Muhammad Muzammil Jahangir

Volatile terpenoids: multiple functions, biosynthesis, modulation and manipulation by genetic engineering

AbstractMain conclusionTerpenoids play several physiological and ecological functions in plant life through direct and indirect plant defenses and also in human society because of their enormous applications in the pharmaceutical, food and cosmetics industries. Through the aid of genetic engineering its role can by magnified to broad spectrum by improving genetic ability of crop plants, enhancing the aroma quality of fruits and flowers and the production of pharmaceutical terpenoids contents in medicinal plants. Terpenoids are structurally diverse and the most abundant plant secondary metabolites, playing an important role in plant life through direct and indirect plant defenses, by attracting pollinators and through different interactions between the plants and their environment. Terpenoids are also significant because of their enormous applications in the pharmaceutical, food and cosmetics industries. Due to their broad distribution and functional versatility, efforts are being made to decode the biosynthetic pathways and comprehend the regulatory mechanisms of terpenoids. This review summarizes the recent advances in biosynthetic pathways, including the spatiotemporal, transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms. Moreover, we discuss the multiple functions of the terpene synthase genes (TPS), their interaction with the surrounding environment and the use of genetic engineering for terpenoid production in model plants. Here, we also provide an overview of the significance of terpenoid metabolic engineering in crop protection, plant reproduction and plant metabolic engineering approaches for pharmaceutical terpenoids production and future scenarios in agriculture, which call for sustainable production platforms by improving different plant traits.

Aloe vera Coating Efficiency on Shelf Life of Eggplants at Differential Storage Temperatures

Abstract The core objective of instant study was to check the effectiveness of Aloe vera edible coating on postharvest life and physicochemical characteristics of eggplants under different storage temperatures. For this purpose, different formulations of Aloe vera based coating (non-poisonous) was applied at concentration of 0, 0.1%, 0.5%, and 1.0%, respectively on eggplants. The coated eggplants were stored at two different temperatures [10°C and (30±2)°C] and examined for weight loss, firmness, stem color, shriveling, total soluble solids, pH, acidity, vitamin C, sugar (total sugar, reducing sugar and non-reducing sugar) and N, P, K, Ca and Na for two weeks. The obtained results showed that weight loss, shriveling, total soluble solids, pH, sugar (total sugar and non-reducing sugar) increased and firmness, stem color, acidity, reducing sugar, vitamin C minimized during the storage period. The 0.5% Aloe coating at 10°C showed significant effect and delayed the changes in above parameters. Aloe vera coating remained almost ineffective in altering nutrient homeostasis (N, P, K, Ca and Na) of eggplants. The optimistic results gained in the current study could additionally investigate in larger market experiments and also could extensive to other tropical/subtropical fruits and vegetables.