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Lunasin, a unique 43 amino acid, 4.8 kDa cancer-chemopreventive peptide initially reported in soybean and now found in barley and wheat, has been shown to be cancer-chemopreventive in mammalian cells and in a skin cancer mouse model against oncogenes and chemical carcinogens. To identify bioactive components in traditional herbal medicines and in search for new sources of lunasin, we report here the properties of lunasin from Solanum nigrum L. (SNL), a plant indigenous to northeast Asia. Lunasin was screened in the crude extracts of five varieties of the medicinal plants of Solanaceae origin and seven other major herbal plants. An in vitro digestion stability assay for measuring bioavailability was carried out on SNL crude protein and autoclaved SNL using pepsin and pancreatin. A nonradioactive histone acetyltransferase (HAT) assay and HAT activity colorimetric assay were used to measure the inhibition of core histone acetylation. The inhibitory effect of lunasin on the phosphorylation of retinoblastoma protein (Rb) was determined by immunoblotting against phospho-Rb. Lunasin isolated from autoclaved SNL inhibited core histone H3 and H4 acetylation, the activities of the HATs, and the phosphorylation of the Rb protein. Lunasin in the crude protein and in the autoclaved crude protein was very stable to pepsin and pancreatin in vitro digestion, while the synthetic pure lunasin was digested at 2 min after the reaction. We conclude that lunasin is a bioactive and bioavailable component in SNL and that consumption of SNL may play an important role in cancer prevention.

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In order to organize a new checklist for endemic vascular plants of the Korean Peninsula, 358 taxa of the Korea Forest Service and 375 taxa of the National Institute of Biological Resources were reviewed. In addition, the names of previously published endemic plants above the rank of variety were checked up to 2016. From the two lists, a total of 444 taxa were identified. Among them, 289 taxa were common on the two lists, but 69 and 86 taxa were listed only by the Korea Forest Service and by the National Institute of Biological Resources, respectively. Taxonomic documents including journal papers and dissertations were examined with regard to the 444 taxa. In some cases, opinions of Korean experts in this field were also reflected. From the results, 312 taxa in total were recognized as plants endemic to the Korean Peninsula, while 132 taxa could not be included on the endemic list. On the other hand, 48 taxa, none of which existed on the two lists, were newly listed. In conclusion, the new checklist of vascular plants endemic to Korea was confirmed, with a total of 360 taxa consisting of 64 families, 172 genera, 297 species, 4 subspecies, 51 varieties and 8 hybrids. The new common name Halla-seol-aeng-cho is given to Primula farinosa L. subsp. modesta (Bisset & S. Moore) Pax var. hannasanensis (T. Yamaz.) T. Yamaz. Sillaphyton Pimenov (Deok-u-gireum-na-mul-sok) is newly identified as a genus endemic to Korea. However, Pentactina Nakai could not be included on the list of Korean vascular endemic genera.

The study of recently formed species is important because it can help us to better understand organismal divergence and the speciation process. However, these species often present difficult challenges in the field of molecular phylogenetics because the processes that drive molecular divergence can lag behind phenotypic divergence. In the current study we show that species of the recently diverged North American endemic genus of purple coneflower, Echinacea, have low levels of molecular divergence. Data from three nuclear loci and two plastid loci provide neither resolved topologies nor congruent hypotheses about species-level relationships. This lack of phylogenetic resolution is likely due to the combined effects of incomplete lineage sorting, hybridization, and backcrossing following secondary contact. The poor resolution provided by molecular markers contrasts previous studies that found well-resolved and taxonomically supported relationships from metabolic and morphological data. These results suggest that phenotypic canalization, resulting in identifiable morphological species, has occurred rapidly within Echinacea. Conversely, molecular signals have been distorted by gene flow and incomplete lineage sorting. Here we explore the impact of natural history on the genetic organization and phylogenetic relationships of Echinacea.