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Ethnopharmacological relevance Nelumbo nucifera Geartn., known as sacred lotus, has been used traditionally in South East Asia as a traditional medicine for various CNS disorders including stress, fever, depression, insomnia, and cognitive conditions. Aim of the study To investigate the in vitro cannabinoid and opioid receptor binding affinities, and in vivo behavioral actions of Nelumbo flower extracts and to isolate the potential compounds to treat CNS associated disorders. Materials and methods The white and pink flowers of N. nucifera were extracted with 95% EtOH, followed by acid–base partitioning using CHCl 3 to give acidic and basic partitions. These partitions were subjected to Centrifugal Preparative TLC (CPTLC) to yield benzyltetrahydroisoquinoline (BTIQ) alkaloids and long chain fatty acids, identified by physical and spectroscopic methods. In addition, EtOH extracts and partitions were analyzed for chemical markers by UHPLC/MS and GC/MS. In vitro neuropharmacological effects were evaluated by cannabinoid (CB1 and CB2) and opioid [delta ( δ ), kappa ( ĸ ), and mu ( µ )] competitive radioligand binding and GTPγS functional assays. The in vivo behavioral effect was studied through the use of the mouse tetrad assay at 10, 30, 75 and 100 mg/kg/ip doses that revealed the effect on locomotion, catalepsy, body temperature, and nociception of acidic and basic CHCl 3 partitions, fractions, and compounds. Results Three aporphines, nuciferine ( 1 ), N- nor -nuciferine ( 2 ), asimilobine ( 3 ), and five BTIQs, armepavine ( 4 ), O-methylcoclaurine ( 5 ), N-methylcoclaurine ( 6 ), coclaurine ( 7 ), neferine ( 10 ), and a mixture of linoleic and palmitic acids (LA and PA), were identified and evaluated for cannabinoid and opioid receptor displacement activities. Compounds 5 – 7 showed binding affinities for the ĸ opioid receptor with equilibrium dissociation constant ( K i ) values of 3.5±0.3, 0.9±0.1, 2.2±0.2 μM, respectively. Compound 10 displayed affinities for δ -and µ - opioid receptors with K i values of 0.7±0.1 and 1.8±0.2 μM, respectively, and was determined to be a weak δ agonist by GTPγS functional assay. The mixture of LA and PA (1:1) showed an affinity for δ opioid receptor with a K i value of 9.2±1.1 μM. The acidic and basic CHCl 3 partitions, compounds 1 and 7, and 5 – 7 mixture were subjected to the tetrad assay, of which the acidic partition displayed decreased locomotion and increased catalepsy, antinociception, and hypothermia in animal at doses of 75–100 mg/kg/ip, and also showed clonic-tonic seizures upon touch at 100 mg/kg. Conclusion Bioassay-guided isolation revealed compounds 5 – 7 , 10 , and the mixture of LA and PA displayed various degrees of opioid receptor radioligand displacement affinities. The in vivo tetrad assay of acidic CHCl 3 partition, enriched with aporphines 1 and 2 , displayed actions on all four points of behavioral parameters. It can be concluded that the in vivo mild canabimimetic-type effect observed for the CHCl 3 partition is likely mediated through other CNS mechanisms since the extracts, partitions, and isolated compounds had no affinity for the in vitro CB1 and CB2 receptors. This work, along with traditional use and the reported bioactivities of the BTIQ alkaloids, suggested further studies on N. nucifera are needed to understand the roles that the extracts and/or individual compounds might contribute to the behavioral effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Ethnopharmacological relevance: The rhizome of Atractylodes macrocephala (Compositae) is one of the most well-known traditional Chinese medicine in China, Japan and Korea, which has a long history of use for the treatment of splenic asthenia, edema, anorexia, and excessive perspiration, etc. As active compounds of anti-inflammatory activity of this medicinal plant have not been fully elucidated, the aim of this study was to isolate and identify the active constituents inhibiting nitric oxide (NO) production from the rhizomes of A. macrocephala. Materials and methods: Inhibitory activity against NO production in lipopolysaccharide-activated RAW264.7 macrophages was evaluated by Griess reaction. Fifteen polyacetylenes were isolated from the active ethyl acetate extract using activity-guided screening. The structures of all compounds were elucidated by spectroscopic methods and comparison with published data. The compounds were further tested for their inhibitory activity against NO production. Results: Seven new polyacetylenes, named atractylodemaynes A–G (1–7), along with eight known ones (8–15) were isolated. Compound 14 was isolated for the first time from the rhizomes of A. macrocephala. The study showed that the tested compounds exhibited inhibitory activity against NO production in a dose-dependent manner. Among them, compounds 10, 11 and 12 had relatively stronger inhibitory effect with IC50 values of 28, 23 and 19μM, respectively. Conclusion: The results demonstrated that the polyacetylenes might greatly contribute to the anti-inflammatory activity of the rhizomes of A. macrocephala. