In this research, dried acetone:chloroform extract of aerial parts of E. denticulata as one of the endemic plants to Iran, afforded a number of triterpenes and steroids including: betulin, 24-methylene-cycloart-3-ol, cycloart-23Z-ene-3β,25-diol, cycloart-23Z-ene-3β,25-diol, ergosta-8,24-dien-3-ol (obtusifoliol) and beta-sitosterol which were reported for the first time from this plant. The stru...

In this study, the antioxidant, antiacetylcholinesterase, anti-inflammatory, and DNA protecting activities of the aerial parts of Glaucium grandiflorum var. grandiflorum were evaluated. It was found that the lyophilized methanolic extract exhibited an inhibitory capacity against FeCl3/ascorbic acid induced posphatidylcholine liposome oxidation (EC50 = 2.62  0.08 mg/mL), quenched HOCl (5.87  0...

The in-vitro effects of Captopril an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor were studied on TAME-esterase, a component of the Kinin-Kallikrein system, induced contractions on rat aorta strips. Our results showed that contractile responses induced by TAME (EC50 6 x 10 M) were significantly attenuated when the aorta strips were pre-incubated with 1M Captopril (EC50 1.8 x10M). Based on our data w...

CA1 pyramidal cells were voltage clamped, and GABA was applied to individual cells with a modified U-tube, rapid drug application system. With Vh = -50 mV, inward currents elicited by 10 microM GABA were inhibited by GABAA receptor (GABAR) antagonists and were baclofen insensitive, suggesting that GABA actions on isolated CA1 pyramidal cells were GABAR mediated. GABA concentration-response curv...

The effects of two herbicides used wide-spread, isoproturon (phenylurea) and terbutryn (triazine), on growth, dry weight, elemental composition, photosynthetic pigments and protein content, and cell volume assayed by flow cytometry in the freshwater microalgae Chlorella vulgaris were studied. Different parameters for algal activity show widely different sensitivities to these aquatic pollutants...

The endophytic fungus strain 0248, isolated from garlic, was identified as Trichoderma brevicompactum based on morphological characteristics and the nucleotide sequences of ITS1-5.8S- ITS2 and tef1. The bioactive compound T2 was isolated from the culture extracts of this fungus by bioactivity-guided fractionation and identified as 4β-acetoxy-12,13- epoxy-Δ(9)-trichothecene (trichodermin) by spe...

This study investigated the developmental toxicity of a plant growth regulator (a type of pesticide) using the frog embryo teratogenesis assay-Xenopus (FETAX). Xenopus laevis embryos were exposed to 11 different concentrations of gibberellic acid (GA3), from stage 8 to 11, for 96 h under static renewal test conditions. The median lethal concentration (LC50), malformation (EC50), non-observed ad...

A series of novel aromatic carboxylic acid amides were synthesized and tested for their activities against six phytopathogenic fungi by an in vitro mycelia growth inhibition assay. Most of them displayed moderate to good activity. Among them N-(2-(1H-indazol-1-yl)phenyl)-2-(trifluoromethyl)benzamide (3c) exhibited the highest antifungal activity against Pythium aphanidermatum (EC50 = 16.75 µg/m...

An index of agonism is described that can be used to quantify agonist receptor selectivity, bias, cell-based agonism, and the effects of receptor mutation on signaling. The parameter is derived from agonist concentration-response curves and comprises the maximal response to the agonist (max) and the EC50 in the form of Δlog(max/EC50). This parameter is derived from equations describing agonists...

FMRFamide and FMRFamide-related neuropeptides are extremely widespread and abundant in invertebrates and have numerous important functions. Here, we have cloned a Drosophila orphan receptor, and stably expressed it in Chinese hamster ovary cells. Screening of a peptide library revealed that the receptor reacted with high affinity to FMRFamide (EC50, 6 x 10(-9) M). The intrinsic Drosophila FMRFa...