Despite the continuous breeding that has been conducted with asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.) since the beginning of the last century, there is little information on parameters for predicting direct and indirect selection response. Yield traits for blanched asparagus production were studied along a two-year period in a half-sib family population planted in Zavalla, Argentina. Half-sib famil...

There are few studies on the neuropharmacological properties of asparagus, which was applied in Chinese traditional medicine as a tonic and heat-clearing agent. The present study was designed to investigate the anxiolytic-like activity of the aqueous extract of asparagus stem (AEAS) using elevated plus maze (EPM) and Vogel conflict tests (VCT) in mice. AEAS significantly increased the percentag...

Changes in mRNA activity in tips of harvested asparagus spears (Asparagus officinalis L.) held in light or dark for up to 48 h at 20 degrees C were investigated as an initial step in elucidating the genetic response of asparagus spears to harvest. Total RNA was isolated from 30-mm tips of spears 180 mm in length at 0, 6, 12, 24, and 48 h after spear harvest and translated in vitro, and translat...

The genus Asparagus is unusual in producing axillary, determinate organs called cladodes, which may take on either a flattened or cylindrical form. Here, we investigated the evolution of cladodes to elucidate the mechanisms at play in the diversification of shoot morphology. Our observations of Asparagus asparagoides, which has leaf-like cladodes, showed that its cladodes are anatomically and d...

Cultured asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L. cv Y6) cells induced to regenerate into whole plants through somatic embryogenesis secreted a 38-kD protein into cell walls. The full-length cDNA sequence of this protein (Asparagus officinalis peroxidase 1 [AoPOX1]) determined by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction showed similarity with plant peroxidases. AoPOX1 transcripts were particu...

Asparagus racemosus extract increases the life span in Drosophila melanogaster K. V. Kiran Kumar, S. Prasanna, J. Ashadevi

Article history: Received on: 31/07/2015 Revised on: 11/08/2015 Accepted on: 20/08/2015 Available online: 24/08/2015 Free radicals and oxidative stress are recognized as important factors in the biology of aging as well as in many age-related diseases. Dietary antioxidant plays a potential role in the reduction of age-related diseases. Many medicinal plants are rich source of antioxidants and p...

In recent years frequent outbreaks of poultry diseases have caused significant economic losses, resulting in set back to poultry production. There are several causes including poor quality of inputs such as stocks, feeds and drugs, other contributory factors Viz., management lapses and medication. The end result is the disturbance in birds natural immunity. There are certain medicinal plants, w...