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Resveratrol (3,5,4′-trihydroxystilbene) and piceatannol (3,5,3′,4′-tetrahydroxystilbene) are well-known natural products that are produced by plants. They are important ingredients in pharmaceutical industries and nutritional supplements. They display a wide spectrum of biological activity. Thus, the needs for these compounds are increasing. The natural products have been found in diverse plants, mostly such as grapes, passion fruit, white tea, berries, and many more. The extraction of these products from plants is quite impractical because of the low production in plants, downstream processing difficulties, chemical hazards, and environmental issues. Thus, alternative production in microbial hosts has been devised with combinatorial biosynthetic systems, including metabolic engineering, synthetic biology, and optimization in production process. Since the biosynthesis is not native in microbial hosts such as Escherichia coli, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Corynebacterium glutamicum, genetic engineering and manipulation have made it possible. In this review, the discussion will mainly focus on recent progress in production of resveratrol and piceatannol, including the various strategies used for their production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on the researches on immunoregulatory functions of Dendrobium. at home and abroad in recent years, from immune organs, immune cells, and immune molecules, this paper summarized immunoregulatory functions of polysaccharides, glycosides, and alkaloids extracted from Dendrobium. on the body, including reducing the inflammation, inhibiting tumor, and slowing down aging, to provide theoretical references for in-depth researches and development of modern biotechnology for Dendrobium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article offers a philosophical-empirical account of embodied skilful performance in the practice of plant biotechnology. Drawing on the work of Merleau-Ponty and others, we elaborate how skilful performance emerges from and through reciprocal relations encompassing the body-in-the-world and the world-in-the-body. The contribution of this article lies in offering an account of skilful performance that is attentive to a perceiving, motile, feeling body entwined with world. In genetically modifying plants, scientists direct their senses of touch and vision to manipulating plant materials and matter, ‘reading’ subtle changes in tissue cultures, plantlets and so on. In rhythmic movements, they extend their bodies through skilful use of complex equipment, while calling on ‘intuition’ to guide their work. Skilful performance, then, relies on our lived body that is not merely a physical object among other objects, nor a passive instrument for the mind, but dynamic and inescapably entwined with people and things in a world in flux. Bringing to the fore how perceiving, motile, feeling bodies are implicated in skilful performance has significant implications for education and workplace training. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Electron spin resonance (ESR) is a powerful technique to detect radicals trapped in cellulosic food products and has been suggested as a useful method for identification of irradiated herbal foodstuffs. Coriander spice which has important medicinal properties was investigated using ESR spectroscopy. Radicals in natural and irradiated coriander samples were determined at room temperature. ESR spectra of natural sample were characterized by a single central signal withvalue and gamma irradiation produced satellite peaks attributed to cellulose-like radical which is used as a marker for detection of irradiated cellulosic plant products. The spectroscopic splitting values of radicals were determined. Dose dependency and stability of this center were analyzed by dose response and kinetic measurements. The reported results about activation energy, thermal life time and dose response relationship of the cellulose-like radical accurately prove that ESR can be used for identification of irradiated coriander spice seeds. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

One hundred and twenty eight (128) on-farm demonstrations on Improved Production Technology (IPT) for black gram were carried out in eighty (80) hectares of farmer's fields in Sankarankovil, Vasudevanallur and Kuruvikulam blocks of Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu from 2010-11 to 2012-13 under Tamil Nadu – Irrigated Agriculture Modernization and Water Bodies Restoration and Management (TN-IAMWARM) project. Two methods viz., Improved Production Technologies (IPT) and Conventional Method (CM) were compared. The results revealed that the adoption of Improved Production Technologies IPT) favorably influenced yield attributes and yield of black gram. The maximum seed yield (1,053 kg ha-1) obtained from IPT which was higher than conventional method (720 kg ha-1). The best net income (₹ 25,650) and benefit:cost (2.60) were also associated with IPT than conventional method of black gram cultivation. The additional income of 11,762 ha-1 was obtained from IPT over Conventional Method of black gram cultivation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to evaluate the genetic diversity among native plants and some individuals obtained from crosses with unknown genealogy of C. walkeriana as well as C. loddigesii and C. nobilior and to advance towards solving the question of the genetic purity of the "Orchidglade" clone. Eight microsatellite loci were used to evaluate the genetic diversity between individuals of C. walkeriana. Microsatellites were not efficient in determining the genetic diversity between C. walkeriana groups (native and improved). The difficulty in determining the genetic distance between the different genotypes can be attributed to the complex mating system of the species and to a weak genetic barrier that facilitates the development of hybrids. Our analysis revealed smaller genetic distances between the "Orchidglade", "Equilab", "Kenny" and "Pedentive" clones and the species C. loddigesii and C. nobilior. Native C. walkeriana plants were genetically more distant from the C. loddigesii and C. nobilior species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A reddish coloured colony was isolated during routine screening of pigment producing microorganism in the Department of Biotechnology, NIT Durgapur. Preliminary evaluation revealed the microbe to be a Gram positive Coccus. The bacterium was maintained on Brain Heart Infusion plates. For analytical purposes, shake flask experiments were conducted by sub culturing the bacterium in Brain Heart Infusion broth and then incubating at 30°C and 120 rpm for 120h. The intracellular content of the bacterium was extracted by cell lysis using methanol. The obtained extract in methanol was scanned in a UV-Vis spectrophotometer and it revealed three distinct peaks at 445nm, 466nm and 492nm. The obtained absorption peaks are a key characteristic feature of carotenoid which led us to establish that the pigment might be a carotenoid. The absorption spectrum was obtained in different solvent system like petroleum benzene, hexane and chloroform. The results suggested that the obtained carotenoid could be Lycopene. As an initial study, Lycopene extract was obtained from tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) and the absorption spectrum of the lycopene extract was compared with the obtained bacterial carotenoid. Extraction of pigment from microbial sources has become a promising field in the research and development. Under this scenario, our findings hold a good prospect in production of microbial carotenoids. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present review documents the results of studies evaluating the acaricidal activity of different plant products and secondary metabolites against ticks that are resistant and susceptible to conventional acaricides. Studies published from 1998 to 2016 were included. The acaricidal activity of plant extracts, essential oils and secondary compounds from plants have been evaluated using bioassays with ticks in the larval and adult stages. There is variable effectiveness according to the species of plant and the concentrations used, with observed mortalities ranging from 5 to 100% against the Rhipicephalus ( Boophilus ), Amblyomma, Dermacentor, Hyalomma, and Argas genera. A number of plants have been reported to cause high mortalities and/or affect the reproductive capacity of ticks in the adult phase. In the majority of these trials, the main species of plants evaluated correspond to the families Lamiaceae, Fabaceae, Asteraceae, Piperaceae, Verbenaceae, and Poaceae. Different secondary metabolites such as thymol, carvacrol, 1,8-cineol and n -hexanal, have been found to be primarily responsible for the acaricidal activity of different essential oils against different species of ticks, while nicotine, dibenzyldisulfide and dibenzyltrisulfide have been evaluated for plant extracts. Only thymol, carvacrol and 1,8-cineol have been evaluated for acaricidal activity under in vivo conditions. The information in the present review allows the conclusion that the secondary metabolites contained in plant products could be used as an alternative for the control of ticks that are susceptible or resistant to commercial acaricides. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Sulphur-oxidizing microorganisms are widely used in the biofiltration of total reduced sulphur compounds (odorous and neurotoxic) produced by industries such as the cellulose and petrochemical industries, which include high-temperature process steps. Some hyperthermophilic microorganisms have the capability to oxidize these compounds at high temperatures (N60°C), and archaea of this group, for example, Sulfolobus metallicus, are commonly used in biofiltration technology. Results: In this study, a hyperthermophilic sulphur-oxidizing strain of archaea was isolated from a hot spring (Chillán, Chile) and designated as M1. It was identified as archaea of the genus Sulfolobus (99% homology with S. solfataricus 16S rDNA). Biofilms of this culture grown on polyethylene rings showed an elemental sulphur oxidation rate of 95.15 ± 15.39 mg S l-1 d-1, higher than the rate exhibited by the biofilm of the sulphur-oxidizing archaea S. metallicus (56.8 ± 10.91 mg l-1 d-1). Conclusions: The results suggest that the culture M1 is useful for the biofiltration of total reduced sulphur gases at high temperatures and for other biotechnological applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the present study, optimization of biodiesel production from mixture of edible and nonedible vegetable oils with low to high free fatty acid (FFA) has been investigated. The selection of oils was based on richness of particular fatty acid in it. The combination of oils has been optimized to get suitable mixture for production of biodiesel. The mixture was analyzed in terms of physical properties and accordingly two step esterification process was applied. For optimization study, the response surface methodology(RSM) based central composite design (CCD) was used in Design of Experiments (DOE) software to optimize the various process variables such as reaction time, methanol to oil molar ratio, reaction temperature and catalyst concentration for biodiesel production . A quadratic model was created for the prediction of the Biodiesel yield. The R 2 value of the model was 0.96 which indicates the satisfactory accuracy of the model. The optimum conditions were obtained as follows: reaction temperature of 43.50 °C, methanol to oil molar ratio of 8.8:1, catalyst concentration of 1.9 g/100 cc feed, reaction time of 58.4 min. At these reaction conditions, the predicted and observed biodiesel yield was 97.02% and 97.00%, respectively. These values experimentally satisfied the accuracy of the model. GC and FTIR analysis of biodiesel was also done for biodiesel characterization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND Tetranychus evansi is an invasive pest of solanaceous crops in Africa, and in the field it differentially attacks edible African nightshades. The chemical basis for the differential attack on these plant species is largely unknown. Using bioassays and chemical analysis, we investigated the differential bioactivity of leaf extracts of three edible African nightshade species, Solanum sarrachoides, S. scabrum and S. villosum, on adult T. evansi females. RESULTS Only the bioactivity of the leaf extract of S. sarrachoides ( LC50 7.44 mg mL−1) and that of its most polar fraction ( LC50 5.44 mg mL−1) paralleled that of the positive control, neem oil ( LC50 1.89 mg mL−1), across all doses tested. Liquid chromatography-quadruple time of flight-mass spectrometry identified a mixture of steroidal glycoalkaloids ( SGAs), including α-solasonine, α-solamargine and derivatives of tomatine and demissine, which were neither detected in the crude extract nor in any of the fractions obtained from S. scabrum and S. villosum. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that the presence of SGAs may play a key role in the differential defence of edible African nightshades against attack by T. evansi. These findings may add to the plethora of environmentally friendly tools from natural plant products for management of T. evansi. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic resistance to pathogens is important for sustainable maintenance of crop yields. Recent biotechnologies offer alternative approaches to generate resistant plants by compensating for the lack of natural resistance. Tomato ( Solanum lycopersicum) and related species offer a model in which natural and TILLING-induced potyvirus resistance alleles may be compared. For resistance based on translation initiation factor eIF4E1, we confirm that the natural allele Sh-eIF4E1 PI24 -pot1, isolated from the wild tomato species Solanum habrochaites, is associated with a wide spectrum of resistance to both potato virus Y and tobacco etch virus isolates. In contrast, a null allele of the same gene, isolated through a TILLING strategy in cultivated tomato S. lycopersicum, is associated with a much narrower resistance spectrum. Introgressing the null allele into S. habrochaites did not extend its resistance spectrum, indicating that the genetic background is not responsible for the broad resistance. Instead, the different types of eIF4E1 mutations affect the levels of eIF4E2 differently, suggesting that eIF4E2 is also involved in potyvirus resistance. Indeed, combining two null mutations affecting eIF4E1 and eIF4E2 re-establishes a wide resistance spectrum in cultivated tomato, but to the detriment of plant development. These results highlight redundancy effects within the eIF4E gene family, where regulation of expression alters susceptibility or resistance to potyviruses. For crop improvement, using loss-of-function alleles to generate resistance may be counter-productive if they narrow the resistance spectrum and limit growth. It may be more effective to use alleles encoding functional variants similar to those found in natural diversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recent description of the presence of exogenous plant microRNAs from rice in human plasma had profound implications for the interpretation of microRNAs function in human health. If validated, these results suggest that food should not be considered only as a macronutrient and micronutrient supplier but it could also be a way of genomic interchange between kingdoms. Subsequently, several studies have tried to replicate these results in rice and other plant foods and most of them have failed to find plant microRNAs in human plasma. In this scenario, we aimed to detect plant microRNAs in beer and extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)--two plant-derived liquid products frequently consumed in Spain--as well as in human plasma after an acute ingestion of EVOO. Our hypothesis was that microRNAs present in beer and EVOO raw material could survive manufacturing processes, be part of these liquid products, be absorbed by human gut and circulate in human plasma. To test this hypothesis, we first optimized the microRNA extraction protocol to extract microRNAs from beer and EVOO, and then tried to detect microRNAs in those samples and in plasma samples of healthy volunteers after an acute ingestion of EVOO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to