Plant sterols and plant stanols in the management of dyslipidaemia and prevention of cardiovascular disease

The population is aging. Over the coming years, the incidence of age-related chronic diseases such as cancer is expected to continue to increase. Phytochemicals, which are non-nutritive chemicals found in plants and food, have emerged as modulators of key cellular signaling pathways exerting proven anticancer effects. The challenge now is to develop personalized supplements comprised of specific phytochemicals for each clinical situation. This will be possible once a better understanding is gained of the molecular basis explaining the impact of phytochemicals on human health. The aim of the present literature review is to summarize current knowledge of the dietary phytochemicals with proven antitumor activity, with a special emphasis placed on their molecular targets. Also discussed are the limits of existing research strategies and the future directions of this field.

Dietary phytochemicals in cancer prevention and therapy: a complementary approach with promising perspectives

http://csu-cvmbs.colostate.edu/Documents/erhs-chemoprevention-rice-bran-eryan-lab.pdf

Chemopreventive Properties of Dietary Rice Bran: Current Status and Future Prospects

The rising burden of cancer worldwide calls for an alternative treatment solution. Herbal medicine provides a very feasible alternative to western medicine against cancer. This article reviews the selected plant species with active phytochemicals, the animal models used for these studies, and their regulatory aspects. This study is based on a meticulous literature review conducted through the search of relevant keywords in databases, Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Twenty plants were selected based on defined selection criteria for their potent anticancer compounds. The detailed analysis of the research studies revealed that plants play an indispensable role in fighting different cancers such as breast, stomach, oral, colon, lung, hepatic, cervical, and blood cancer cell lines. The in vitro studies showed cancer cell inhibition through DNA damage and activation of apoptosis-inducing enzymes by the secondary metabolites in the plant extracts. Studies that reported in vivo activities of these plants showed remarkable results in the inhibition of cancer in animal models. Further studies should be performed on exploring more plants, their active compounds, and the mechanism of anticancer actions for use as standard herbal medicine.

Anticancer Plants: A Review of the Active Phytochemicals, Applications in Animal Models, and Regulatory Aspects

All the currently available cancer therapeutic options are expensive but none of them are safe. However, traditional plant-derived medicines or compounds are relatively safe. One widely known such compound is beta-sitosterol (BS), a plant derived nutrient with anticancer properties against breast cancer, prostate cancer, colon cancer, lung cancer, stomach cancer, ovarian cancer, and leukemia. Studies have shown that BS interfere with multiple cell signaling pathways, including cell cycle, apoptosis, proliferation, survival, invasion, angiogenesis, metastasis and inflammation. Most of the studies are incomplete partly due to the fact that BS is relatively less potent. But the fact that it is generally considered as nontoxic, the opposite of all currently available cancer chemo-therapeutics, is missed by almost all research communities. To offset the lower efficacy of BS, designing BS delivery for "cancer cell specific" therapy hold huge potential. Delivery of BS through liposome is one of such demonstrations that has shown to be highly promising. But further research did not progress neither in the field of drug delivery of BS nor in the field on how BS mediated anticancer activities could be improved, thus making BS an orphan nutraceutical. Therefore, extensive research with BS as potent anticancer nutraceutical is highly recommended.

