The aim of this study was to determine and compare Ba, Cr, Cd, Fe, Sr, Pb, and Zn content in medicinal herbs Urtica dioica L., Taraxacum officinale, and Matricaria recutita growing in polluted and unpolluted areas of the Republic of Macedonia. The metal content was determined using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES). In the unpolluted area of Mt. Plackovica the me...

The antibacterial activity of ethanol extract of Zingiber officinale Roscoe (ginger) and its combination with different salts like CuSO4, ZnSO4 and MnCl2 was investigated. Both Gram positive and Gram negative bacteria were tested by agar diffusion method. The results showed that ethanol extract of Zingiber officinale gave the maximum zone of inhibition at 50mg/ml concentrations against Escheric...

A crude polysaccharide fraction (cDOP) has been determined to be the characteristic marker of Dendrobium officinale, an expensive tea material in Asia, but its chemistry and bioactivity have not been studied. In work reported here, cDOP was destarched (DOP, 90% yield) and separated into two subfraction polysaccharides, DOPa and DOPb, which were characterized by monosaccharide composition and me...

The current practice of ingesting phytochemicals to support the immune system or to fight infections is based on centuries-old tradition. We review reports on seven Chinese herbs, (Aloe vera Mill. (Aloaceae), Angelica species (Umbelliferae), Astragalus membranaceus Bunge. (Leguminosae), Ganoderma lucidum (Fr.) Karst. (Ganodermataceae), Panax ginseng C.A Mey. (Araliaceae), Scutellaria species (L...

Methanolic extracts of eight medicinal plants were screened for their anti-mildew activity against Plasmopara halstedii, incitant of downy mildew of sunflower. Extracts of Morinda citrifolia, Zingiber officinale, and Tinospora cordifollia were found to be best in reducing the sporulation of P. halstedii in both the whole leaf and leaf disc method. Further; the phytochemical analysis of these ex...

The Koch snowflake is a well known self-similar set whose boundary is a fractal curve. Suppose a vibrating membrane with fixed boundary, i.e. a drum, is shaped like a Koch snowflake. The fundamental modes of vibration of this drum can be modelled by the eigenfunctions of the Laplacian on the snowflake. These, in turn, can be approximated by a discrete problem leading to a matrix eigenvalue prob...

Sawflies were collected in Ethiopia during 2010-2013. Three species represent new records for the country: Arge deckerti Koch, 2005, Athalia excisa Koch, 2006 and Xenapates nigrifrons Koch, 2012. Arge flavifrons Mocsáry, 1909, syn. n. and A. transvaalensis Cameron, 1911, syn. n. are subjective synonyms of A. micheli (Buysson, 1900) that is re-described here. Athalia fumosa Gribodo, 1879 sp. rev...

Nine new gingerols, including three 6-oxo-shogaol derivatives [(Z)-6-oxo-[6]-shogaol (1), (Z)-6-oxo-[8]-shogaol (2), (Z)-6-oxo-[10]-shogaol (3)], one 6-oxoparadol derivative [6-oxo-[6]-paradol (4)], one isoshogaol derivative [(E)-[4]-isoshogaol (5)], and four paradoldiene derivatives [(4E,6Z)-[4]-paradoldiene (8), (4E,6E)-[6]-paradoldiene (9), (4E,6E)-[8]-paradoldiene (10), (4E,6Z)-[8]-paradold...

Plants display extensive intraspecific variation in secondary metabolites. However, the selective forces shaping this diversity remain often unknown, especially below ground. Using Taraxacum officinale and its major native insect root herbivore Melolontha melolontha, we tested whether below-ground herbivores drive intraspecific variation in root secondary metabolites. We found that high M. melo...