Nigella sativa seed and its active compounds have been historically recognized as an effective herbal panacea that can establish a balanced inflammatory response by suppressing chronic inflammation ...and promoting healthy immune response. The essential oil and other preparations of N. sativa seed have substantial therapeutic outcomes against immune disturbance, autophagy dysfunction, oxidative stress, ischemia, inflammation, in several COVID‐19 comorbidities such as diabetes, cardiovascular disorders, Kawasaki‐like diseases, and many bacterial and viral infections. Compelling evidence in the therapeutic efficiency of N. sativa along with the recent computational findings is strongly suggestive of combating emerged COVID‐19 pandemic. Also, being an available candidate in nutraceuticals, N. sativa seed oil could be immensely potential and feasible to prevent and cure COVID‐19. This review was aimed at revisiting the pharmacological benefits of N. sativa seed and its active metabolites that may constitute a potential basis for developing a novel preventive and therapeutic strategy against COVID‐19. Bioactive compounds of N. sativa seed, especially thymiquinone, α‐hederin, and nigellidine, could be alternative and promising herbal drugs to combat COVID‐19. Preclinical and clinical trials are required to delineate detailed mechanism of N. sativa's active components and to investigate their efficacy and potency under specific pathophysiological conditions of COVID‐19.
•Microalgae contains various nutritious and bio-active compounds.•Microalgae is capable of preventing or curing various acute and chronic diseases.•Microalgae is under-exploited crop due to its ...capital-intensive nature.•Microalgal biorefinery approach can enable sustainable growth in the market.
Microalgae has been consumed in human diet for thousands of years. It is an under-exploited crop for production of dietary foods. Microalgae cultivation does not compete with land and resources required for traditional crops and has a superior yield compared to terrestrial crops. Its high protein content has exhibited a huge potential to meet the dietary requirements of growing population. Apart from being a source of protein, presence of various bio-active components in microalgae provide an added health benefit. This review describes various microalgal sources of proteins and other bio-active components. One of the heavily studied group of bio-active components are pigments due to their anticarcenogenic, antioxidative and antihypertensive properties. Compared to various plant and floral species, microalgae contain higher amounts of pigments. Microalgal derived proteins have complete Essential Amino Acids (EAA) profiles and their protein content is higher than conventional sources such as meat, poultry and dairy products. However, microalgal based functional foods have not flooded the market. The lack of awareness coupled with scarce incentives for producers result in under-exploitation of microalgal potential. Application of microalgal derived components as dietary and nutraceutical supplements is discussed comprehensively.
Inducing brown adipocytes in white adipose tissues is a promising target to combat obesity and its related disorders in human beings. This goal has been especially encouraged by new important ...discoveries of human brown adipose tissues. The accumulating evidence confirms the presence of active brown adipocytes, not only in newborns, but also in adult humans. In rodents, there are two populations of the Ucp1-expressing adipocytes with well characterized-thermogenic functions, classical interscapular brown adipocytes and brite/beige adipocytes (brown adipocytes that are induced in white adipose tissues). Importantly, the anatomical localization, gene expression profiling and functional characterization of Ucp1-expressing fat cells indicates brite and brown adipocytes coexist in human beings. Therefore, the research directions of brown and brite adipogenesis provide lead to potential new therapies to fight obesity and its related metabolic diseases in human being. The objectives of this review are (1) to discuss the fate of primary adipocytes based on tissue origins, and (2) to discuss mechanisms of brown and brite adipogenesis which could lead to their different responses to browning reagents.
•The origin of progenitor cells determines the type of adipocytes in vitro.•Brite and brown adipocytes are different in response to browning reagents.•Cultured adipocytes reflect fat depots of juvenile mice in biomarkers expression.
