International Conference and Exhibition on Marine Drugs and Natural Products July 25-27, 2016 Melbourne, Australia

Yu Shan has completed his PhD from Nanjing Agriculture University and Visiting Scholar studies from Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine and Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. He is the Associate Professor and Vice Director of Research Center for Natural Products Chemistry, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences. He has published more than 50 papers in reputed journals and 3 academic books.

Lonicera macranthoides Hand.-Mazz., from the family Caprifoliaceae, is commonly used in traditional Chinese medicine and used for brewing tea to allay fever and neutralize toxins. Macranthoside B (MB), a hederagenin saponin extracted from the flower buds of L. macranthoides, can block cell proliferation and induce cell death in several types of cancer cells; however, the precise mechanisms by which MB exerts its anti-cancer effects remain poorly understood. MB blocked A2780 human ovarian carcinoma cell proliferation both dose and time dependently. MB induced apoptosis with increased poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) and caspase-3/-9 cleavage. MB also caused autophagy in A2780 cells with light chain 3 (LC3)-II elevation. Inhibiting MB induced autophagy with the autophagy inhibitor 3-methyladenine (3-MA) significantly decreased apoptosis with a reduction of growth inhibition; inhibiting MB induced apoptosis with the pan-caspase inhibitor Z-VAD-FMK did not decrease autophagy but elevated LC3-II levels indicating that MB induced autophagy is cytotoxic and may be upstream of apoptosis. Furthermore, MB increased intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels with activated 5’ adenosine monophosphate activated protein kinase (AMPK), decreased mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and P70S6 kinase phosphorylation, increased PARP and caspase-3/9 cleavage and LC3-II elevation; treatment with the ROS scavenger N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) and the AMPK inhibitor Compound C diminished this effect. Therefore, the ROS/AMPK/mTOR pathway mediates the effect of MB on induction of apoptosis via autophagy in human ovarian carcinoma cells. Overall, our findings suggest that MB has potential as a chemotherapeutic agent for ovarian cancer by targeting ROS/AMPK/mTOR signaling.

Xu Feng is a Professor and Vice President of Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences. He has obtained his Bachelor’s degree from Nanjing University in 1984 and PhD from Nanjing Agricultural University in 2006. His research interests mainly focus on natural resources and their chemistry in Chinese medicinal materials and their bioactive constituents. He has published over 140 academic papers and 2 academic books. He is also the holder of fifteen national patents of invention.

The terrestrial halophytes, Suaeda glauca, which was evaluated as one of the strongest salt tolerant higher plant genus in the word, grew in an extreme coastal desert environment, including saline land, salt lake and intertidal zone. Extreme environment induced this genus to biosynthesize the necessary substances to establish their chemical defensive systems. The evolved chemical defensive strategy provided us a new approach in searching for potential bioactive molecules from natural sources. In order to exploit new molecules with agricultural bioactivity, Suaeda glauca was selected for isolation of three new flavonoids, 5,6,8-trimethoxy-7-hydroxycoumaronochromone (1), 7,2′-dihydroxy-5,6-dimethoxyisoflavone (2), 6,2′-dihydroxy-5,7-dimethoxyisoflavanone (3), together with fifteen known flavonoids (4-18) from the ethanol extracts of this whole plants. The structures of new compounds were identified on the basis of MS and 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopic analysis and compound 1 was confirmed by X-ray crystallographic analysis. The known flavonoids structures established based on chemical and spectral methods. All compounds were isolated for the first time from Chenopodiaceae. Based on the previous studies, this chemical composition for Suaeda glauca is in accordance with the chemical profile of other species of Suaeda Forsk. ex Scop., and flavonoids may have chemotaxonomic significance within this genus.

Ming Wang is an Associate Professor of the Research Center for Natural Products Chemistry, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences. He has obtained his Bachelor's degree from China Pharmaceutical University in 1983. His research interests mainly focus on the isolation, structure and analysis of the chemical constituents in medicinal plants. He has published over 30 academic papers.

Kosteletzkya virginica (L) Presl is a perennial plant native to the saline tidal marshes and belonged to the genus of Kosteletzkya in the family Malvaceae. As an excellent economic halophyte, K. virginica has been served as a candidate species of the current development and utilization of saline flats in the east of China. Meanwhile, K. virginica is used as a folk medicine to treat upper respiratory tract inflammation. In our study, 39 compounds were isolated and identified from the ethanol extract of K. virginica tuberous roots by a variety of modern chromatography and spectroscopic methods. Their structures were elucidated by spectroscopic methods, including 1D, 2D nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and high-resolution time of flight electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HR-TOF-ESI-MS). All of these compounds were obtained from the genus Kosteletzkya for the first time and evaluated for their potential in scavenging diphenyl-picryl hydrazyl radical (DPPH•), inhibition of nitric oxide (NO) induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and cytotoxic activity. The virginicin showed activities against DPPH•, NO, human acute promyelocytic leukemia (HL-60) and human colorectal adenocarcinoma (LOVO) with IC50 of 34.6, 12.5, 40.5, 31.7 μmol/L respectively. It may be promising leads for the development of potential antioxidant and anticancer agents.

