Mosquitoes are exceptionally efficient in detecting their hosts for blood meal using odorant binding proteins, viz. 3N7H and 3Q8I and spread several dreadful diseases. DEET is a synthetic mosquito repellent widely used all over world for protection against mosquito bite. Reports reveal that, synthetic mosquito repellents may pose health problems in considerably large population. In view of the above fact, we made an attempt to discover efficient and novel natural mosquito repellent compounds with least impact on human health. Methanolic leaf extracts of Ocimum basilicum Linn. var. pilosum (willd.)-Benth and Ocimum tenuiflorum var. CIM-AYU were subjected to GC–MS analysis and obtained 35 phytochemical constituents. Repellent potentiality of the Ocimum compounds was assessed against 3Q8I and 3N7H of Anopheles gambiae. PDB structures of mosquito odorant binding proteins were downloaded, processed and docking studies were performed along with reference ligand DEET using Schrodinger MAESTRO 9.2 software. Molecular docking results reveal that phenol, 2-methoxy-3-(2-propenyl)-, licopersin, gamma sitosterol and benzene, 1,2-dimethoxy-4-(2-propenyl)- from O. tenuiflorum var. CIM-AYU are strongly bound with 3N7H. Whereas, 4h-1-benzopyran-4-one, 5-hydroxy-6,7-dimethoxy-2-(4-methoxyphenyl)-, catechol and monoacetin from O. basilicum Linn. var. pilosum (willd.)-Benth. show high binding affinity with odorant binding protein 3Q8I. All natural compounds tested in the present study display better docking scores than DEET. The results further substantiate that the 12 out of 35 compounds of the two Ocimum species found to be ideal candidates for design and development of potential mosquito repellents. ADME properties of the tested compounds further confirm that bioactive compounds of Ocimum species were found to be in acceptable range. Synchronized application of at least two different natural compounds (with best docking scores) which target 3N7H and 3Q8I (Odorant Binding Proteins of mosquito) proteins may provide enhanced protection against mosquitoes bite. Based on the ADME properties, natural compounds of Ocimum species can be considered for design and development of safe mosquito repellents.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13205-015-0346-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
The present study describes the anatomy, distribution, morphology and ultrastructure of laticifer system in the phylloclades of Euphorbia caducifolia Haines (Family Euphorbiaceae), a potential biofuel yielding, Crassulacean Acid Metabolism (CAM) plant for the first time using light and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Histochemical tests were performed to identify the principal components of latex using a variety of stains. In cross section, the phylloclade is composed of four distinct regions: the epidermis, cortex, vascular cylinder and pith. The phylloclade anatomy indicated xeromorphic characters and provided an insight about its capacity to grow with very little rainfall and/or inputs on dry or marginal lands. Non-articulated laticifers are present in the cortex, vascular cylinder and pith, but their frequency varies with the tissue type. Highest laticifer frequency was observed in vascular cylinder (9.6%) followed by cortex (3.9%) and pith regions (1.9%). In contrast, laticifer index was found to be higher in the pith (12.7%) followed by cortex (3.8%) and vascular cylinder (2.3%). The discovery of a system of laticifers in E. caducifolia not described earlier could also be of taxonomic value. The histo-chemical tests revealed the presence of lipids, phenols, flavonoids, protein and starch in laticifer. As described by TEM observations laticifers contained distinct cell wall, nucleus and cytoplasm with ribosomes, small and big vacuoles, mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, plastids and osmophilic bodies. The lipophilic compounds present in the latex of this species could be used as chemical feedstock for the production of biofuels.
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