The essential oil from fresh leaves of Thuja orientalis L. grown in the north-western Himalaya was isolated by means of hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC and GC/MS. Twenty-two compounds representing 94.0% of the total oil were identified. The leaf oil contained alpha-pinene (29.2%), Delta-3-carene (20.1%), alpha-cedrol (9.8%), caryophyllene (7.5%), alpha-humulene (5.6%), limonene (5.4%), alp...

Sophora alopecuroides lectin (SAL), a novel lectin from the seeds of Sophora alopecuroides, was purified by ion-exchange chromatography on diethylaminoethyl (DEAE)- and carboxymethyl (CM)-Sepharose columns, followed by gel filtration on a Sephadex 75 10/300 GL column. SAL was found to be a monomer of 39916.3 Da, as determined by tricine-sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis...

Alternaria radicina Meier, Drechsler & Eddy [syn. Stemphylium radicinum (Meier, Drechsler et Eddy) Neerg.] is a pathogen causing a range of symptoms in carrot, including preand post-emergence dampingoff, necrosis of the crown and root, foliar, flowerand seed-stalks, and umbel and seed blight. The greatest damage occurs post-harvest, during root storage (Meier et al., 1922; Neergaard, 1945; Maud...

Alternaria species are mainly saprophytic fungi, but some are plant pathogens. Seven pathotypes of Alternaria alternata use secondary metabolites of host-specific toxins as pathogenicity factors. These toxins kill host cells prior to colonization. Genes associated with toxin synthesis reside on conditionally dispensable chromosomes, supporting the notion that pathogenicity might have been acqui...

The sphinganine-analog mycotoxins (SAMs) fumonisin B1 and AAL toxins are inhibitors of eukaryotic sphinganine N-acyltransferase in vitro. Treatment of eukaryotes with SAMs generally results in an accumulation of sphingoid base precursors and a depletion of complex sphingolipids. The asc,asc genotypes of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) and Nicotiana umbratica are sensitive to SAMs and host of t...

The sphinganine analog mycotoxin, AAL-toxin, induces a death process in plant and animal cells that shows apoptotic morphology. In nature, the AAL-toxin is the primary determinant of the Alternaria stem canker disease of tomato, thus linking apoptosis to this disease caused by Alternaria alternata f. sp. lycopersici. The product of the baculovirus p35 gene is a specific inhibitor of a class of ...

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to evaluate the component-resolved diagnosis using a microarray allergen chip (Immuno Solid-phase Allergen Chip, ImmunoCAP ISAC) and to compare this new diagnostic tool with the established ImmunoCAP methods for allergen-specific IgE detection in allergic rhinitis patients. METHODS One hundred sixty-eight allergic rhinitis patients were included in this st...

Alternaria alternata produces more than 60 secondary metabolites, among which alternariol (AOH) and alternariol-9-methyl ether (AME) are important mycotoxins. Whereas the toxicology of these two polyketide-based compounds has been studied, nothing is known about the genetics of their biosynthesis. One of the postulated core enzymes in the biosynthesis of AOH and AME is polyketide synthase (PKS)...

Taxol (paclitaxel) is a diterpenoid compound with significant and extensive applications in the treatment of cancer. The production of Taxol and relevant intermediates by engineered microbes is an attractive alternative to the semichemical synthesis of Taxol. In this study, based on a previously developed platform, the authors first established taxadiene production in mutant E. coli T2 and T4 b...

Background: The prevalence of allergic diseases has risen in the last decades. The objective of this study was to determine the common allergens in children via the skin prick test.Methods: This cross-sectional study recruited 313 allergic children (4 months to 18 years old) referred to the Asthma and Allergy Clinic of Children’s Medical Center in Tehran. A questionnaire containing demographic ...