Muhammad Zia-Ul-Haq

Compositional Studies: Antioxidant and Antidiabetic Activities of Capparis decidua (Forsk.) Edgew

Capparis decidua is one of the traditional remedies used for various medicinal treatments in Pakistan. This study presents the determination of proximate composition, amino acids, fatty acids, tocopherols, sterols, glucosinolate and phenolic content in extracts obtained from different aerial parts of C. decidua, as well as their antidiabetic and antioxidant activity. All examined extracts were prominently rich in phenolics and glucosinates, and they showed potent antidiabetic and antihemolytic activity. The present study could be helpful in developing medicinal preparations for the treatment of diabetes and related symptoms.

Sorption of organophosphorous pesticides onto chickpea husk from aqueous solutions.

The sorption efficiency of chickpea husk of black gram variety (BGH), for the removal of organophosphorous pesticides (OPPs), i.e. triazophos (TAP) and methyl parathion (MP) from aqueous media has been investigated. Optimization of operating sorption parameters, i.e. particle size, sorbent dose, agitation time, pH, initial concentration of sorbates, and temperature has been studied. The sorption data fitted well to Freundlich, Langmuir and Dubinin-Radushkevich (D-R) sorption isotherms. The maximum sorption capacities of BGH for TAP and MP were calculated to be 3.5+/-0.45 and 10.6+/-0.83 mmol g(-1) by Freundlich, 0.0077+/-0.021 and 0.025+/-0.0094 mmol g(-1) by Langmuir and 0.48+/-0.037 and 0.15+/-0.077 mmol g(-1) by D-R isotherms respectively, employing 0.2g of sorbent, at pH 6, 90 min agitation time and at 303 K. Application of first order Lagergren and Morris-Weber equations to the kinetic data yielded correlation coefficients, close to unity and showed partial intra-particle diffusion. The negative values of thermodynamic parameters, i.e. DeltaH (kJ mol(-1)), DeltaS (J mol(-1) K(-1)) and DeltaG (kJ mol(-1)) indicate the exothermic and spontaneous nature of the sorption process. The sorbed pesticides were recovered by sonication with methanol, making the regeneration and reutilization of the sorbents promising. The investigated sorbent exhibited potential applications in water decontamination, treatments of industrial and agricultural waste waters and thus productively demonstrated viable use of agricultural waste material.

Rubus Fruticosus L.: Constituents, Biological Activities and Health Related Uses

Rubus fruticosus L. is a shrub famous for its fruit called blackberry fruit or more commonly blackberry. The fruit has medicinal, cosmetic and nutritive value. It is a concentrated source of valuable nutrients, as well as bioactive constituents of therapeutic interest highlighting its importance as a functional food. Besides use as a fresh fruit, it is also used as ingredient in cooked dishes, salads and bakery products like jams, snacks, desserts, and fruit preserves. R. fruticosus contains vitamins, steroids and lipids in seed oil and minerals, flavonoids, glycosides, terpenes, acids and tannins in aerial parts that possess diverse pharmacological activities such as antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial anti-diabetic, anti-diarrheal, and antiviral. Various agrogeoclimatological factors like cultivar, environmental conditions of the area, agronomic practices employed, harvest time, post-harvest storage and processing techniques all influence the nutritional composition of blackberry fruit. This review focuses on the nutrients and chemical constituents as well as medicinal properties of different parts of R. fruticosus. Various cultivars and their physicochemical characteristics, polyphenolic content and ascorbic acid content are also discussed. The information in the present work will serve as baseline data and may lead to new biomedical applications of R. fruticosus as functional food.

Phytochemical and Biological Studies of Agave attenuata

The present study was conducted to examine various biological activities of a methanol extract of Agave attenuata leaves. GC-MS analysis of the n-hexane fraction from the extract revealed the presence of 31 compounds, with mono-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (11.37%), 1,2-benzenedicarboxylic acid (6.33%), n-docosane (6.30%) and eicosane (6.02%) as the major components. The leaves contained appreciable levels of total phenolic contents (10.541–39.35 GAE, mg/100 g) and total flavonoid contents (43.35–304.8 CE, mg/100 g). The extract and some of its fractions showed moderate antimicrobial effects. Leaves extract and fractions also exhibited a good antioxidant potential when measured by DPPH radical scavenging activity and inhibition of lipid peroxidation assays. The hemolytic effect of the plant was found to be in a range of 1.01%–2.64%. From the present study it is concluded that this plant could be used as a source of natural antioxidants and functional food nutraceutical applications.

Compositional Study and Antioxidant Potential of Ipomoea hederacea Jacq. and Lepidium sativum L. Seeds

The present investigation has been carried out to determine the proximate composition, amino acids, metal contents, oil composition as well as the antioxidant capacity of the seeds of Ipomoea hederacea Jacq. and Lepidium sativum L. Proximate composition indicated a great difference in oil (14.09 ± 0.66, 28.03 ± 1.05) and fibre (16.55 ± 0.31, 6.75 ± 1.20) contents for I. hederacea and L. sativum, respectively. Fatty acid profile indicated that oleic acid (19.50 ± 0.37, 30.50 ± 0.16) and linoleic acid (52.09 ± 0.48, 8.60 ± 0.38) are the major fatty acids. γ-Tocopherol and δ-tocopherol (28.70 ± 0.14, 111.56 ± 0.37) were the most abundant in the seed oil of I. hederacea and L. sativum, respectively. Results of TEAC, FRAP and TRAP antioxidant assays indicated that L. sativum has much greater antioxidant potential than I. hederacea.