proactively identify emerging issues that may impact the risk assessment and risk management functions of the Indian biosafety regulatory system, the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change sought to understand the nature and diversity of genetically engineered crops that may move to product commercialization within the next 10 y. This paper describes the findings from a questionnaire designed to solicit information about public and private sector research and development (R&D) activities in plant biotechnology. It is the first comprehensive overview of the R&D pipeline for GE crops in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides an economic assessment of the value of using genetically modified (GM) crop technology in agriculture at the farm level. It follows and updates earlier annual studies which examined economic impacts on yields, key costs of production, direct farm income and effects, and impacts on the production base of the 4 main crops of soybeans, corn, cotton and canola. The commercialisation of GM crops has continued to occur at a rapid rate since the mid 1990s, with important changes in both the overall level of adoption and impact occurring in 2014. This annual updated analysis shows that there continues to be very significant net economic benefits at the farm level amounting to $17.7 billion in 2014 and $150.3 billion for the 19-year period 1996–2014 (in nominal terms). These economic gains have been divided roughly 50% each to farmers in developed and developing countries. About 65% of the gains have derived from yield and production gains with the remaining 35% coming from cost savings. The technology has also made important contributions to increasing global production levels of the 4 main crops, having, for example, added 158 million tonnes and 322 million tonnes respectively, to the global production of soybeans and maize since the introduction of the technology in the mid 1990s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article outlines some of the challenges facing regulators and breeders in the evolving field of biotech crops. The importance of plant breeding to securing crop yields which is needed to meet the increasing demands for human food and animal feed is mentioned. It discusses genome editing and interorganism silencing as the technologies close to commercialization.

The concept of growing plants for human health and general well-being, rather than for consumption as food alone, is changing people's perception of plant biotechnology and synthetic biology. Resurrecting the long-forgotten connection between plants and health has launched a new generation of botanical therapeutics, which include dietary supplements, functional foods, pharmaceuticals and multi-component drug mixtures. Technological and methodological advances have made the discovery, validation and manufacture of high-value phytochemicals a reality, and botanical therapeutics have come of age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Crude rhubarb subjected to different processing procedures will produce different therapeutic effects that are possibly due to processing-induced variation in chemical composition. In this study, a chemometric approach based on ultra fast liquid chromatography with ion trap/time-of-flight mass spectrometry was established to systematically investigate the chemical variations of rhubarb induced by different processing methods. The approach was validated based on pooled quality-control samples from two perspectives: the individual properties of variables and the bulk properties of samples. Orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis was introduced to compare the differences between crude and processed rhubarb products. A total of 20 significantly different markers were screened out and unambiguously/tentatively characterized. This research proved that a chemometric method based on ultra fast liquid chromatography with ion trap/time-of-flight mass spectrometry can comprehensively analyze the chemical variation of herbal medicine and provide evidence for a deeper understanding of the pharmacological activities of processed rhubarb products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Main conclusion: Medicinal and aromatic plants are known to produce secondary metabolites that find uses as flavoring agents, fragrances, insecticides, dyes and drugs. Biotechnology offers several choices through which secondary metabolism in medicinal plants can be altered in innovative ways, to overproduce phytochemicals of interest, to reduce the content of toxic compounds or even to produce novel chemicals. Detailed investigation of chromatin organization and microRNAs affecting biosynthesis of secondary metabolites as well as exploring cryptic biosynthetic clusters and synthetic biology options, may provide additional ways to harness this resource. Plant secondary metabolites are a fascinating class of phytochemicals exhibiting immense chemical diversity. Considerable enigma regarding their natural biological functions and the vast array of pharmacological activities, amongst other uses, make secondary metabolites interesting and important candidates for research. Here, we present an update on changing trends in the biotechnological approaches that are used to understand and exploit the secondary metabolism in medicinal and aromatic plants. Bioprocessing in the form of suspension culture, organ culture or transformed hairy roots has been successful in scaling up