Qizhi Wang is an Associate Professor of the Research Center for Natural Products Chemistry, Institute of Botany, Jiangsu Province and Chinese Academy of Sciences. She has obtained her PhD degree from China Pharmaceutical University in 2006 and worked as a Postdoctoral Researcher in School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University (2006-2009). Her research interests mainly focus on the isolation, structure and analysis of the chemical constituents in medicinal plants. She has published over 50 academic papers and she is the holder of ten national patent of invention.

Evodia rutaecarpa is an original plant of several crude drugs. The Evodia fruits (Wu Zhu Yu) have been used in traditional Chinese prescriptions for the treatment of headache, abdominal pain, migraine, chill limbs, postpartum hemorrhage, diarrhea, hyperbaropathy, dysmenorrhea, nausea, antinociception, antiinflammatory and anticancer. Investigation of characteristic constituents of Evodia rutaecarpa led to isolation of two novel indole alkaloids, evodiagenine (1) and dievodiamine (2), together with ten known indole quinoline alkaloids (1-12), eight limonins (13-20), seven flavonoids (21-27), seven triterpenoids (28-34) and eleven other compounds (35-45). The structures of new compounds were identified on the basis of MS and NMR spectroscopic analysis and compound 2 was confirmed by X-ray crystallographic analysis. Based on the previous studies, this chemical composition for Sub family Rutoideae is in accordance with the chemical profile of other species of Rutaceae. This structural feature complies with the rule that indole alkaloids were the characteristic constituents of this Zanthoxylum and Evodia genus plants to provide reliable evidence for its chemotaxonomy. Compound 1 has significant antifungal activity of inhibition enzyme activity on the Lanosterol 14α Demethylase (CYP51).

Ming Hong is a PhD student in School of Chinese Medicine, Li Ka Shing Faculty of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong. His research is mainly focus on liver disease and Chinese herbal medicines . He has published 3 papers in reputed journals during his PhD study.

Background: Chinese herbal Medicine exhibits hepatoprotective effect on various experimental models. Coriolus versicolor L and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge are two widely used Chinese herbal Medicine to treat liver injury in the clinical practice of Chinese Medicine practitioners. However, the experimental evidence on its hepatoprotective effect and its major active component are still not fully understood. Methods: Experimental dosage is estimated according to the human dose of “Liver” formula composition. We will (a) establish the alcohol-induced liver injury model by pre-treating or post-treating ethanol to mice and investigate the action of Coriolus versicolor L and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge on alcohol induced acute liver injury in mice; (b) establish the alcoholic chronic liver injury model by feeding the liquid ethanol diet to mice and determine the protective effect of Coriolus versicolor L and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge on alcoholic chronic liver diseases in mice. And (c) establish the non-alcoholic chronic liver injury model by feeding choline-deficiency, amino acid-defined(CDAA) diet and injecting carbon tetrachloride to mice and determine the protective effect of Coriolus versicolor L and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge on non-alcoholic chronic liver diseases in mice. And (d) the related mechanism of Coriolus versicolor L and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge on alcoholic and non-alcoholic liver disease will be investigated. The role of oxidative stress in mediating the pathological process of alcoholic and non-alcoholic liver diseases will be focused. Possible Findings and prospects: Successful elucidation on the action and mechanism of the hepatoprotective effect of the major active component of Coriolus versicolor L and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge will provide the experimental evidence on its clinical use as a healthy supplement for patients with hepatic problem, and facilitate re-discovery of Coriolus versicolor L and Salvia miltiorrhiza Bge to develop active components with greater potency in liver protection.

Yiping Ye has completed his PhD at the age of 36 years from Zhejiang University department of chemistry. She is the professor of Institute of Materia Medica, Zhejiang Academy of Medical Sciences. She has published more than 50 papers in reputed journals.