Antioxidant Activity of the Extracts of Some Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L) Walp.) Cultivars Commonly Consumed in Pakistan

The present investigation has been carried out to determine the antioxidant activity of the methanolic extracts obtained from four cultivars of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L) Walp.) seeds. Phenolic compounds present in the extracts showed the antioxidant and antiradical properties when investigated using a linoleic acid peroxidation model, FRAP, ORAC and TRAP assays, as well as DPPH, hydroxyl, nitric oxide and superoxide radical scavenging activity. The HPLC analysis of the cowpea extracts showed the presence of neochlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid and caffeic acids. The results indicated that methanolic extract of the cowpea resembled in the aforementioned activities those from other leguminous seeds and pulses. Phenolic constituents contained in cowpea may have a future role as ingredients in the development of functional foods.

Compositional studies and biological activities of some mash bean (Vigna mungo (L.) Hepper) cultivars commonly consumed in Pakistan.

BackgroundIn recent years, the desire to adopt a healthy diet has drawn attention to legume seeds and food products derived from them. Mash bean is an important legume crop used in Pakistan however a systematic mapping of the chemical composition of mash bean seeds is lacking. Therefore seeds of four mash bean (Vigna mungo (L.) Hepper, family Leguminoseae) cultivars (NARC-Mash-1, NARC-Mash-2, NARC-Mash-3, NARC-Mash-97) commonly consumed in Pakistan have been analyzed for their chemical composition, antioxidant potential and biological activities like inhibition of formation of advanced glycation end products (AGE) activity and tyrosinase inhibition activity.ResultsThe investigated cultivars varied in terms of biochemical composition to various extents. Mineral composition indicated potassium and zinc in highest and lowest amounts respectively, in all cultivars. The amino acid profile in protein of these cultivars suggested cysteine is present in lowest quantity in all cultivars while fatty acid distribution pattern indicated unsaturated fatty acids as major fatty acids in all cultivars. All cultivars were found to be rich source of tocopherols and sterols. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) fingerprints of seed flour and extracts indicated major functional groups such as polysaccharides, lipids, amides, amines and amino acids. Results indicated that all investigated cultivars possessed appreciable antioxidant potential.ConclusionsAll cultivars are rich source of protein and possess sufficient content of dietary fiber, a balanced amino acid profile, low saturated fatty acids and antioxidant capacity that rationalizes many traditional uses of seeds of this crop besides its nutritional importance. The collected data will be useful for academic and corporate researchers, nutritionists and clinical dieticians as well as consumers. If proper attention is paid, it may become an important export commodity and may fetch considerable foreign exchange for Pakistan.

Chemical Composition of Artemisia annua L. Leaves and Antioxidant Potential of Extracts as a Function of Extraction Solvents

This study was conducted to investigate the chemical and nutritional composition of Artemisia annua leaves in addition to determination of antioxidant potential of their extracts prepared in different solvents. Chemical composition was determined by quantifying fat, protein, carbohydrate, fiber, tocopherol, phytate, and tannin contents. Extraction of A. annua leaves, for antioxidant potential evaluation, was carried out using five solvents of different polarities, i.e., hexane, chloroform, ethyl acetate, methanol and water. Antioxidant potential was evaluated by estimating total phenolic (TPC), flavonoid (TFC) contents, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), Trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity (TEAC), DPPH radical scavenging activity and lipid peroxidation. Efficiency of different solvents was compared for the yield of antioxidant extracts from leaf samples and a clear variation was observed. The highest TPC, TFC, TEAC, DPPH radical scavenging and lowest lipid peroxidation were observed in MeOH extracts, whereas aqueous extract exhibited high ferric reducing antioxidant power; suggesting MeOH to be the most favorable extractant.

Cadmium toxicity affects chlorophyll a and b content, antioxidant enzyme activities and mineral nutrient accumulation in strawberry

BackgroundCadmium (Cd) is well known as one of the most toxic metals affecting the environment and can severely restrict plant growth and development. In this study, Cd toxicities were studied in strawberry cv. Camarosa using pot experiment. Chlorophyll and malondialdehyde (MDA) contents, catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activities and mineral nutrient concentrations were investigated in both roots and leaves of strawberry plant after exposure Cd.ResultsCd content in both roots and leaves was increased with the application of increasing concentrations of Cd. We found higher Cd concentration in roots rather than in leaves. Chlorophyll a and b was decreased in leaves but MDA significantly increased under increased Cd concentration treatments in both roots and leaves. SOD and CAT activities was also increased with the increase Cd concentrations. K, Mn and Mg concentrations were found higher in leaves than roots under Cd stress. In general, increased Cd treatments increased K, Mg, Fe, Ca, Cu and Zn concentration in both roots and leaves. Excessive Cd treatments reduced chlorophyll contents, increased antioxidant enzyme activities and changes in plant nutrition concentrations in both roots and leaves.ConclusionThe results presented in this work suggested that Cd treatments have negative effect on chlorophyll content and nearly decreased 30% of plant growth in strawberry. Strawberry roots accumulated higher Cd than leaves. We found that MDA and antioxidant enzyme (CAT, SOD and APX) contents may have considered a good indicator in determining Cd tolerance in strawberry plant.

Grewia asiatica L., a Food Plant with Multiple Uses

Grewia asiatica L., is a species native to south Asia from Pakistan, east to Cambodia, cultivated primarily for its edible fruit and well-reputed for its diverse medicinal uses. Fruits are a rich source of nutrients such as proteins, amino acids, vitamins, and minerals and contain various bioactive compounds, like anthocyanins, tannins, phenolics and flavonoids. Different parts of this plant possess different pharmacological properties. Leaves have antimicrobial, anticancer, antiplatelet and antiemetic activities; fruit possess anticancer, antioxidant, radioprotective and antihyperglycemic properties; while stem bark possesses analgesic and anti-inflammatory activities. This review focuses on the botanical description, phytochemistry, nutritional studies and pharmacological properties of this plant.