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Marine Drugs May 2024Experiments conducted on triple-negative breast cancer have shown that fucoidan from (FLt) exhibits cytotoxic and antitumor properties. However, further research is...
Experiments conducted on triple-negative breast cancer have shown that fucoidan from (FLt) exhibits cytotoxic and antitumor properties. However, further research is necessary to gain a complete understanding of its bioactivity and level of cytotoxicity. The cytotoxic effect of FLt was determined by the 2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Apoptosis was analyzed using annexin V and caspase 3/7 staining kit and DNA fragmentation. In addition, transcriptional expression of antiapoptotic (Bcl-2 and XIAP) and proapoptotic (caspase 8, caspase 9, and AIF) genes were analyzed in TNBC 4T1 cells. After 72 h of culture, the IC for FLt was 561 μg/mL, while doxorubicin (Dox) had an IC of 0.04 μg/mL. In addition, assays for FLt + Dox were performed. Annexin V and caspase 3/7 revealed that FLt induces early and late-stage apoptosis. DNA fragmentation results support necrotic death of 4T1 cells. Similarly, transcripts that prevent cell death were decreased, while transcripts that promote cell death were increased. This study showed that FLt induces apoptosis by both caspase-dependent and caspase-independent mechanisms. These findings suggest that FLt may have potential applications in breast cancer treatment. Further research will provide more information to elucidate the mechanism of action of FLt.
Topics: Apoptosis; Cell Line, Tumor; Polysaccharides; Animals; Female; Caspases; Mice; Antineoplastic Agents; Doxorubicin; Humans; Adenocarcinoma; DNA Fragmentation; Breast Neoplasms; Triple Negative Breast Neoplasms; Kelp
PubMed: 38921562
DOI: 10.3390/md22060251 -
Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) Jun 2024In the current scenario, liver abnormalities are one of the most serious public health concerns. Cirrhosis of the liver is one of the foremost causes of demise from...
In the current scenario, liver abnormalities are one of the most serious public health concerns. Cirrhosis of the liver is one of the foremost causes of demise from liver diseases. To accurately predict the status of liver cirrhosis, physicians frequently use automated computer-aided approaches. In this paper, through clustering techniques like fuzzy c-means (FCM), possibilistic fuzzy c-means (PFCM), and possibilistic c means (PCM) and sample entropy features are extracted from normal and cirrhotic liver ultrasonic images. The extracted features are classified as normal and cirrhotic through the Gaussian mixture model (GMM), Softmax discriminant classifier (SDC), harmonic search algorithm (HSA), SVM (linear), SVM (RBF), SVM (polynomial), artificial algae optimization (AAO), and hybrid classifier artificial algae optimization (AAO) with Gaussian mixture mode (GMM). The classifiers' performances are compared based on accuracy, F1 Score, MCC, F measure, error rate, and Jaccard metric (JM). The hybrid classifier AAO-GMM, with the PFCM feature, outperforms the other classifiers and attained an accuracy of 99.03% with an MCC of 0.90.
PubMed: 38921235
DOI: 10.3390/biomimetics9060356 -
Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) May 2024Submerged aquatic vegetation plays a fundamental role as a habitat for the biodiversity of marine species. To carry out the research and monitoring of submerged aquatic...
Submerged aquatic vegetation plays a fundamental role as a habitat for the biodiversity of marine species. To carry out the research and monitoring of submerged aquatic vegetation more efficiently and accurately, it is important to use advanced technologies such as underwater robots. However, when conducting underwater missions to capture photographs and videos near submerged aquatic vegetation meadows, algae can become entangled in the propellers and cause vehicle failure. In this context, a neurobiologically inspired control architecture is proposed for the control of unmanned underwater vehicles with redundant thrusters. The proposed control architecture learns to control the underwater robot in a non-stationary environment and combines the associative learning method and vector associative map learning to generate transformations between the spatial and velocity coordinates in the robot actuator. The experimental results obtained show that the proposed control architecture exhibits notable resilience capabilities while maintaining its operation in the face of thruster failures. In the discussion of the results obtained, the importance of the proposed control architecture is highlighted in the context of the monitoring and conservation of underwater vegetation meadows. Its resilience, robustness, and adaptability capabilities make it an effective tool to face challenges and meet mission objectives in such critical environments.
PubMed: 38921208
DOI: 10.3390/biomimetics9060329 -
Current Issues in Molecular Biology Jun 2024Fucoxanthin is the most abundant carotenoid found in marine brown algae that exhibits several healthy properties. Dietary fucoxanthin is metabolized in the intestine,...
