This review describes the genus Crotalaria focusing on its secondary metabolites and their medicinal applications. The genus Crotalaria of Fabaceae or Leguminosae family have about 600 species which are distributed in tropic and sub-tropic regions of the world. They are medicinally important due to production of various compounds. Traditional early medicines and drug discovery were based on natural products. Organisms produce some chemical compounds by their metabolic pathways that are not necessary for their growth and development and are known as secondary metabolites. This diverse group of compounds is synthesized by algae, plants, animals and fungi. These metabolites consist of variety of compounds such as phenols, coumarins, terpenoids, flavonoids, alkaloids, steroids and fatty acids. Secondary metabolites obtained from crotalaria exhibit anticancer, anti-rheumatoid arthritis, anti-allergic, antioxidant, antimicrobial, antiaging and wound healing activities along with many other medicinal applications.
Huanglongbing (HLB), also called as citrus greening disease, is the most destructive and prevalent disease of citrus. In this study, for HLB diagnosis in the leaf samples of Succari sweet orange [Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck] from field, conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was employed. Asian citrus psyllid was collected from HLB positive sweet orange field trees and released on healthy plants of succari and kinnow for infestation in the growth room under controlled conditions. Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus was detected in the inoculated citrus by Taqman based real time PCR using primers set HLBas fpr. SYBR green based real time qPCR was performed to differentiate expression of seven genes in HLB infected and healthy leaf samples of Succari sweet orange and Kinnow mandarin. Conventional PCR results were obtained with discrete bands having amplicon size of 1160bp, 800bp and 700bp for OI1/OI2c, OI2/23S1 and A2/J5, respectively. Succari proved to be good indicator plant for HLB symptoms expression. Gene expression data analysis results represented Kinnow mandarin is less susceptible to HLB as compared to Succari sweet orange.
Licorice, a medicinal herb, has been found to contain various phytochemicals including flavonoids, phenolic compounds, saponins, sapogenins, pterocarpenes, coumestan derivatives, 2-arylobenzofuran derivatives, chemopreventive agents, acidic constituents and glycyrrhizin having different biological activities. Licorice is used in medical for treatment of various diseases like atherosclerosis, osteoporosis and Alzheimer’s disease. It is used as anti-inflammation, anti-ulcer, anti-cancer, anti-virus and in many other problems. It is also used as additive for flavoring candies, chewing gum and toothpaste. The roots of this plant are majorly used for extracting different phytochemicals. Various licorice species: Glycyrrhiza glabra, G. uralensis, G. inflata, G. lepidota, and G. pallidiflora contain various phytochemicals with different type of biological activities. This paper provides a brief of the bioactive constituents and biological functions of different licorice species in details.
Huanglongbing (HLB) is a fatal disease of citrus. We report the detection of 'Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus' the causal organism of huanglongbing, in mandarin group of citrus. Four genotypes of citrus belonging to mandarin group including: Citrus sunki, Kinnow, Parson's Special and Sun Chu Sha were studied for the detection of HLB bacterium. Taqman based real time qPCR was performed for the detection of Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus in citrus host. Highest mean cycle threshold value of 25.06 was obtained for Kinnow mandarin while 24.30 for Parson's Special, 23.95 for Citrus Sunki and 22.0 for Sun Chu Sha. These results may be helpful in the development of management plans for HLB control in Pakistan as well as round the world.
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