secondary metabolite production in many cases. Pathway elucidation and metabolic engineering have been useful to get enhanced yield of the metabolite of interest; or, for producing novel metabolites. Heterologous expression of putative plant secondary metabolite biosynthesis genes in a microbe is useful to validate their functions, and in some cases, also, to produce plant metabolites in microbes. Endophytes, the microbes that normally colonize plant tissues, may also produce the phytochemicals produced by the host plant. The review also provides perspectives on future research in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aegle marmelos belongs to the species of rutaceae, used in Ayurvedic formulations to treat various ailments. There is a serious concern about the determination of stability of the constituents present in the crude drugs as per WHO guidelines. The successive extracts obtained from the roots of Aegle marmelos were subjected to various stress conditions. The plain extracts and the stressed extracts were spotted on Silicagel 60F 254 pre coated plates along with chemical markers (quercetin and p-coumaric acid) using HPTLC. The spots were developed using the mobile phase Toluene: Ethyl acetate: Methanol: Formic acid in the ratio of [12:6:0.4:0.8 (v/v)] and the resultant spots were detected in UV and scanned through WINCATS 3 software. Through the analysis of the chromatograms it is found that the constituents present in the ethyl acetate extracts were more stable than other extracts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethanol extract of Chonemorpha macrophylla root was prepared using 50% ethanol. Preliminary phytochemical studies were performed and the presence of phenolics and flavonoids were detected. The extract was fractionated by column chromatography using petroleum ether, chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol in the increasing order of polarity. Presence of gallic acid, quercetin and rutin were identified in methanol fraction using TLC. Presence of the above three components were confirmed and quantified by RPHPLC studies. Spectral studies were also performed on the above three isolated components to reaffirm their identity. LCMS studies were performed on the ethanol extract of the roots and m/z value was found out for five more components other than the above three identified components. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Current wheat yield and consumption is considered in the context of the historical development of wheat, from early domestication through to modern plant breeding, the Green Revolution and wheat's place as one of the world's most productive and important crops in the 21st Century. The need for further improvement in the yield potential of wheat in order to meet current and impending challenges is discussed, including rising consumption and the demand for grain for fuel as well as food. Research on the complex genetics underlying wheat yield is described, including the identification of quantitative trait loci and individual genes, and the prospects of biotechnology playing a role in wheat improvement in the future are discussed. The challenge of preparing wheat to meet the problems of drought, high temperature and increasing carbon dioxide concentration that are anticipated to come about as a result of climate change is also reviewed. Wheat yield must be increased while not compromising food safety, and the emerging problem of processing contaminants is reviewed, focussing in particular on acrylamide, a contaminant that forms from free asparagine and reducing sugars during high temperature cooking and processing. Wheat breeders are strongly encouraged to consider the contaminant issue when breeding for yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Potato is the third most important global food crop and the most widely grown noncereal crop. As a species highly amenable to cell culture, it has a long history of biotechnology applications for crop improvement. This review begins with a historical perspective on potato improvement using biotechnology encompassing pathogen elimination, wide hybridization, ploidy manipulation and applications of cell culture. We describe the past developments and new approaches for gene transfer to potato. Transformation is highly effective for adding single genes to existing elite potato clones with no, or minimal, disturbances to their genetic background and represents the only effective way to produce isogenic lines of specific genotypes/cultivars. This is virtually impossible via traditional breeding as, due to the high heterozygosity in the tetraploid potato genome, the genetic integrity of potato clones is lost upon sexual reproduction as a result of allele segregation. These genetic attributes have also provided challenges for the development of genetic maps and applications of molecular markers and genomics in potato breeding. Various molecular approaches used to characterize loci, (candidate) genes and alleles in potato, and associating phenotype with genotype are also described. The recent determination of the potato genome sequence has presented new opportunities for genomewide assays to provide tools for gene discovery and enabling the development of robustly unique marker haplotypes spanning QTL regions. The latter will be useful in introgression breeding and whole-genome approaches such as genomic selection to improve the efficiency of selecting elite clones and enhancing genetic gain over