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Ground-based in-situ measurements were performed to investigate the spectral optical properties and hygroscopicity of light scattering and absorbing aerosols in pollution and dust plumes in Northeast Asia. The scattering Ångström exponents of pollution plumes are high, ranging from 0.8 to 1.8, because light scattering aerosols consist of relatively fine particles such as sulfate, nitrate, ammonium and carbonaceous particles. Pollution case having high organic carbon (OC) exhibits a relatively high absorption Ångström exponent (AAE), in the range of 1.0–1.5 due to the absorption by refractory OC at near-UV spectral region. Among the different pollution cases, the AAE is the highest in a polluted dust plume; this can be attributed to the strong wavelength dependence of light absorption by dust particles. The mass absorption cross section (MAC), which represents the ability of light-absorbing aerosols to absorb a photon, is 4.2–8.3 m2 g−1, and it is high when black carbon is mixed with OC and dust particles. The MAC decreases with increasing relative humidity, especially for pollution plume with a high OC content and for dust plume. Under humid conditions, hygroscopic chemical species can absorb water vapor, thus growing in size and enhancing aerosol light scattering, but the MAC decreases because of the possible shielding effects of absorbing aerosols with water uptake. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A new cinnamic acid-derived bisamide 1 and a new oplopanone-type sesquiterpenoid diglycoside 2, together with 11 known compounds, were isolated from the 95% ethanolic extract of the leaves of Aglaia perviridis. Their structures were elucidated by chemical and spectroscopic methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Time variations of lightning activity in the three main tropical thunderstorm centers located in the Maritime Continent (Pakistan, India, Southeast Asia, Indonesia, and Australia), Africa, and the Americas are analyzed using a lightning activity index IRS, which is calculated from the resonances of magnetic field in the extremely low frequency range—the Schumann resonances—which were observed at Hylaty station (Poland) in the time interval July 2005–May 2006. Power spectrum analysis of the IRS series is carried out for this time interval. The annual and semiannual variations are shown in all of the series together with the following characteristic periodicities: 45 (Madden–Julian oscillation), 17.6, 13.5, and 4.8 days, seen mainly in the series describing the lightning activity of the Maritime Continent. In addition, maps of the dynamical power spectrum are constructed. They present variability both in the values of characteristic periods 26–30, 17–22, 12–14, 9–10, and 5–7 days and in their duration. During the studied time interval, according to these indices, the African center was the most active, whereas the American and Maritime Continent centers showed a similar level of activity. The largest differences among the centers were observed in the summer months in the Northern Hemisphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Neuromyelitis optica (NMO) can be distinguished from MS by clinical, radiological and serological findings, especially the tendency for spinal cord lesions to be longer than 3 vertebral segments during acute attacks and the presence of aquaporin-4 autoantibodies in NMO. The spectrum of NMO is broader than previously realized and includes recurrent myelitis, recurrent optic neuritis, certain cerebral presentations, including intractable vomiting and posterior reversible encephalopathy. It may coexist with other systemic autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus and Sjogren's syndrome. Whether NMO has a predilection for individuals of Asian ancestry or whether there are differences between NMO and Asian optic-spinal MS other than arbitrary definitions remains to be clarified. Further epidemiological studies using comparable diagnostic criteria, radiological studies and serological tests are required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The occurrence of similar glass beads at archaeological sites in Africa and Asia bears witness to the trade relationship between the two continents. This paper reports elemental analysis results from a recent in-depth laser ablation – inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry (LA–ICP–MS) study of a group of archaeological glass beads with a specific alumina-rich composition from East Africa, India and Sri Lanka. Based on the concentrations of the trace elements, two different subgroups were identified. One subgroup occurs at early periods (fourth centurybce to fifth centuryace) in South India and Sri Lanka. The second subgroup appears at later dates in Africa and was identified at different Kenyan sites dated from the ninth to the 19th centuryace, and at the contemporaneous site of Chaul in western India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]