Two new monosaccharide steroidal saponins, named ypsilandroside S(1) and ypsilandroside T(2), have been isolated from the whole plants of Ypsilandra thibetica. Their structures were elucidated as heloniogenin 3-O-β-D-apiofuranoside(1) and pregna 5, 16-dien-3β, 12α-diol-20-one-3-O-β-D-apiofuranoside(2) by spectroscopic techniques(1D and 2D NMR, MS). Compounds 1 and 2 were tested for their inhibitory effects on lipopolysaccharide-induced nitric oxide production in RAW 264.7 cells.

One new eudesmane sesquiterpenoid(1) named ecdysantherol A and two new benzene derivatives ecdysantherols B(2) and C(3), together with five known benzene derivatives(4-8) were isolated from the stems of Ecdysanthera rosea. The structures of the new compounds were elucidated by extensive spectroscopic methods and X-ray diffraction. The known compounds were identified by the comparison of their spectroscopic data with reported literature data. Compound 1 showed moderate antibacterial activity against the Providensia smartii with MIC value of 12.5 μg/mL.

Beneficial effects of glycyrrhizic acid(GA), a bioactive extract of licorice root, in the prevention of metabolic syndrome have been consistently reported while advanced glycation end products(AGE) and receptor for advanced glycation end product(RAGE) are the leading factors in the development of diabetes mellitus. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of GA on the AGE-RAGE axis using high-fat/high-sucrose(HF/HS) diet-induced metabolic syndrome rat models. Twenty four male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned into three groups for 4 weeks:(1) Group A, normal diet with standard rat chow;(2) Group B, HF/HS diet;(3) Group C, HF/HS diet and oral administration of 100 mg/kg GA per day. The results showed that HF/HS diet elevated the fasting blood glucose level and insulin resistance index which was prevented by GA supplementation. GA treatment significantly lowered the circulating AGE independent of its glucose-lowering effect. HF/HS diet also triggered RAGE upregulation in the abdominal muscles while GA administration downregulated RAGE expression in the abdominal muscles, aorta and subcutaneous adipose tissues. In conclusion, HF/HS diet could cause glucose intolerance, insulin resistance and upregulation of RAGE expression while GA ameliorated the metabolic dysregulation besides exhibiting inhibitory effects on the AGE-RAGE axis.

A new limonoid, 17-(5-methoxy-2-oxofuran-3-yl)-28-deoxonimbolide(1), and a new C21 steroidal saponin, 2α, 4α-dihydroxy-pregn-5-en-16-one-3α-O-D-glucopyranoside(2), together with 11 known compounds were isolated from the methanol extract of the leaves of Azadirachta indica. The structures were elucidated by means of spectroscopic analysis and putative biosynthetic origins. All the compounds were evaluated for their antibacterial activities against six bacterial strains.

A natural bacterial strain identified as Bacillus amyloliquefaciens MBAA3 using 16S rDNA partial genome sequencing has been studied for optimization of cellulase production. Statistical screening of media components for production of cellulase by B. amyloliquefaciens MBAA3 was carried out by Plackett-Burman design. Plackett-Burman design showed CMC, MgSO₄ and pH as significant components influencing the cellulase production from the media components screened by Plackett-Burman fractional factorial design. The optimum concentrations of these significant parameters were determined employing the response surface central composite design, involving three factors and five levels was adopted to acquire the best medium for the production of cellulase enzyme revealed concentration of CMC(1.84 g), MgSO₄(0.275 g), and pH(8.5) in media for highest enzyme production. Response surface counter plots revealed that middle level of MgSO₄ and middle level of CMC, higher level of CMC and lower level of pH and higher level of MgSO₄ with lower level of pH increase the production of cellulase. After optimization cellulase activity increased by 6.81 fold. Presence of cellulase gene in MBAA3 was conformed by the amplification of genomic DNA of MBAA3. A PCR product of cellulase gene of 1500 bp was successfully amplified. The amplified gene was conformed by sequencing the amplified product and sequence was deposited in the gene bank under the accession number KF929416.