time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Camptothecin (CPT) is a water insoluble and cytotoxic monoterpene indole alkaloid, which is used as the substrate to form water-soluble derivatives (such as topotecan and irinotecan) for use as anti-cancer drugs. CPT has been found in at least 16 different plant species belonging to 3, 5 and 13 unrelated plant orders, families and genera, respectively, across the plant kingdom and also in endophytic fungi associated with these CPT-producing plants. Increasing demand for CPT to satisfy chemotherapy requirements and a shortage of Camptotheca acuminata and Nothapodytes foetida used as the commercial sources of CPT are driving the need to find alternative sources for its production. Although the biosynthetic pathway of CPT remains poorly understood, limiting the powerful approach via metabolic engineering, several different biotechnological production technologies for CPT have been reported using plant tissue/organ cultures. In this chapter, the current understanding of the CPT biosynthetic pathway, including the biosynthetic genes and intermediate metabolites, is outlined. Then the different natural and biotechnological sources for CPT production are discussed. Finally, how CPT-producing organisms resist their own toxic metabolite and how this knowledge may potentially be of use in CPT-resistance management is covered. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

A case study is presented on the use of plants in technology by the ancient indigenous peoples of British Columbia (BC) through referencing archaeological research on wet sites. An overview of BC's indigenous peoples' development of baskets, fishhooks, fishnets and fish weirs through the use of plants is provided.

Seed policies primarily concentrate on the formal seed system, which supplies Sub-Saharan African countries less than 20% of the total seed demand and involves only a limited number of crops and varieties. Seed laws, and the mechanisms and organizations involved in their implementation, are developed with varying degrees of success. We address the limitations of applying a linear model to seed sector development and introduce integrated seed sector development (ISSD). We assess seed systems in Ethiopia, Mali, and Zambia, and demonstrate that one single model cannot address the variations in realities within one country or the continent. ISSD provides opportunities for taking a pluralistic approach in strengthening multiple seed systems, and has the potential to combine objectives targeting food security, agricultural development, promoting entrepreneurship, and contributing to biodiversity management. We elaborate pathways for ISSD-guided policies that include variety release, seed quality management, and plant breeders' rights. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Hectares of genetically modified (GM) crops have increased exponentially since 1996, when such crops began to be commercialized. GM biotechnology, together with conventional breeding, has become the main approach to improving agronomic traits of crops. However, people are concerned about the safety of GM crops, especially GM-derived food and feed. Many efforts have been made to evaluate the unintended effects caused by the introduction of exogenous genes. "Omics" techniques have advantages over targeted analysis in evaluating such crops because of their use of high-throughput screening. Proteins are key players in gene function and are directly involved in metabolism and cellular development or have roles as toxins, antinutrients, or allergens, which are essential for human health. Thus, proteomics can be expected to become one of the most useful tools in safety assessment. This review assesses the potential of proteomics in evaluating various GM crops. We further describe the challenges in ensuring homogeneity and sensitivity in detection techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Flavonoids are widely distributed secondary metabolites with different metabolic functions in plants. The elucidation of the biosynthetic pathways, as well as the irregulation by MYB, basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH), and WD40-type transcription factors, has allowed metabolic engineering of plants through the manipulation of the different final products with valuable applications. The present review describes the regulation of flavonoid biosynthesis, as well as the biological functions of flavonoids inplants, such as in defense against UV-B radiation and pathogen infection, nodulation, and pollen fertility. In addition, we discuss different strategies and achievements through the genetic engineering of flavonoid biosynthesis with implication in the industry and the combinatorial biosynthesis in microorganisms by the reconstruction of the pathway to obtain high amounts of specific compounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract- Stachys lavandulifolia is used as the herbal tea and its wide and potent medical effects have been reported for the extract in animal studies. This study aimed to find the safety profile of the extract to find the appropriate doses for further human studies. The aerial parts of the plant were air-dried and the hydroalcoholic extract was obtained and concentrated by percolation method with 140 mg/ml concentration. To assess the toxicity profile of this extract, 60 female mice (30 cases, 30 controls, 24.8±2.1 g, 4-6 weeks) were administered the extract by oral gavages in acute (24 hrs), subacute (14 days) and subchronic (45 days) models. All clinical, hematological, biochemical and histopathological changes were assessed in appropriate midpoints and endpoints and compared with control group. Doses up to 140 mg/kg were recognized as maximum tolerated dose in subchronic model. Abnormal changes in kidney and liver weight in treatment groups as well as the significant elevation of biochemical parameters in 45 days study has suggested the possible hepatic and renal toxicity potentials of this extract with doses upper than 140mg/kg. Doses up 70 mg/kg could be considered as no observable adverse effect level (NOAEL) and could be used in further clinical trials on the possible therapeutic effects of this plan [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The application of modern biotechnology for conservation of any endangered species requires an efficient in vitro regeneration protocol. In this study a reliable protocol was developed for in vitro seed germination, protocorm multiplication and subsequent plantlet regeneration of Vanda coerulea, an endangered orchid species. Among the four basal media evaluated for asymbiotic seed germination, Phytamax was found to be the best followed by Murashige and Skoog (MS). Phytamax was also found good for protocorm development. For protocorm like body (PLB) regeneration, protocorms were then further cultured on Phytamax media fortified with different phytohormones either individually or in combinations. The frequency of protocorm like body (PLB) regeneration significantly relied on kinds and concentrations of plant growth regulators used. A combination of 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) (5.36μM) and 6-benzyle amino purine (BAP) (3.80μM) was found to be suitable for maximum PLB regeneration. Healthy plantlets were induced from PLBs when cultured on same basal medium supplemented with activated charcoal (AC – 3.0g/l). Plantlets with well developed leaves and roots were transplanted to pots filled with a mixture of charcoal, brick pieces and sphagnum moss and transferred to the greenhouse. This protocol will enable mass propagation and conservation of this exquisite orchid. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Soybean is one of the top five agricultural products in the United States. Soybean rust is caused by the obligate fungus Phakopsora pachyrhizi Sydow, an exotic pathogen in the U.S. Extensive screening of soybean germplasm has not identified soybean with resistance to all of the different isolates of soybean rust. A biotechnological approach may help to understand the plant host response at the molecular level and subsequently broaden resistance of soybean to this fungus. Using laser capture microdissection, we isolated susceptible soybean palisade and mesophyll cells showing signs of infection, extracted the RNA and performed transcriptome profiling. A total of 2982 genes were found to be differentially expressed, of which 685 were up-regulated, and 2297 were down-regulated. Eighty-eight percent of our regulated genes are unique to our time-point and our palisade cells. Gene expression data was overlaid on Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes biochemical pathways. In general, up-regulated genes were associated with basic defense while down-regulated genes were associated with many metabolic pathways. These results demonstrate that soybean rust strongly affects plant metabolism at the latest stage of infection and that the plant futilely fights even at the end of the infection process to establish a resistance response. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Although quantitative resistance loci provide partial and durable resistance to a range of pathogen species in different crops, the molecular mechanism of quantitative disease resistance has remained largely unknown. Recent advances in characterization of the genes contributing to quantitative disease resistance and plant–pathogen interactions at the molecular level provide clues to the molecular bases of broad-spectrum resistance and durable resistance. This emerging knowledge will help in identifying genes involved in quantitative broad-spectrum resistance and durable resistance leading to formulation of efficient ways for using these genetic resources for crop improvement. This knowledge is also turning quantitative resistance genes with minor effects into a productive resource for crop protection via biotechnological approaches. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The article discusses aspects of the environmental risk assessment for the commercial sale and planting of transgenic crops under the government regulations in the U.S. It highlights the lack of a quantitative assessment for the safety of transgenic crops. It also cites the criticism of the environmental and food safety groups over the quality and safety of the genetically engineered crops.

In this article the author discusses the decision of the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) concerning the essentiality of biological processes on plant production of G2/07 (Broccoli case) and G1/08 (Tomato case) in Great Britain. He highlights the steps on plant reproduction and whole plant genomes as basis for the patentability. He examines the selection of plants in relation with the hereditary information and use of biotechnology on plant breeding.

An abstract of the article "Biotechnological production of the sesquiterpene α-humulene," by S. Alemdar and colleagues is presented.