Fucoxanthin is the most abundant carotenoid found in marine brown algae that exhibits several healthy properties. Dietary fucoxanthin is metabolized in the intestine, plasma, and other tissues to various metabolites, including fucoxanthinol. In this regard, the contribution of fucoxanthinol to the healthy properties of its precursor, fucoxanthin, against pathogenetic events associated with neurodegenerative diseases remains unexplored. Here, we evaluated and compared the antioxidant and neuroprotective effects of the carotenoids fucoxanthin and fucoxanthinol in in vitro models of Alzheimer's (AD) and Parkinson's (PD) disease. Neuronal SH-SY5Y cells were used to evaluate the antioxidant properties of the carotenoids against ABTS radical in the membrane and cytoplasm and oxidative stress elicited by -butyl hydroperoxide using the 2',7'-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate probe. We also assessed the ability of the carotenoids to increase the glutathione (GSH) and activate the Nrf2/Keap1/ARE pathway using the monochlorobimane probe and western blotting method, respectively. The neuroprotective effects of the carotenoids against the neurotoxicity generated by oligomers of Beta-Amyloid (1-42) peptide (OAβ) and 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA), which are neurotoxins of AD and PD, respectively, were finally evaluated in the same neuronal cells using the thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide assay. Both carotenoids could reach the cytoplasm, which explains the mainly free radical scavenging activity at this level. Notably, fucoxanthinol had higher and lower antioxidant activity than fucoxanthin at extracellular and cellular levels. Although studied carotenoids exerted the ability to activate the Nrf2/Keap1/ARE pathway, leading to an increase of intracellular GSH, our results suggested that the antioxidant activity of the carotenoids could be mainly attributed to their radical scavenging activity in neuronal membrane and cytoplasm, where they accumulate. Fucoxanthinol also shared similar neuroprotective effects as fucoxanthin against the neurotoxicity generated by OAβ and 6-OHDA, suggesting a potential neuroprotective contribution to the action of fucoxanthin administered as a food supplement in in vivo experimental models. These results encourage further research to evaluate the bioavailability of fucoxanthinol and other metabolites of fucoxanthin at the brain level to elucidate the dietary neuroprotective potential of fucoxanthin.
PubMed: 38921028
DOI: 10.3390/cimb46060357 -
Frontiers in Genetics 2024
PubMed: 38919954
DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2024.1429024 -
Ecology and Evolution Jun 2024The Arctic archipelago of Svalbard is a hotspot of global warming and many fjords experience a continuous increase in seawater temperature and glacial melt while sea-ice...
The Arctic archipelago of Svalbard is a hotspot of global warming and many fjords experience a continuous increase in seawater temperature and glacial melt while sea-ice cover declines. In 1996/1998, 2012-2014, and 2021 macroalgal biomass and species diversity were quantified at the study site Hansneset, Kongsfjorden (W-Spitsbergen) in order to identify potential changes over time. In 2021, we repeated the earlier studies by stratified random sampling (1 × 1 m, = 3) along a sublittoral depth transect (0, 2.5, 5, 10, and 15 m) and investigated the lower depth limits of dominant brown algae between 3 and 19 m. The maximum fresh weight (FW) of all seaweeds was 11.5 kg m at 2.5 m and to 99.9% constituted of kelp. Although biomass distribution along the depth transect in 2021 was not significantly different compared to 2012/2013, the digitate kelp community (/) had transformed into an -dominated kelp forest. Consequently, a pronounced shift in kelp forest structure occurred over time as we demonstrate that biomass allocation to thallus parts is kelp species-specific. Over the past decade, kelp demography changed and in 2021 a balanced age structure of kelps (juveniles plus many older kelp individuals) was only apparent at 2.5 m. In addition, the abundances and lower depth limits of all dominant brown algae declined noticeably over the last 25 years while the red algal flora abundance remained unchanged at depth. We propose that the major factor driving the observed changes in the macroalgal community are alterations in underwater light climate, as in situ data showed increasing turbidity and decreasing irradiance since 2012 and 2017, respectively. As a consequence, the interplay between kelp forest retreat to lower depth levels caused by coastal darkening and potential macroalgal biomass gain with increasing temperatures will possibly intensify in the future with unforeseen consequences for melting Arctic coasts and fjord ecosystem services.
PubMed: 38919650
DOI: 10.1002/ece3.11606 -
Frontiers in Chemistry 2024Fungal diseases cause substantial loss to agricultural crops, affecting both quantities and quality. Although several methods are used for preventing disease incidence,...
Fungal diseases cause substantial loss to agricultural crops, affecting both quantities and quality. Although several methods are used for preventing disease incidence, fungicides remain crucial for higher yields and better quality. But in the past, the efficacy of several fungicides has decreased due to increased cases of fungicide resistant. In our pursuit of new effective fungicides, we synthesised a series of twenty 2-Indazol-1-yl-chromen-4-one derivatives (6a- 6t). The characterization of synthesized compounds was performed by several spectroscopic methods including Infrared, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (H and C) and HRMS. Out of 20 synthesised compounds, 19 (6b- 6t) were found to be novel. All synthesised indazolylchromones showed very good antifungal activity against and . Among the tested compounds, and exhibited very good fungicidal activity against with an ED of 10.10 mg L and 16.18 mg L, respectively. In case of compound displayed good' activity with an ED value of 27.82 mg L. Molecular docking study was done to predict the binding sites of most active compounds, and with Cytochrome P450 14alpha -sterol demethylase (CYP51) enzyme using molsoft software. The acute toxicity predictions the of synthesized compounds for fish (LC,96 Hr), daphnid (LC, 48 Hr) and green algae (EC, 96Hr) and the chronic toxicity predictions (ChV) were assessed using Ecological Structure Activity Relationship (ECOSAR) model. As per ECOSAR prediction, all the chemicals are inside AD and not missing predictions.
