Publications

Edible flowers are attracting special therapeutic attention and their administration is on the rise. Edible flowers play pivotal modulatory roles on oxidative stress and related interconnected apoptotic/inflammatory pathways toward the treatment of cancer. In this review, we highlighted the phytochemical content and therapeutic applications of edible flowers, as well as their modulatory potential on the oxidative stress pathways and apoptotic/inflammatory mediators, resulting in anticancer effects. Edible flowers are promising sources of phytochemicals (e.g., phenolic compounds, carotenoids, terpenoids) with several therapeutic effects. They possess anti-inflammatory, anti-diabetic, anti-microbial, anti-depressant, anxiolytic, anti-obesity, cardioprotective, and neuroprotective effects. Edible flowers potentially modulate oxidative stress by targeting erythroid nuclear transcription factor-2/extracellular signal-regulated kinase/mitogen-activated protein kinase (Nrf2/ERK/MAPK), reactive oxygen species (ROS), nitric oxide (NO), malondialdehyde (MDA) and antioxidant response elements (AREs). As the interconnected pathways to oxidative stress, inflammatory mediators, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB), interleukins (ILs) as well as apoptotic pathways such as Bcl-2-associated X protein (Bax), Bcl-2, caspase and cytochrome C are critical targets of edible flowers in combating cancer. In this regard, edible flowers could play promising anticancer effects by targeting oxidative stress and downstream dysregulated pathways.

Abstract A new analytical method, based on organic solvent extraction with dichloromethane–acetone (75 + 25, v/v) followed by gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection, is presented for the determination of residues of 10 fungicides in white grapes for vinification. Some of them (cyprodinil, fludioxonil, and pyrimethanil) have been used for only 2–3 years and, therefore, no methods are available in the scientific literature for such a screening. Quality parameters yielded good precision (relative standard deviation of <10%) and detection limits (ranging between 1 and 18 μg/kg) that are lower than the maximum residue limits (MRLs) set by the 76/895/European Economic Community (EEC) and 90/642/EEC Directives. The applicability of the method was evaluated by analysis of 5 different white grapes produced in the Rías Baixas area in Galicia (northwestern Spain) for vinification. The method showed good performance in analyses of real samples to determine whether the concentrations of the fungicides used exceeded their MRLs. The method of standard additions was found to be necessary to avoid matrix effects in the quantification of fungicide residues. Results showed that concentrations of the fungicides identified in grapes were lower than the MRLs established by the European legislation.

Screening suitable allelopathic crops and crop genotypes that are competitive with weeds can be a sustainable weed control strategy to reduce the massive use of herbicides. In this study, three accessions of common buckwheat <em>Fagopyrum esculentum</em> Moench. (Gema, Kora, and Eva) and one of Tartary buckwheat <em>Fagopyrum tataricum</em> Gaertn. (PI481671) were screened against the germination and growth of the herbicide-resistant weeds <em>Lolium rigidum </em>Gaud. and <em>Portulaca oleracea</em> L. The chemical profile of the four buckwheat accessions was characterised in their shoots, roots, and root exudates in order to know more about their ability to sustainably manage weeds and the relation of this ability with the polyphenol accumulation and exudation from buckwheat plants. Our results show that different buckwheat genotypes may have different capacities to produce and exude several types of specialized metabolites, which lead to a wide range of allelopathic and defence functions in the agroecosystem to sustainably manage the growing weeds in their vicinity. The ability of the different buckwheat accessions to suppress weeds was accession-dependent without differences between species, as the common (Eva, Gema, and Kora) and Tartary (PI481671) accessions did not show any species-dependent pattern in their ability to control the germination and growth of the target weeds. Finally, Gema appeared to be the most promising accession to be evaluated in organic farming due to its capacity to sustainably control target weeds while stimulating the root growth of buckwheat plants.

Taro leaves extract (TLE) was used to manufacture two fermented milk beverages in concentrations of 250 and 500 mg/L (FMTLE 250 and FMTLE 500). The polyphenolic profile via HPLC, volatile compounds via GC-MS, antioxidant, antimicrobial activities of TLE, physicochemical properties, probiotic survival, and bioaccessibility of the supplemented beverages were also evaluated. TLE presented phenolic and flavonoid levels of 130.56 ± 1.55 μg GAE/g and 53 ± 1.15 CE μg/g, respectively. Sulfated polysaccharides, triterpenoids, and tannins were recorded (26.5 ± 0.8 μg/g, 7.30 ± 0.37 μg/g, 0.26 ± 0.03 μg/g). IC50 of the TLE measured using DPPH. assay was 144.83 ± 2.19 μg/mL, while the ABTS*+ assay was 100.48 ± 1.45 for determination antioxidant activity. The highest antimicrobial activity of TLE was observed against Salmonella enterica and Listeria monocytogenes with an inhibition zone of 15.5 and 13.6 mm, respectively. The survival of Lactobacillus paracasei showed no statistical difference between the control and FMTLE 250 and FMTLE 500 (P &gt; 0.05). Antioxidant potential increased, with probiotics were stable through the digestion processes of the supplemented beverages and the increasing polyphenol concentration in the beverages. Sensory evaluation showed the acceptance of FMTLE 250 and FMTLE 500 for consumer consumption. In sum, combining TLE and probiotics in fermented beverages provides an excellent food model with many health benefits.

The BRAF gene is responsible for transferring signals from outside of the cell to inside of the nucleus by converting a protein namely B-Raf through the RAS/MAPK pathway. This pathway contribute to cell division, proliferation, migration, and apoptotic cell death of human and animal. Mutation in this gene may cause the development of several cancers, including lung, skin, colon, and neuroblastoma. Currently, a few available drugs are being used that has developed by targeting the BRAF mutated protein, and due to the toxic side effects, patients suffer a lot during their treatment. Therefore this study aimed to identify potentially lead compounds that can target and block the expression of BRAF and subsequently inhibit the cancer. The hits were generated through the pharmacophore model-based virtual screening, molecular docking, pharmacohore model validation, ADME (absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion) analysis molecular dynamics (MD) simulation to find more suitable candidate against the overexpress BRAF gene. The pharmacophore based screening initially identified 14 k possible hits from online database which were further screened by ligand scout advance software to get hit compound. Based on molecular docking score of ZINC70454679 (-10.6 kcal/mol), ZINC253500968 (-9.4 kcal/mol), ZINC106887736 (-8.6 kcal/mol), and ZINC107434492 (-8.1 kcal/mol), pharmacophore feature and toxicity evaluation, we selected four possible lead compounds. The dynamic simulation with Schrodinger Maestro software was used to determine the stability of the potential lead candidates with target protein (PDB ID: 5VAM). The results showed that the newly obtained four compounds were more stable than the control ligand (Pub Chem ID: 90408826). The current results showed that the ZINC70454679, ZINC253500968, ZINC106887736, and ZINC107434492 compounds may be able to work against several cancers through targeting the BRAF overexpressed gene. To develop a novel drug candidate, however the evaluation of the web lab based experimental work are necessary to evaluate the efficiency of the each compound against the BRAF target gene.