The methanolic extract of Flemingia macrophylla roots exhibited significant estrogenic activity in the transgenic plant assay system which was comparable to the activity of soybean extract. Utilizing estrogenic activity-guided fractionation, one new compound, fleminigin, together with 23 known compounds were isolated from F. macrophylla roots' methanolic extract. The structure of the new compou...

The genus Eremostachys of the family Lamiaceae (alt. Labiatae) contains 15 species of perennial in Iran, and five of them are endemic [1,2]. During the past decade, seven investigations have been carried out on the chemical composition of the essential oils of the genus Eremostachys. These studies include the analysis of the fresh aerial parts of Eremostachys laciniata Bunge from Jordan [3], fl...

Purpose: The seeds of Swietenia macrophylla are used in traditional medicine for the treatment of diarrhoea. Thus the petroleum ether extract of Swietenia macrophylla (Meliaceae) seeds was investigated for its anti-diarrhoeal property in Wister albino rats to substantiate folklore claim. Methods: Petroleum ether extract of the seeds of this plant, at graded doses (25, 50 & 100mg/kg body weight)...

BACKGROUND Swietenia macrophylla King (Meliaceae) is used to treat diabetes mellitus in Malaysia. This study aims to evaluate the anti-hyperglycaemic potential of petroleum ether (PE), chloroform (CE) and methanol (ME) extracts of S. macrophylla seeds, in normoglycaemic and streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. METHODS Following treatment of normoglycaemic rats with S. macrophylla seed ...

To find a new anti-malarial medicine derived from natural resources, we examined the leaves of 13 common Japanese plants in vitro. Among them, a leaf-extract of Hydrangea macrophylla, a common Japanese flower, inhibited the parasitic growth of Plasmodium falciparum. The IC50 of Hydrangea macrophylla leaf extract to Plasmodium falciparum was 0.18 microg/ml. The IC50 to NIH 3T3-3 cells, from a no...

Mahogany, Swietenia macrophylla (Meliaceae) is the most valuable hardwood species in Neotropics and is seriously threatened owing to over-exploitation and habitat destruction. The population genetic structure and mating system of S. macrophylla were studied in the Brazilian Amazon for conservation purposes. Ten highly polymorphic micro satellite markers were developed from an enriched genomic l...

Bacteria in the genus Rhizobium, methanogenic bacteria and Archaea are important in the terrestrial carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycle dynamics and the sequestration of C and N into the soil biomass. A better understanding of the functions of these microbial groups could provide some clarity on the impact of different land development practices and a changing climate on soil ecosystems. The comm...

BACKGROUND Plant derived components have attracted particular attention as an alternative source to battle several diseases including cancer. The variation in the climate, the geographical location and the rich ethnomedicinal traditions has made the Darjeeling Himalayas an abode of invaluable repository of traditional medicinal plants. In this study, we explored the in vitro anticancer properti...

Gentiana macrophylla, a medicinal plant with significant pharmacological properties, contains the bioactive compound gentiopicroside. Methyl jasmonate (MeJA) is an effective elicitor for enhancing the production of such compounds. However, little is known about MeJA-mediated biosynthesis of gentiopicroside. We investigated this phenomenon as well as gene expression profiles to determine the mol...