Rizwana Aleem Qureshi

Survey of artemisinin production by diverse Artemisia species in northern Pakistan

BackgroundArtemisinin is the current drug of choice for treatment of malaria and a number of other diseases. It is obtained from the annual herb, Artemisia annua and some microbial sources by genetic engineering. There is a great concern that the artemisinin production at current rate will not meet the increasing demand by the pharmaceutical industry, so looking for additional sources is imperative.MethodsIn current study, artemisinin concentration was analysed and compared in the flowers, leaves, roots and stems of Artemisia annua and 14 other Artemisia species including two varieties each for Artemisia roxburghiana and Artemisia dracunculus using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).ResultsThe highest artemisinin concentration was detected in the leaves (0.44 ± 0.03%) and flowers (0.42 ± 0.03%) of A. annua, followed by the flowers (0.34 ± .02%) of A. bushriences and leaves (0.27 ± 0%) of A. dracunculus var dracunculus. The average concentration of artemisinin varied in the order of flowers > leaves > stems > roots.ConclusionThis study identifies twelve novel plant sources of artemisinin, which may be helpful for pharmaceutical production of artemisinin. This is the first report of quantitative comparison of artemisinin among a large number of Artemisia species.

Evaluation of selected indigenous medicinal plants from the western Himalayas for cytotoxicity and as potential cancer chemopreventive agents

The western Himalayas in the northern areas of Pakistan have significant potential for ethnomedicinal research. In the current study, indigenous informants were interviewed using open-ended questionnaires and a free-listing of knowledge related to native medicinal plants. Information patterns indicated that over 100 local plant species were in frequent medicinal use for a variety of conditions, including inflammation and cancer. Several field surveys were conducted in community forests and meadows, with the aim of exploration, collection, taxonomic identification, and finally, in vitro analysis. Organic extracts of eight species were tested for inhibition of nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-κB), activation of retinoic acid X receptor alpha (RXR), induction of quinone reductase (QR), and inhibition of aromatase, along with assessment of cytotoxicity with four human cancer cell lines. Mellia azedarach, Ajuga bractiosa, Figonia cretica and Swertia chirata inhibited both tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) activated NF-κB activity, whereas Silybum merianum and Rumex dentatus were only active against TNF activation. The lowest IC50 values for inhibition of TPA activated NF-κB activity were 0.41 and 0.44 μg/mL for A. bractiosa and S. chirata, respectively. Extracts from three plant species, A. bractiosa, R. dentatus and R. hastaus, were active in the RXR assay. Results from the QR assay showed five active samples (with induction ratios >2) belonging to four species: A. bractiosa, R. dentatus, S. merianum and S. chirata. Most of the plant extracts were not cytotoxic (IC50 values >20 μg/mL) with HepG2, MCF7, LNCaP and LU cell lines. Only two plants, R. dentatus and R. hastaus, demonstrated moderate cytotoxic responses (IC50 values 5-15 μg/mL) with HepG2, MCF7 or LNCaP cells. None of the plant extracts was found to inhibit aromatase activity. Based on these data, it may be suggested that the plants under investigation contain potential chemopreventive compounds. Additional testing is required. However, the positive responses observed in these bioassays illustrate the high potential of local medicinal plants.

1-Methyl-1H-benzimidazole-2(3H)-thione.

The title compound, C8H8N2S, was prepared by the condensation of N-methyl-1,2-phenylenediamine and carbon disulfide. The crystal structure is stabilized by a C—H⋯π interaction between a benzene H atom and the benzene ring of a neighbouring molecule, and by intermolecular N—H⋯S interactions.

A molecular phylogeny of selected species of genus Prunus L. (Rosaceae) from Pakistan using the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) spacer DNA

Prunus is found in all four provinces of Pakistan, that is, Punjab, NWFP, Sindh and Baluchistan including Azad Kashmir region. Studies on the family Rosaceae is scanty in the Flora of Pakistan and there is a lot of taxonomic work yet to be done, for the proper classification and placement of different genera under different sub-families. In the present study, the genus Prunus was studied in detail to find out the phylogenetic relationship among the 23 species of Prunus, selected from different regions of Pakistan and GenBank using maximum parsimony analysis of sequence polymorphism in nuclear ITS-9 and ITS-6 spacer DNA. The results for the internal transcribed spacer (ITS)- 9 and ITS- 6 primers confirm the work done by early phylogenetists with additions of new species from Pakistan including Prunus bokhariensis, Prunus dulcis (Mill.) D.A. Webb. (Syn. Prunus amygdalus) and Prunus cornuta (Wall. ex. Royle) Steudel. These are indigenous to Pakistan. In the ITS strict consensus results for example, the clade consisting of Laurocerasus, Padus and Cerasus subgenera are sister to the rest of the clades in the phylogenetic tree. Key words : Phylogeny, Prunus, Pakistan, molecular phylogeny, nuclear primers.

Multivariate analyses of algal diversity from highly polluted sites of sawan river Rawalpindi, Pakistan

The anthropogenic activities resulted in degradation of various ecosystems leading toward changes in the floristic composition of the simple microscopic algae to highly complex plants. Keeping this into consideration, a detailed limnological study was conducted from March 2008 to February 2011 from four highly polluted sites of the Sawan River to assess the algal groups and their associated species through indicator species analysis (ISA) and hierarchical clustering. Species diversity, richness and evenness values of each group were calculated and abundance status of algal species was assigned based on species importance value index. Seasonal and annual variations in algal composition were assessed by using Multi-Response Permutation Procedure (MRPP). A total of 36 algal species belonged to five different phyla were recorded. On the basis of species average annual importance value index, 8 species were recognized as rare, 11 less common, 11 common and 6 as abundant. Canonical correspondence analysis showed that total observed variations in the species data were 0.9656 (constrained: 0.3897, unconstrained: 0.5759), thus explanatory variables contributed 40.36% variability. Water turbidity, electrical conductance and rainfall were observed as important explanatory variables; whereas least contribution was made by total dissolved solids and pH variables. On the basis of present findings, the Sawan River is recognized as wastewater and garbage disposal channel rather than a stabilized lotic natural freshwater source in the study area.

3-Hydr-oxy-1,2,3,9-tetra-hydro-pyrrolo[2,1-b]quinazolin-4-ium chloride dihydrate: (+)-vasicinol hydro-chloride dihydrate from Peganum harmala L.

The title compound, C11H13N2O+·Cl−·2H2O, the dihydrate of (+)-vasicinol hydrochloride, is a pyrrolidinoquinazoline alkaloid. It was isolated from the ethyl acetate fraction of the leaves of Peganum harmala L. The pyrrolidine ring has an envelope conformation with the C atom at position 2 acting as the flap and the C atom at position 3, carrying the hydroxyl substituent, has an S configuration. The absolute configuration was determined as a result of the anomalous scattering of the Cl atom. In the crystal structure, molecules stack along the a axis, connected to one another via intermolecular O—H⋯Cl and N—H⋯Cl hydrogen bonds, forming approximately triangular-shaped R 2 1(7) rings, and O—H⋯Cl and O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds, forming pentagonal-shaped R 5 4(10) rings. The overall effect is a ribbon-like arrangement running parallel to the a axis.