PubMed: 38919273
DOI: 10.3389/fchem.2024.1411187 -
Current Pharmaceutical Biotechnology Jun 2024Cancer is one of the most complicated and prevalent diseases in the world, and its incidence is growing worldwide. Natural products containing pharmacological activity...
Cancer is one of the most complicated and prevalent diseases in the world, and its incidence is growing worldwide. Natural products containing pharmacological activity are widely used in the pharmaceutical industry, especially in anticancer drugs, due to their diverse structures and distinctive functional groups that inspire new drug results by means of synthetic chemistry. Terrestrial medicinal plants have traditionally been the primary source for developing natural products (NPs). However, over the past thirty years, marine organisms such as invertebrates, plants, algae, and bacteria have revealed many new pharmaceutical compounds known as marine NPs. This field constantly evolves as a discipline in molecular targeted drug discovery, incorporating advanced screening tools that have revolutionised and become integral to modern antitumor research. This review discusses recent studies on new natural anticancer alkaloids obtained from marine organisms. The paper illustrates the structure and origin of marine alkaloids and demonstrates the cytotoxic action of new alkaloids from several structural families and their synthetic analogs. The most recent findings about the potential or development of some of them as novel medications, together with the status of our understanding of their current mechanisms of action, are also compiled.
PubMed: 38918975
DOI: 10.2174/0113892010316791240611093022 -
Environmental Research Jun 2024The nutraceutical value, and physicochemical profile as well as anti-inflammatory activity potential of Odonthalia floccose and Odonthalia dentata (red macroalgae) dry...
The nutraceutical value, and physicochemical profile as well as anti-inflammatory activity potential of Odonthalia floccose and Odonthalia dentata (red macroalgae) dry biomass were investigated in this study. Proximate composition study results revealed that the dry biomass of O. floccose and O. dentae were found to be as ash: 9.11 & 8.7 g 100 g, moisture: 8.24 & 8.1 g 100 g, total fat: 6.9 & 7.2 g 100 g, protein: 24.52 & 25.6 g 100 g, and total carbohydrate/polysaccharides: 53.84 & 48.85 g 100 g of dry weight biomass respectively. Both algae biomass contain considerable quantity of minerals (Fe, Cu, Mg, and Zn). Furthermore, the major saturated fatty acids (6.24 & 5.82 g FAME 100 g of total fat of O. floccose and O. dentate) (ΣFAs) present in the test algae were stearic acid, palmitic acid, and margaric acids. O. floccose and O. dentata also contain remarkable protein composition profile that compiled with considerable quantity of essential and non-essential amino acids. The vitamins such as vitamin A, B1, B2, B3, B6, B9, C, and E of O. floccose and O. dentate biomass were also identified at sufficient quantity level. The swelling capacity (SWC), water holding capacity (WHC), and oil holding capacity (OHC) properties of O. floccose and O. dentate at various temperature conditions (25 and 37 ᵒC) were found to be 8.11 & 7.02 mL g and 8.95 & 7.55 mL g, 5.1 & 4.87 and 4.8 & 4.1 mL g, as well as 2.11 & 1.81 and 1.96 & 1.89 mL g respectively. Among these two marine red macroalgae samples, the O. dentate showed better anti-inflammatory activity than O. floccose at 150 μg mL dosage. Thus, this O. floccose and O. dentate biomass can be considerable as nutritional supplement and pharmaceutical product development related research.
PubMed: 38917932
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2024.119487 -
Marine Environmental Research Jun 2024Photosymbiosis indicates a long-term association between animals and photosynthetic organisms. It has been mainly investigated in photosymbiotic cnidarians, while other...
Photosymbiosis indicates a long-term association between animals and photosynthetic organisms. It has been mainly investigated in photosymbiotic cnidarians, while other photosymbiotic associations have been largely neglected. The acoel Symsagittifera roscoffensis lives in obligatory symbiosis with the microalgal Tetraselmis convolutae and has recently emerged as alternative model to study photosymbiosis. Here, we investigated the effects of Bisphenol A, a common plastic additive, on two pivotal stages of its lifecycle: aposymbiotic juvenile development and photosymbiogenesis. Based on our results, this pollutant altered the development of the worms and their capacity to engulf algae from the environment at concentrations higher than the levels detected in seawater, yet aligning with those documented in sediments of populated areas. Data provide novel information about the effects of pollutants on photosymbiotic associations and prompt the necessity to monitor their concentrations in marine environmental matrices.
PubMed: 38917659
DOI: 10.1016/j.marenvres.2024.106617