Explore the vast range of titles available.

The current study was undertaken to study the effect of Spirulina platensis (Spirulina) extract on enhanced oxidative stress during high glucose induced cell death in H9c2 cells. H9c2 cultured under high glucose (33 mM) conditions resulted in a noteworthy increase in oxidative stress (free radical species) accompanied by loss of mitochondrial membrane potential, release of cytochrome c, increase in caspase activity and pro-apoptotic protein (Bax). Spirulina extract (1 μg/mL), considerably inhibited increased ROS and RNS levels, reduction in cytochrome c release, raise in mitochondrial membrane potential, decreased the over expression of proapoptotic protein Bax and suppressed the Bax/Bcl2 ratio with induced apoptosis without affecting cell viability. Overall results suggest that Spirulina extract plays preventing role against enhanced oxidative stress during high glucose induced apoptosis in cardiomyoblasts as well as related dysfunction in H9c2 cells. Graphical Abstract

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the most common cancer worldwide. The treatment of locally advanced disease generally requires various combinations of radiotherapy, surgery, and systemic therapy. Despite aggressive multimodal treatment, most of the patients relapse. Identification of molecules that sustain cancer cell growth and survival has made molecular targeting a feasible therapeutic strategy. Survivin is a member of the Inhibitor of Apoptosis Protein (IAP) family, which is overexpressed in most of the malignancies including SCC and totally absent in most of the normal tissues. This feature makes survivin an ideal target for cancer therapy. It orchestrates several important mechanisms to support cancer cell survival including inhibition of apoptosis and regulation of cell division. Overexpression of survivin in tumors is also associated with poor prognosis, aggressive tumor behavior, resistance to therapy, and high tumor recurrence. Various strategies have been developed to target survivin expression in cancer cells, and their effects on apoptosis induction and tumor growth attenuation have been demonstrated. In this review, we discuss recent advances in therapeutic potential of survivin in cancer treatment.

Ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation to thylakoid membrane and fatty acid profile has been investigated in cyanobacterium, Spirulina platensis. The thylakoid membrane was isolated by mechanical disruption of the freeze-dried and lysozyme-treated cells followed by differential density gradient centrifugation and morphological variations were examined. UV radiation distorted the membrane on the outer side with reduced chlorophyll a (chl a) content compared to its untreated counterpart. Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) was used for characterization of chl a of the thylakoid membrane. UV-B exposure resulted in alterations in the pigment-protein complexes 47 kDa and 43 kDa. Furthermore, 94 kDa and 20 kDa protein appeared in UV-B-exposed thylakoid membrane of S. platensis. The composition of fatty acid in response to UV-B radiation was detected by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry having 23.5% saturated fatty acid (SFA), 76.4% monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA), and polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA). In contrast to its UV-B-untreated counterpart, SFA was 46.6%, and MUFA and PUFA were 53.3%. Our findings suggest that UV-B radiation not only affects membrane morphology and its protein profile but also reduces saturated fatty acid and increases unsaturated fatty acids in S. platensis.

NaCl induced changes in fatty acid composition and nitrogenase, glutamine synthetase (GS) and nitrate reductase (NR) activities have been studied in a diazotrophic cyanobacterium Anabaena cylindrica. GC-MS analysis revealed that the cellular fatty acid composition of NaCl untreated cells of A. cylindrica contained saturated and unsaturated fatty acids in high (85.15%) and low (13.17%) proportions, respectively. In contrast, NaCl adapted cells of A. cylindrica had reduced and increased levels of saturated (45.2%) and unsaturated (40%) fatty acids, respectively. It had a higher overall level of fatty acid unsaturation under NaCl stress mainly due to increase in C12:4, C10:1, C16:1 and C18:2 constituents. The activities of nitrogenase, GS and NR were reduced significantly in NaCl adapted cells as compared to its NaCl untreated counterparts.

n -Alkanes pattern in response to NaCl stress has been studied in the cyanobacterium Anabaena cylindrica . Saturated hydrocarbons were separated and identified by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) using serially coupled capillary column. Light chain n -alkanes in the range of C 9 –C 17 (43%) and heavy chain n -alkanes in range of C 17 –C 23 (34%) and C 23 –C 31 (23%) were identified as the major components of total hydrocarbons in the NaCl adapted cells of A. cylindrica . In contrast, NaCl-untreated cells of A. cylindrica had dominance of only long chain n -alkanes in the range of C 23 –C 31 comprising about 94% of its total n -alkanes. The persistence of high level (43%) of short chain n -alkanes (C 9 –C 17 ) in NaCl adapted cells of A. cylindrica as compared to its negligible level (0.2%) in NaCl untreated counterpart clearly indicates that NaCl stress causes the A. cylindrica to shift towards the synthesis of short chain n -alkanes.

Growth, morphological variation, and liquid chromatography-photodiode array detection-mass spectrometric analysis of pigments have been studied in a diazotrophic cyanobacterium Anabaena cylindrica in response to NaCl stress. The chlorophyll and cellular protein contents increased initially in response to 50 mM: NaCl. Further increment in NaCl concentration, however, resulted in a significant decrease in both chlorophyll and cellular protein. A. cylindrica cells subjected to NaCl stress also showed morphological variations by having alteration in their size and volume. A. cylindrica cells subjected to NaCl stress also exhibited altered plastoquinone and chlorophyll-a (chl a) levels in comparison to its NaCl-untreated counterpart. Furthermore, a relative increase in plastoquinone level and a subsequent decrease in chl a level were recorded in NaCl adapted cells of A. cylindrica in response to NaCl stress. These results suggest that owing to adaptation various morphological, physiological, and biochemical changes occur in the cyanobacterium A. cylindrica in response to NaCl stress.

NaCl induced changes in fatty acid composition and nitrogenase, glutamine synthetase (GS) and nitrate reductase (NR) activities have been studied in a diazotrophic cyanobacterium Anabaenacylindrica. GC-MS analysis revealed that the cellular fatty acid composition of NaCl untreated cells of A.cylindrica contained saturated and unsaturated fatty acids in high (85.15%) and low (13.17%) proportions, respectively. In contrast, NaCl adapted cells of A.cylindrica had reduced and increased levels of saturated (45.2%) and unsaturated (40%) fatty acids, respectively. It had a higher overall level of fatty acid unsaturation under NaCl stress mainly due to increase in C12:4, C10:1, C16:1 and C18:2 constituents. The activities of nitrogenase, GS and NR were reduced significantly in NaCl adapted cells as compared to its NaCl untreated counterparts.

India has a large population of people who live in rural areas. Regional differences prevent every part of the country from being well developed. Among other factors, there are differences in cultural practices, living standards, and ownership of agricultural lands. Closing the gap requires the adoption of technology and a good education. This study observed that society, technology, and development are interrelated in rural India. Through technology-driven poverty reduction, underprivileged people can obtain education, health care, financial services, and employment opportunities. It is possible to improve agriculture and farmers’ economies through technological innovation combined with traditional knowledge.

Present study aims to enhance the efficacy of liposomes as an adjuvant by steric protection and strengthen the path of vaccine research. PEG grafted liposomes carrying epitopes on their surface showed enhanced adjuvanticity than liposomes carrying epitopes for elicitation and prolongation of immune response to an antigenic epitope of gp41, a transmembrane protein of HIV-1. The multiples of epitope were incorporated onto the surface of liposomes by conjugating them with phosphatidylethanolamine that was used in the formulation of liposomes at an optimized ratio. Furthermore, the liposomes carrying epitopes on their surface were sterically protected by shielding with methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol), mass 20 kDa. Methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol) was activated to its electrophilic N-succinimide carbonate derivative, methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol)-N-succinimide carbonate, that formed a urethane linkage with the amino group of phosphatidylethanolamine. The epitope was covalently coupled to phosphatidylethanolamine through an amide bond between the –COOH group of the epitope and –NH 2 group of phosphatidylethanolamine under the catalysis of 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropy-1)-carbodiimide. PEG grafted epitopes carrying liposomes showed about two times higher immune response and prolonged persistence of antibodies than that of liposomes carrying epitopes without PEG moieties.

We propose a model to describe the changes taking place in biochemical processes/events to explain the development of heterocyst and nitrogenase in a diazotrophic cyanobacterium Anabaena variabilis. For this purpose, a mutant strain of A. variabilis lacking heterocyst differentiation and incapable of growth with dinitrogen as the sole source of nitrogen has been isolated after nitrosoguanidine (NTG) mutagenesis and selection by penicillin enrichment. The mutant strain (Het- Fix-) thus isolated has morphological variation and was incapable of reducing acetylene under anaerobic conditions, indicating its mutational loss of the process of nitrogen fixation. The Het- Fix- mutant strain had reduced glutamine synthetase (transferase) activity compared with its wild-type counterpart, suggesting a link between nif gene expression and the expression of gln A, the structural gene of GS. The Het- Fix- mutant strain compared with its wild-type strain also had an extremely high level of phycobiliprotein and a low level of carotenoids. Furthermore, the coiling of vegetative filaments in the Het- Fix- mutant strain, which reduced the surface area to be exposed to light, was a direct indication of the chromatic adaptation, because the mutant strain was found to be photosensitive, showing bleaching of the cells under high light intensity.