, atherosclerosis, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension. Various extracts of mulberry leaves were studied over the years, investigating their bioactive compounds’ pharmaceutical in public health concerns, such as diabetes, hepatic diseases, and cardiovascular diseases. This entry is based on a literature review and highlights the beneficial and therapeutic action of black mulberry extracts and their confirmed or hypothesized mechanism of action in diabetes, hepatic disorders, and cardiovascular disease, as indicated by the results of in vivo and in vitro studies, on cell lines, human and animal models.
  • 1.2K
  • 10 May 2021
Topic Review
Hepacivirus C
Hepacivirus C (HCV) is a small (55–65 nm in size), enveloped, positive-sense single-stranded RNA virus of the family Flaviviridae. The Hepacivirus C is the cause of hepatitis C and some cancers such as liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma, abbreviated HCC) and lymphomas in humans.
  • 1.2K
  • 15 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Natural Dibenzo-α-pyrone: Friends or Foes?
Dibenzo-α-pyrone (DAP) is the basic scaffold of a group of naturally occurring chemicals. From one angle, the gastrointestinal metabolites urolithins are regarded as beneficial, while from the other, the emerging mycotoxin alternariol and related fungal metabolites are evaluated critically with regards to potential hazardous effects. 
  • 1.2K
  • 20 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Haemophilus influenzae HP1 Bacteriophage
Haemophilus influenzae is an obligate commensal of the upper respiratory tract in humans and may be responsible for upper respiratory tract infections and even meningitis. Seven biologically active H. influenzae dsDNA phages have been currently described: HP1, HP2, HP3, S2A, S2B, S2C, N3 and Mu-like phage φflu. The most studied is the group of HP1/S2 phages. The temperate H. influenzae phage HP1 belongs to the Myoviridae family of phages and infects Rd strains of H. influenzae. HP1 has a head-tail structure. Its genome is about 32 kb long and encodes 41 potential proteins. Early promoters, which control the lysis-versus-lysogeny decision seem to be located toward the 5’ end of the genome. The late promoter is located between orf16 and orf17, and regulates the expression of late genes, including the lys and hol genes, encoding a SAR-endolysin and a pinholin. Endolysin alone is responsible for cell lysis. The control of endolysin activity seems to be related to conformational changes in holin structure. HP1 phages encodes Dam methyltransferase, which role in HP1 life cycle remains unknown.
  • 1.2K
  • 06 Nov 2020
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