Bone marrow mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (BMSCs), which are known as multipotent cells, are widely used in the treatment of various diseases via their self-renewable, differentiation, and ...immunomodulatory properties. In-vitro and in-vivo studies have supported the understanding mechanisms, safety, and efficacy of BMSCs therapy in clinical applications. The number of clinical trials in phase I/II is accelerating; however, they are limited in the size of subjects, regulations, and standards for the preparation and transportation and administration of BMSCs, leading to inconsistency in the input and outcome of the therapy. Based on the International Society for Cellular Therapy guidelines, the characterization, isolation, cultivation, differentiation, and applications can be optimized and standardized, which are compliant with good manufacturing practice requirements to produce clinical-grade preparation of BMSCs. This review highlights and updates on the progress of production, as well as provides further challenges in the studies of BMSCs, for the approval of BMSCs widely in clinical application.
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•Simple and rapid biphasic partitioning for phycobiliprotein purification.•Incorporation of bubbles assistance for purification improvements.•Optimization of process parameters for ...liquid biphasic flotation.•C-phycocyanin recovery of 90.4% with purification fold of 3.49.
Liquid biphasic flotation (LBF), an integrated process of liquid biphasic system (LBS) and adsorptive bubbles flotation, was used for the purification of C-phycocyanin from S. platensis microalgae. Various experimental parameters such as type of phase forming polymer and salt, concentration of phase forming components, system pH, volume ratio, air flotation time and crude extract concentration were evaluated to maximise the C-phycocyanin recovery yield and purity. The optimal conditions for the LBF system achieving C-phycocyanin purification fold of 3.49 compared to 2.43 from the initial LBF conditions was in polyethylene glycol (PEG) 4000 and potassium phosphate combination, with 250 g/L of polymer and salt concentration each, volume ratio of 1:0.85, system pH of 7.0, air flotation duration of 7 min and phycocyanin crude extract concentration of 0.625 %w/w. The LBF has effectively enhanced the purification of C-phycocyanin in a cost effective and simple processing.
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•Ginkgo kernel juice was a suitable substrate for the growth of lactic acid bacteria.•Significant degradation in ginkgolic acids was observed after lactic acid fermentation.•Terpene ...lactones and phenolics were enriched through lactic acid fermentation.•Antioxidant and antimicrobial activities were enhanced after lactic acid fermentation.
In this paper, the influence of lactic acid fermentation on the metabolic profile of ginkgo kernel juice was studied. For this purpose, three lactic acid bacteria (LAB), Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus casei, were selected. The results showed that all the lactobacilli grew well in ginkgo kernel juice with viable cell counts exceeding 8.0 Log CFU/mL. The organic acid contents underwent dynamic changes, and the lactic acid production reached more than 3 g/L. The consumption of sugars and free amino acids by LAB was evident. Meanwhile, more than 70% of the ginkgolic acids were degraded by LAB, and the final concentrations in ginkgo kernel juice were below 1 mg/L after 48 h of fermentation. In contrast, the terpene lactones contents in fermented ginkgo kernel juice exceed 20 mg/L, which was 1.6-fold higher than that in the unfermented juice. Certain phenolics were significantly enriched, and the total phenolic content increased by approximately 9% through fermentation. In addition, lactic acid fermentation significantly enhanced the antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of ginkgo kernel juice. Overall, the results indicated that lactic acid fermentation can effectively improve the nutritional value and safety of ginkgo kernel juice.
The insufficient and unspecific target of traditional therapeutic approaches in cancer treatment often leads to therapy resistance and cancer recurrence. Over the past decades, accumulating ...discoveries about stem cell biology have provided new potential approaches to cure cancer patients. Stem cells possess unique biological actions, including self-renewal, directional migration, differentiation, and modulatory effects on other cells, which can be utilized as regenerative medicine, therapeutic carriers, drug targeting, and generation of immune cells. In this review, we emphasize the mechanisms underlying the use of various types of stem cells in cancer treatment. In addition, we summarize recent progress in the clinical applications of stem cells, as well as common risks of this therapy. We finally give general directions for future studies, aiming to improve overall outcomes in the fight against cancer.
