Many plant-derived compounds have been used as drugs, either in their original or semi-synthetic form. Plant secondary metabolites can also serve as drug precursors, drug prototypes and pharmacological probes. Due to these side-effects, there is need for the search of newer drugs with less or no side-effects. In the present study to investigate the anti-arthritic activity of Flueggea leucopyrus...

INTRODUCTION Xylella fastidiosa (Xf) is a Gram-negative xylem-limited bacterium that causes Pierce’s disease (PD), plum leaf scald, almond leaf scorch, phony peach disease and many other diseases. For many plant species there is no resistant germplasm. Xylem vessels may be filled with exopolysaccharides produced by the bacterium, and pectins, gums and tyloses produced by the plant. There has be...

Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L., Lamiaceae) is a tropical species native to East Africa (Simon et al. 1990; Vieira and Simon 2000, 2006; Vieira et al. 2003). Sweet basil can be damaged in the field by chilling temperatures in spring and fall, and when stored and transported. Temperatures below 5°C lead to significant leaf necrosis and damage has been observed when temperatures drop below 10°C ...

Potential sites of gibberellin biosynthesis in 10-day-old ;Alaska' pea (Pisum sativum L.) seedlings were investigated using a cell-free ezyme system capable of incorporating [(14)C]-mevalonic acid into ent-kaurene. In peas, ent-kaurene is assumed to be a committed intermediate in the gibberellin biosynthetic pathway. Comparative results from enzyme assays using extracts from shoot tips, leaf bl...

A protocol for direct organogenesis in Bixa orellana (pink flowers variety) has been developed with significant organogenic response from rooted hypocotyls, hypocotyl segments, and cotyledonary leaf explants on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with 2.0 mg L thidiazuron and 0.25% coconut water or 7.0 mg L N-Benzyladenine and 0.1 mg L a-naphthalene acetic acid. Thidiazuron in combinat...

By incubating explants from Actinidia arguta seedlings on a nutrient medium supplemented with 20 to 30 micromolar N(6)-(Delta(2)-isopentenyl)adenine (i(6)Ade) and then measuring zeatin (io(6)Ade) accumulation in tissues, the distribution of i(6)Ade hydroxylase activities in whole plants could be determined. Based on analyses with three entire plants, it is estimated that, as an organ system, ro...

A microscale technique has been developed for routine quantifications of picogram amounts of indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) in plant tissues by combined gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Low- and high-resolution selected-ion-monitoring and selected-reaction-monitoring mass spectrometry techniques were compared for selectivity and precision. The best selectivity was obtained with selected-reacti...

Rust fungi have a complex life cycle (see Littlefield 1981) and produce different spore forms. The basidiospores, aeciospores and uredospores develop highly specialized infection structures in order to penetrate into the leaf. The germ tune of the dikaryotic uredospore follows the array of wax crystals on the cuticle in a typical way and grows towards a stoma (Fig la). When the tip of the germ ...

Codiaeum variegatum (L.) Blume is one of the most popular ornamental foliage plants. It encompasses more than 300 recognized cultivars valued by their wide range of leaf shapes and vivid foliage colors. Thus far, only limited information is available regarding the genetic basis of their leaf morphological variation. This study investigated the chromosome numbers and karyotypes of seven phenotyp...

Some cancer cells evade elimination by virtue of their insensitivity to agents that induce apoptosis. Conversely, the side effects of anticancer agents could be diminished if normal cells were more resistant. To further elucidate the factors that contribute to the susceptibility of a cell to apoptosis, these investigations were designed to identify proteins isolated from cells exposed to low co...