The protective effect of methanolic extract of milk thistle seeds and silymarin against cisplatin-induced renal toxicity in male rats after a single intraperitoneal injection of 3 mg kg cisplatin were studied. Over 5 days, cisplatin-treated rats showed tubular necrosis and elevation in blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and serum creatinine (Scr). Pretreatment of animals with silymarin (50 mg kg) or ext...

The paper deals with the performance optimization for skim milk powder unit of a dairy plant at National Dairy Research Institute (N. D. R. I.), Karnal using Genetic Algorithm (G. A.). The skim milk powder unit comprises of six subsystems working in series. The failure and repair rates of the subsystems are taken from maintenance history sheets, which follow the exponential distribution. The ma...

Antioxidant properties of ethanol extract of Silybum marianum (milk thistle) seeds was investigated. We have also investigated the protein damage activated by oxidative Fenton reaction and its prevention by Silybum marianum seed extract. Antioxidant potential of Silybum marianum seed ethanol extract was measured using different in vitro methods, such as lipid peroxidation, 1,1-diphenyl-2-picryl...

Milk thistle (MT) dietary supplements are widely consumed due to their possible beneficial effect on liver health. As botanicals, they can be contaminated with a variety of fungi and their secondary metabolites, mycotoxins. This study was conducted in an effort to determine the mycological quality of various MT botanical supplements from the US market. Conventional plating methods were used for...

Silybin A (1), silybin B (2), and isosilybin A (3), three of the seven flavonolignans that constitute silymarin, an extract of the fruits of milk thistle (Silybum marianum), were detected for the first time from a fungal endophyte, Aspergillus iizukae, isolated from the surface-sterilized leaves of S. marianum. The flavonolignans were identified using a UPLC-PDA-HRMS-MS/MS method by matching re...

Understanding spatial and temporal variation in factors influencing plant regeneration is critical to predicting plant population growth. We experimentally evaluated seed limitation, insect herbivory, and their interaction in the regeneration and density of tall thistle (Cirsium altissimum) across a topographic ecosystem productivity gradient in tallgrass prairie over two years. On ridges and i...

The endophytic fungus Penicillium restrictum was isolated from the stems of a milk thistle (Silybum marianum) plant. In culture, the fungus produced distinct red guttates, which have been virtually uninvestigated, particularly from the standpoint of chemistry. Hence, this study examined the chemical mycology of P. restrictum and, in doing so, uncovered a series of both known and new polyhydroxy...

Silymarin is an extract of milk thistle seeds, consisting of four major classes of flavonoligans: silybinin, silychristin, silydianin and isosilyibinin. These compounds are known for their anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The goal of this study was to determine if different fractions of the crude extract of silymarin inhibited proinflammatory cytokine secretion from macrophage and...

Milk thistle is an important medicinal crop. In this two-year field study, the optimal form [bulk (non-structured), nanoparticles (NPs)] and concentration (0, 50, 100 mg L?1) of chitosan titanium dioxide (TiO2) applications for improving seed yield, as well mineral (N, Mg, Fe, Ti), protein, oil contents were investigated in five ecotypes. Leaf gas exchange, ratio variable to maximum fluorescenc...