Nandini Prasad Shetty

This article examines biochemical alterations and gene expression changes during tomato fruit physiology. The chroma index increases from mature green (41.27) to red ripe (48.36) stages, and the texture softens from mature green (43.56 N) to red ripe (24.75 N). Reducing sugar and total carotenoid levels rise at the red ripe stage. Free radical content was elevated in the early stages (7 nM) of ripening and declined at the later stages (4 nM). The specific activity of α-mannosidase and β-N-acetyl hexosaminidase was high at the breaker (0.077 & 0.075 U/mg, respectively) stages, while polygalacturonase activity was high at red ripe (1.173 U/mg) stage. qPCR experiments revealed that the α-mannosidase was upregulated during the breaker (1.2 fold) stages of tomato ripening, the β-N-acetyl Hexosaminidase was upregulated throughout the breaker (2 fold), and pink (1.2 fold) stages of tomato ripening, and the β-xylosidase was upregulated significantly during the breaker stage (3.9 fold) of tomato ripening. The current findings revealed that the α-Mannosidase (0.77), β-N-acetylhexosaminidase (0.99), xylosidase (0.85), ethylene-responsive factors (0.86), aminocylco propane carboxylic oxidase (0.90), and pectin methylesterase (0.83), were significantly associated with textural softening. Polygalacturonase (0.75) positively correlated to reducing sugar formation, aminocylco propane carboxylic synthase 4 (0.96) expression correlates with chroma changes during tomato fruit ripening. These correlations illustrate the complex interplay between gene expression and the physical and biochemical changes occurring during tomato fruit ripening.

The potential of Carissa spinarum (Cs), an underutilized plant rich in medicinal and nutritional value, for producing ready-to-serve (RTS) beverages was explored. The research investigated commercial processing techniques for extracting Cs fruit juice and the impact of stabilizers such as pectin (low and high), xanthan gum, and sodium alginate on beverage quality. Sodium alginate, chosen for its sedimentation rate and sensory acceptability, was further optimized in RTS formulations. These formulations, with 10% Cs fruit juice at different °Brix concentrations (10 (T1), 12 (T2), and 14 (T3)), were refrigerated (4 ± 0.5 °C) for 60 days, for shelf life studies, alongside physicochemical (pH, vitamin C, titratable acidity, total sugars, anthocyanin, total phenolics, flavonoids, DPPH activity) and sensory assessments. The treatments showed significant improvements in physicochemical stability compared to controls. HPLC analysis confirmed the retention of bioactive compounds Cyanidin-3-glucoside, Chlorogenic acid, Syringic acid, and Resveratrol in RTS beverages. Sensory evaluation indicated a higher level of acceptance, with overall acceptability ranked as follows on a 9-point hedonic scale: T2 (7.01) > T3 (6.92) > T1 (6.58) > Control (5.46). The study underscores Cs's bioactive potential and promising role in functional beverage development, appealing to health-conscious consumers due to retained nutrition and nutraceuticals during storage, offering convenient and flavorful options.

With developments in contemporary medicinal practices, though the focus on natural product drugs are fading, their effects remained unquestionable. Due to the complex mechanism of action, though their applications might have reduced in recent decades, their utilization is still at a greater side compared to any other medicinal practices in the world. The present review details some of the advancements in the development of effective natural product drugs as novel therapeutics with the implementation of modern drug discovery tools. The developmental prospects in Natural Product research with the implementation of some of the emerging trends in information technology like big data, automation, artificial intelligence (AI), computer-aided drug design and omics strategies along with the allied techniques in medicinal chemistry, nanotechnology, combinatorial chemistry and high-throughput screening are discussed. The review particular focuses on the development of innovative techniques, new methodologies and interdisciplinary applications with future prospects as well as impending goals.

This article aimed to explore biochemical alterations and gene changes during tomato fruit development and ripening. During fruit ripening, color changes and texture softening was observed, along with an increase in the accumulation of reducing sugar and total carotenoids. Free radical content was elevated during the early stages of ripening and it declined at the later stages. Activity of α-mannosidase,β-N-acetyl hexosaminidase,and polygalacturonase was measured. qPCR experiments revealed that the α-mannosidase gene was upregulated during the breaker (1.2 fold) stages of tomato ripening, the β-N-acetyl Hexosaminidase gene was upregulated throughout the breaker (2 fold) and pink (1.2 fold)stages of tomato ripening, and the β-xylosidase gene was upregulated significantly during the breaker stage(3.9 fold) of tomato ripening. The current findings revealed that the genes α-mannosidase,β-N-acetyl hexosaminidase, ethylene-responsive factors, aminocylco propane carboxylic oxidase, pectin methylesterase, and have significant associations with textural softening which was confirmed through correlation coefficient during tomato fruit ripening.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) and cancer share many common risk factors. However, the potential biological link that connects the two at the molecular level is still unclear. The experimental evidence suggests that several genes and their pathways may be involved in developing cancerous conditions associated with diabetes. In this study, we identified the protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks and the hub protein(s) that interlink T2D and cancer using genome-scale differential gene expression profiles. Further, the PPI network of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) in cancer was analyzed to explore novel insights into the molecular association between the two conditions. The densely connected regions were analyzed by constructing the backbone and subnetworks with key nodes and shortest pathways, respectively. The PPI network studies identified Matrix-metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) as a hub protein playing a vital role in glomerulonephritis tubular diseases and some genetic kidney diseases. MMP-9 was also associated with different growth factors, like tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α), transforming growth factor 1 (TGF-1), and pathways like chemokine signaling, NOD-like receptor signaling, etc. Further, the molecular docking and molecular dynamic simulation studies supported the druggability of MMP-9, suggesting it as a potential therapeutic target in treating renal cell carcinoma linked with diabetic kidney disease. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma