Alcoholic liver disease is a direct result of alcohol-induced hepatotoxicity coupled with impaired hepatic regenerative activity. Our aim of the study was to investigate the beneficial effect of zingerone on hepatic oxidative stress and inflammation induced by ethanol in experimental rats. Male albino Wistar rats were divided into four groups. Rats of groups 1 and 2 received isocaloric glucose and dimethyl sulfoxide (2 % DMSO). Hepatotoxicity was induced in groups 3 and 4 by supplementing 30 % ethanol post orally for 60 days. Rats of groups 2 and 4 received zingerone (20 mg/kg body weight in 2 % DMSO p.o) daily during the final 30 days of the experimental period. Ethanol alone administered rats showed significant increase in the plasma and tissue lipid peroxidation markers such as thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, lipid hydroperoxides, conjugated dienes, and a significant decrease in the activities of plasma and tissue enzymic and non-enzymic antioxidants such as superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, reduced glutathione, vitamin C, and vitamin E. Moreover, the presence of mast cells and increase in the expressions of inflammatory markers such as NF-κB, COX-2, TNF-α, and IL-6 and decrease in the expression of Nrf2 in the liver was observed in ethanol-fed rats. Supplementation with zingerone to ethanol-fed rats reversed the changes induced by ethanol in the experimental rats. Thus, zingerone, through its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, may represent a therapeutic option to protect against ethanol-induced hepatotoxicity.

Microalga is one of the most compelling microbial biomasses for biodiesel production. Various pretreatment processes, namely, enzyme treatment, lysis by acid, ultrasonicator, microwaves, autoclave, and 40% NaCl, for nitrogen replete and depleted algal cultures of Nannochloropsis oculata had been carried out to check the most feasible and effective technique to disrupt cells for procuring lipids, for which concentrations were determined. Fatty acid composition, essential functional groups, and cell disruption were analyzed by GC-MS, FT-IR Spectroscopy, and Nile Red fluorescent microscopy, respectively. The present investigation showed that lipid yield was higher in nitrogen depleted cells than that in normally nourished cells. GC-MS revealed the presence of major fatty acids-palmitic, oleic, stearic, arachidic, lauric, and linoleic acids. Highest efficiency was found when cells were pretreated using acid for 3 h. The lipid content was calculated as 33.18% and 54.26% for nitrogen rich cells and nitrogen starved cells, respectively. This work thus aided in identifying the most eligible pretreatment process to avail lipids from cells, to convert them to eco-friendly and nonpolluting biodiesel.

A mathematical modeling of microalgae biomass is an essential step to optimize the biomass and lipid production rate and to reduce the cost of microalgal biodiesel production system. In the present study, kinetic studies were carried out to describe the growth and neutral lipid production of two marine microalgae Chlorella salina and Nannochloropsis oculata under the nitrogen-repleted and -depleted conditions using logistic and Luedeking–Piret equations. This research paper provides the information on mathematically efficient procedure to predict suitable environment condition for biomass and lipid production. The predicted results were compared with experimental data, which showed that this model closely agreed with simulated results. From this investigation, it was found that nitrogen was an essential nutrient for algal growth, which increased under nitrogen-rich condition, whereas during nitrogen-limited condition some loss in growth was observed but with increased lipid content. Since metabolic changes occurred under nitrogen- depleted state, the protein and carbohydrate pathways were shifted to lipid biosynthesis.

This study provides the evidence that troxerutin exerts a significant therapeutic effect against liver cancer by modulating liver function enzymes, xenobiotic enzymes, oxidative damage, inhibiting cell proliferation, suppressing inflammatory response and induction of apoptosis.

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In this study, enzymatic interesterification is carried out using encapsulated lipase as biocatalyst with methyl acetate as acyl acceptor in a solvent-free system. Lipase, isolated from a marine bacterial isolate, Bacillus sp.S23 (KF220659.1) was immobilized in sodium alginate beads. This investigation elaborated on the effects of various parameters, namely enzyme loading, temperature, water, molar ratio, reaction time and agitation for interesterification. The study resulted in the following optimal conditions: 1.5 g immobilized lipase, 1:12 molar ratio of oil to methyl acetate, 35 °C, 8 % water, 60 h reaction time, 250 rpm of agitation. With the standardized condition, the maximum conversion efficiency was 95.68 %. The immobilized beads, even after ten cycles of repeated usage showed high stability in the presence of methyl acetate and no loss of lipase activity. The microalgal biodiesel composition was analyzed using gas chromatography. The current study was efficient in using immobilized lipase for the interesterification process, since the method was cost-effective and eco-friendly, no solvent was involved and the enzyme was encapsulated in a natural polymer.

Asiatic acid (AA), a pentacyclic triterpenoid, derived from the tropical medicinal plant Centella asiatica is known to exhibit numerous pharmacological properties. We hypothesized that AA will have chemopreventive potential against 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH)-induced experimental colon carcinogenesis in male Wistar rats. Rats were arbitrarily divided into six groups. Group I rats were processed as control. Group II rats received AA (8 mg/kg b.w., p.o.) and groups III-VI rats received subcutaneous injections of DMH (20 mg/kg b.w.) once a week, for the first four weeks. In addition, groups IV-VI rats received AA at the doses of 2, 4 and 8 mg/kg b.w., respectively, for 16 weeks. Our results discovered that supplementation with AA to the DMH-exposed rats significantly decreased the incidence of polyps and Aberrant crypt foci (ACF) as compared to the DMH-alone-exposed rats. Moreover, in the AA-supplemented DMH-exposed rats, we ascertained increased activities of the antioxidants and decreased levels of lipid peroxidation (LPO) in the liver and circulation and enhanced levels of both LPO and antioxidants in the colon, which were altered in the DMH-alone-exposed rats. Furthermore, we also observed altered activities of vitamins C and E and biotransforming enzymes in DMH-alone-exposed rats, which were reversed on AA supplementation. All the observations were supported by our histological findings. Thus, we can conclude that, AA could be used as an effective chemopreventive agent against DMH-induced colon carcinogenesis.