We previously reported ameliorative effects of the aqueous extract of Siegesbeckia pubescens on experimental colitis in rats by activation of PPARγ and inhibition of NF-κB pathway, consequently suppressing the release of multiple pro-inflammatory cytokines. Here, activity-guided fractionation was isolated to obtain 8 ditepenoids by using reporter gene assays. The aqueous extract of Siegesbeckia pubescens was applied to resin column chromatography to get five fractions, and the activity-guided fractionation was further isolated by silica gel and Rp-18 column chromatography to obtain 8 compounds. HEK293 cells were transiently transfected by Lipofectamine®3000 with the expression plasmid of pCDNA-PPARγ, the reporter plasmid PPRE-tk-luc, and pRL-tk as internal reference plasmid and were incubated for 24h. Then, the cells were treated with above 8 compounds respectively and were incubated for 48h. Luciferase activity and fluorescence intensity were measured. The structures of 8 compounds were elucidated as diterpenoids, including two new diterpenoids. 7 of these diterpenoids except compound 5 displayed PPARγ agonist activities at the maximum concentration of no toxicity against HEK293T cells. These active diterpenoids may be potent natural PPARγ agonists for anti-inflammatory agents, anti-diabetics. The work was supported by the National Science Foundation of China (No. 21272213).

Xiaoyu Li has completed his PhD at the age of 34 years from Zhejiang University department of chemistry. He is the professor of Institute of Materia Medica, Zhejiang Academy of medical Sciences. He has published more than 20 papers in reputed journals.

Since activation of the Hedgehog signaling pathway is implicated in several types of human cancers, inhibitors of this pathway could be promising anticancer agents. C-21 steroids from Asclepiadaceae have antitumor effect. Studies of cell toxicity, gene chip and dual luciferase report gene found that C21 steroids could inhibit the activity of Hedgehog signaling pathway, suggesting that the inhibitory activity against tumor cell may be associated with inhibitory activity against Hedgehog signaling pathway. In order to establish the relationship between chemical structure of C-21 steroids from Asclepiadaceae and the anticancer activities, and to elucidate the mechanism of the anticancer activities, chemical studies on the CHCl3/EtOAc soluble extract from more than ten plants were undertaken, leading to about eighty C-21 steroids, and their activities of inhibition of Hedgehog signaling pathway were tested in vitro. This study aims at finding new Hedgehog signaling pathway inhibitors as candidates for targeting antitumor drugs. The work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 21472175)

Wenhai Huang is an associate research professor in the institute of materia medica, Zhejiang academy of medical sciences. He received his B.S. and PhD degrees from Zhejiang University in 2006 and 2011, respectively. His research interests are in anti-AD drugs. He has published about 20 peer-reviewed papers.

Chalcones, considered as the precursors of flavonoids and isoflavonoids, are abundant in edible plants, and have also been shown to display a diverse array of pharmacological activities. Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the leading cause of dementia in the elderly, is a neurodegenerative disorder. The multiple and complexity etiologies of AD make single-target strategy difficult to get desirable therapeutic effect. Thus Multi-Target-Directed Ligand (MTDL), which is rationally designed to hit multiple targets for a particular disease, raises as a potentially more effective strategy for AD treatment. Until now, most drugs approved for AD treatment are AChE inhibitors, which improve the ACh level in the brain by decreasing the hydrolysis of ACh. On the other hand, recent evidence indicated that dyshomeostasis of biometals (Fe, Cu, Zn) in the brain may contribute to AD pathology. Experiments also found that the levels of metal ions in AD patients are 3-7 folds higher than that of healthy individuals. Therefore, decreasing the level of metal ions in brain by using metal chelator represents another rational therapeutic approach for the treating of AD. Considering the above, we hybrids the Chalcone and AChE inhibitor rivastigmine and donepezil to design multi-target-directed ligands which have effects on AChE and metal in this study. Tweenty Chalcones drivatives had been synthesized and tested the biological activities.

Hee Jae Shin received his PhD at the University of Tokyo, where he studied the isolation and structure determination of protease inhibitors from cyanobacteria. He undertook postdoctoral studies at the Marine Biotechnology Institute, Janpan and Scripps Institution of Oceanography with Prof. William Fenical. His research interest is on bioactive marine natural products of marine microorganisms including deep-sea and symbiotic microorganisms.

Inflammation in the brain and the rest of the central nervous system (CNS) is a key factor in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease. Multiple lines of evidence suggest that microglia, the resident immune cells of the CNS, play a critical role in inflammation-mediated neurodegeneration. Microglial cells play a dual role in the central nervous system as they have both neurotoxic and neuroprotective effects. Uncontrolled and excessive activation of microglia often contributes to inflammation-mediated neurodegeneration. As part of our continuing interest to discover secondary metabolites from marine microorganisms, we could isolate a new echinosporin derivative from marine Streptomyces sp., possessing strong anti-neuroinflammatory activity as demonstrated by a reduction in nitric oxide (NO) production in LPS-activated BV-2 microglial cells. The structure of the active compound was determined by extensive NMR and mass spectroscopic studies. An unambiguous assignment of the absolute configuration was also achieved by a single-crystal X-ray diffraction (XRD) experiment.

Chun-Lin Lee has completed his PhD at the age of 29 years from National Taiwan University. He is the chairmen and professor of Department of Life Science in Taitung University. His major research is the application of deep ocean water for increasing the fermentation efficiency and health function of functional fungi. He has published more than 35 papers and 10 international patents with the studies of biotechnology, deep ocean water application, and functional food in reputed journals or patents.