Beta-Sitosterol: A Promising but Orphan Nutraceutical to Fight Against Cancer

Asclepias curassavica Linn is a traditional medicinal plant used by tribal people in the western ghats, India, to treat piles, gonorrhoea, roundworm infestation and abdominal tumours We have determined the protective effect of β-sitosterol isolated from A curassavica in colon cancer, using in vitro and in vivo models The active molecule was isolated, based upon bioassay guided fractionation, and identified as β-sitosterol on spectral evidence The ability to induce apoptosis was determined by its in vitro antiradical activity, cytotoxic studies using human colon adenocarcinoma and normal monkey kidney cell lines, and the expression of β-catenin and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA) in human colon cancer cell lines (COLO 320 DM) The chemopreventive potential of β-sitosterol in colon carcinogenesis was assessed by injecting 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH, 20 mg/kg bw) into male Wistar rats and supplementing this with β-sitosterol throughout the experimental period of 16 weeks at 5, 10, and 20 mg/kg bw β-sitosterol induced significant dose-dependent growth inhibition of COLO 320 DM cells (IC50 2662 μM), induced apoptosis by scavenging reactive oxygen species, and suppressed the expression of β-catenin and PCNA antigens in human colon cancer cells β-sitosterol supplementation reduced the number of aberrant crypt and crypt multiplicity in DMH-initiated rats in a dose-dependent manner with no toxic effects We found doses of 10-20 mg/kg bw β-sitosterol to be effective for future in vivo studies β-sitosterol had chemopreventive potential by virtue of its radical quenching ability in vitro, with minimal toxicity to normal cells It also attenuated β-catenin and PCNA expression, making it a potential anticancer drug for colon carcinogenesis

/pdf/chemopreventive-potential-of-b-sitosterol-in-experimental-3vddp0b6eq.pdf

Chemopreventive potential of β-Sitosterol in experimental colon cancer model - an In vitro and In vivo study

Preliminary screenings of 22 plant essential oils were tested for mortality of the mosquito larvae Culex quinquefasciatus under laboratory conditions. Percent (%) mortality of the mosquito larvae were obtained for each essential oil. At different exposure periods, viz. 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 h among the 22 plant oils tested, eight oils viz., aniseed, calamus, cinnamon, clove, lemon, orange, thyme, and tulsi oils gave promising results on larvicidal activity. For larvicidal screening bioassay, the mortality was recorded at different exposure periods viz., 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 h, and it was found that larval mortality increased when exposure time increased. The clove oil was found to be the most effective treatment. In the preliminary screening, clove oil gave 100% mortality at all exposure periods. Vetiver oil recorded 36.2, 61.2, 76.2, 87.5 and 100% mortality in 1, 3, 6, 12 and 24 h, respectively. Results of this study show that the essential oils may be a potent source of natural larvicides. Key words : Screening, essential oils, Culex quinquefasciatus , Larvicidal.

/pdf/preliminary-screening-of-plant-essential-oils-against-larvae-pqq1er5dzd.pdf

Preliminary screening of plant essential oils against larvae of Culex quinquefasciatus Say (Diptera: Culicidae)

Received: 04/Oct/2018, Accepted: 22/Oct/2018, Online: 31/Oct/2018 Abstract Pollination is a prerequisite for the efficiency of the vast majority of the yields in agrarian and horticultural ecosystems. This is carried out mostly by insects which are the prime agents of pollination in flowering plants. The present article is a review of the pollination aspects of apple orchards of Kashmir. Apple inflorescence requires assistance from insects to carry out the process of pollination and hence more the number of pollinators, higher the chance for better crop yield. The most important role of pollination is played for the most part by the species of Hymenoptera in Apple ecosystems. The pollinators are declining steadily, because of habitat destruction and unrestrained use of agrochemicals, pesticides and other antifungal sprays. Necessary steps should be taken for a better understanding of diversity and bio-ecology of insects in agricultural fields such that the pests, pollinators and other beneficial insects could be monitored easily, which will further aid better and eco-friendly conservation and management tactics. Despite the fact that Kashmir is a leading apple producer in the country, productivity should be increased to meet future demand. New approaches are needed to increase apple production through sustainable ways including increasing insect pollinators that can be employed in apple orchards by farmers. Such a framework will enhance the economic growth from apple cultivation and furthermore conserve the natural pollinator species in Kashmir.

/pdf/entomophily-of-apple-ecosystem-in-kashmir-valley-india-a-2hkxi66bvf.pdf

Gabriel M. Paulraj

Papers

Chemopreventive potential of β-Sitosterol in experimental colon cancer model - an In vitro and In vivo study

Preliminary screening of plant essential oils against larvae of Culex quinquefasciatus Say (Diptera: Culicidae)

Entomophily of Apple ecosystem in Kashmir valley, India A review