Production of high grade cellulolytic enzymes from waste agricultural biomass would valorise these wastes to valuable products as well as avoid the pollution problems associated with landfilling of ...the biomass. In the present study, waste date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) seeds were valorised for cellulase production from Cellulomonas uda NCIM 2353 and for its subsequent usage in biohydrogen production. Optimization of key operational parameters such as date seed concentration, xylose, casein and initial media pH were performed using central composite design to obtain the maximum enzyme yield. The optimum values obtained were (g/L): date seed concentration 30.65, xylose concentration 0.55, casein 7.00 and pH 7.40 for a determination coefficient of 0.999. The results demonstrated a higher prediction accuracy of response surface methodology as the cellulase activity increased six fold (175.96 IU/mL) after optimization. The optimum pH and temperature of purified cellulase was 7 and 50 °C respectively where the enzyme retained nearly 80% of activity upto 180 min. Enzymatic hydrolysis studies showed that a high saccharification efficiency of 60.5% was obtained for acid pretreated sugarcane bagasse by the indigenous cellulase, equivalent to the performance of commercial cellulase. Further, the as-obtained reducing sugars were decomposed by Clostridium thermocellum to produce biohydrogen of maximum concentration 187.44 mmol/L at end of 24 h of fermentation. Results show that date seed substrate based cellulase protein can be employed for industrial processes of biohydrogen production.
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•Date pits were valorized for high grade cellulase production using Cellulomonas uda.•Cellulase production from date seeds was optimized by response surface methodology.•The enzyme exhibited high activity at pH 7 & temperature 50 °C with good stability.•Sugarcane bagasse hydrolysis by cellulase showed 60.5% saccharification efficiency.•Biohydrogen production from cellulase revealed a high productivity of 187.44 mmol/L.
•Ultrasound promoted adsorption/desorption of anthocyanins using macroporous resin.•Malvidin-3-galactoside had the highest adsorption and desorption capacities.•Ultrasound strengthened formation of ...hydrogen bond between anthocyanins and resins.•Ultrasound increased surface roughness of resins.
In this study, the impact of ultrasound on the adsorption and desorption features of blueberry anthocyanins on macroporous resins were studied. Sonication was performed at 106–279 W/L and 20–30 °C in a pulsed mode, respectively. Generally, ultrasound treatments within the selected experimental range enhanced the adsorption/desorption process of anthocyanins on macroporous resins. The recovery of blueberry anthocyanins after ultrasound-assisted adsorption/desorption process at 279 W/L and 20 °C was 82.12%, which was 52.84% higher than that obtained after adsorption/desorption with shaking at 100 rpm. Meanwhile, higher acoustic energy density (AED) levels and lower temperatures benefited the adsorption process through enhancing the adsorption capacity and shortening the equilibrium time, whereas higher temperatures promoted the desorption process. Furthermore, malvidin-3-galactoside had the highest adsorption and desorption capacities among all the studied monomeric anthocyanins. No organic acids and sugars were detected after adsorption/desorption processes, indicating the successful improvement of anthocyanin purification. Sonication mainly enhanced the adsorption process by means of strengthening the formation of hydrogen bond on resins surface and increasing their surface roughness. Overall, ultrasound can be an effective tool to improve the purification of anthocyanins using macroporous resins.
Overweight and obesity (OW and OB) have been on the increase globally and posed health risks to the world’s population of all ages, including pre-born babies, children, adolescents, adults and ...elderly people, via their comorbid conditions. Excellent examples of comorbidities associated with obesity include cancer, cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). In this article, we aimed to review and update scientific evidence regarding the relationships between obesity and its common physical health consequences, including CVD, T2DM, hypertension, ischemic stroke, cancer, dyslipidemia and reproductive disorders. In addition, the economic burden of OW and OB will be discussed. Abundant evidence is found to support the associations between obesity and other diseases. In general, the odd ratios, risk ratios or hazard ratios are often higher in OW and OB people than in the normal-weight ones. However, the molecular mechanism of how OW and OB induce the development of other diseases has not been fully understood. Figures also showed that obesity and its-related disorders exert enormous pressure on the economy which is projected to increase. This review highlights the fact that obesity can lead to numerous lethal health problems; therefore, it requires a lot of economic resources to fight against this epidemic.
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