Anacardic acids, a class of secondary compounds derived from fatty acids, are found in a variety of dicotyledonous families. Pest resistance (e.g., spider mites and aphids) in Pelargonium xhortorum (geranium) is associated with high levels (approximately 81%) of unsaturated 22:1 omega 5 and 24:1 omega 5 anacardic acids in the glandular trichome exudate. A single dominant locus controls the prod...

Geraniaceae are known for their unusual plastid genomes (plastomes), with the genus Pelargonium being most conspicuous with regard to plastome size and gene organization as judged by the sequenced plastomes of P. x hortorum and P. alternans. However, the hybrid origin of P. x hortorum and the uncertain phylogenetic position of P. alternans obscure the events that led to these extraordinary plas...

Global HIV-1 treatment would benefit greatly from safe herbal medicines with scientifically validated novel anti-HIV-1 activities. The root extract from the medicinal plant Pelargonium sidoides (PS) is licensed in Germany as the herbal medicine EPs®7630, with numerous clinical trials supporting its safety in humans. Here we provide evidence from multiple cell culture experiments that PS extract...

OBJECTIVE Sweet potato whitefly, Bemisia tabaci Gen. (B. tabaci), is one of the most important pests of various greenhouse crops in Iran. Nowadays, chemical insecticides are broadly used for control of the pests that causes risk to consumer's health. For the first time, contact toxicity of Pelargonium roseum Andrews and Artemisia sieberi Besser essential oils on B. tabaci and its possible appli...

The mechanisms that regulate mitochondrial inheritance are not yet clear, even though it is 100 years since the first description of non-Mendelian genetics. Here, we quantified the copy numbers of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in the gametic cells of angiosperm species. We demonstrate that each egg cell from Arabidopsis thaliana, Antirrhinum majus, and Nicotiana tabacum possesses 59.0, 42.7, and 73...

Six medicinal plants Helichrysum italicum (Roth) G. Don, Angelica archangelica L., Lavandula officinalis L., Salvia officinalis L., Melilotus officinalis L., and Ruta graveolens L. were used. The aim of the study was to compare their extracts obtained by Soxhlet (hexane) extraction, maceration with ethanol (EtOH), and supercritical CO2 extraction (SC-CO2) targeted on coumarin content (by high p...

Rutacridone, 1-hydroxy-A-methylacridone, and l-hydroxy-3-methoxy-A-methylacridone have been isolated for the first time from callus cultures, which had been obtained from meristematic stem cells of Ruta graveolens L. The alkaloids were identified by co-chromatography with authentic compounds, by IR spectra, and by electronic spectra before and after addition of A1C13 . The use of the bathochrom...

BACKGROUND Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most causative organisms in the skin wound infections. Development of resistant S. aureus to current treatments in individuals with low immunity is a global concern. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of herbal formulation against skin wound infection. METHODS The efficacy of herbal formulation containing Oliveria decumben...

The effectiveness of 7 fungicides (Amistar 250 SC, Bayleton 5 WP, Bumper 250 EC, Discus 500 WG, Folicur BT 225 EC, Folicur Multi 50 WG, Score 250 EC) and 2 bioproducts (Biochikol 020 PC and Biosept 33 SL) in the control of Puccinia pelargonii-zonalis was tested on pelargonium cv. Pulsar F1 Salmon. Additionally, their influence on plant growth, size of pustules, percentage of germinated spores a...