Deep ocean water (DOW) has been shown to enhance the functional components of fungi, resulting in increased health benefits. Therefore, using DOW for culturing fungi can enhance the cordycepin and adenosine of Cordyceps militaris and its protective effects on the liver. In this study, the antiliver fibrosis effects and mechanisms of ultrapure water-cultured CM (UCM), DOW-cultured CM (DCM), synthetic water-cultured CM, DOW, cordycepin, and adenosine were compared in the liver fibrosis mice induced by intraperitoneal injections of thioacetamide (TAA). The results indicated that DCM exhibited superior performance in reducing liver collagen accumulation, mitigating liver injuries, inhibiting proinflammatory factors and fibrosis-related factors (TGF-β1, Smad2/3, α-SMA, COL1A1) expressions compared with UCM. DOW, cordycepin, and adenosine also performed antiliver fibrosis effect. Therefore, because DCM is rich in DOW and functional components, it can achieve anti-liver fibrosis effects through multiple pathways. These ameliorative effects are considerably superior to those of UCM.

Young-Eun Kim is currently a student in the first grade of the MS course in the Horticulture science department of the Animal, Horticulture and Food Sciences division of Chungbuk National University, Republic of Korea

Coumestrol is a phytoestrogen found in leguminous plants, and has anti-oxidative effects and protective effects against skin photo-aging and hormone-dependent cancers. Coumestrol production by field cultivation of soybean is highly influenced by genetic and environment factors. Recently, adventitious root and callus culture can be an alternative method to produce coumestrol for industrial. In this study, we identified optimal conditions for adventitious root and callus induction from soybean, and compared the efficiency of adventitious root and callus induction among different genotypes and explants. Cotyledon, hypocotyl, and root explants belonging to 3 seedling lines (#25, 63 and 100) of soybean were cultured on MS medium supplemented with various concentrations of IBA, NAA, 2, 4-D and BA. The highest number (1.9 ea/explant) of adventitious roots was obtained using MS medium supplemented with 1.0 mg L-1 IBA; hypocotyls and roots showed the best explants for induction of adventitious roots. The highest induction (71%) of calli was obtained using MS medium supplemented with 1.0 mg L-1 2,4-D and cotyledons were found to be the best explants for induction of calli. Genotype #63 is the best line for induction of adventitious roots and calli. Adventitious roots derived from 3 explants of 3 genotypes were then mass proliferated in a 3–10-L airlift bioreactor for scale-up culture and coumestrol content will be analyzed using HPLC to determine the relationship between genotype and coumestrol biosynthesis. The results of this study could be used for large-scale production of biomass and coumestrol from soybean for use in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.

Kim-Cuong Le has completed her MS course in 2013 from Dalat University, Lam Dong, Vietnam. She was a researcher in the Molecular biology and Plant breeding department of Tay Nguyen Institute for Scientific Research, Vietnam for a year. Currently, she is a PhD candidate in the Department of Horticulture Science of Chungbuk National University in Korea.

Ginseng (Panax ginseng C.A. Meyer) is a perennial herb that has been used as herbal remedy in Eastern Asia for thousands of years. The older the root, the higher is its pharmacological value, especially that of 100-year-old wild ginseng, because of the higher concentration of ginsenosides, which are the principal bioactive compounds in Panax ginseng. Induction of polyploidy by colchicine treatment is an effective method for genetically increasing the size of cell and enhancing the production of secondary metabolites. Therefore, the aim of this study was to induce polyploidy in adventitious roots by using colchicine to enhance root biomass and ginsenoside content of Panax ginseng. Adventitious roots of Panax ginseng were treated with colchicine at different concentrations (100, 200 and 300 mg L-1) for various durations (1, 2 and 3 days) to induce polyploidy roots. Thirty-nine octoploid roots and 1 hexadecaploid root were detected by using flow cytometry. In the first selection, the lines of polyploidy roots were screened for biomass after 40 days of in vitro culture. As a result, 4 octoploid roots (100-1-2, 100-1-18, 300-1-16 and 300-2-8), with the highest biomass, were selected. In the second selection, the adventitious roots were screened again for ginsenoside content by HPLC analysis. The line ‘100-1-18’, an octoploid, showed the highest ginsenoside content. Ginsenoside productivity of the line was 4.8-fold higher than that of the tetraploid root (control). The polyploid roots described in this study could be used as material to increase the production of Panax ginseng biomass and ginsenosides.

Thanh-Tam Ho has completed his MS course from DaLat University, Vietnam in 2014. He is going to begin his PhD course, supervised by Prof. So-Young Park in the Horticultural Science Department, Chungbuk National University, Korea.

Polygonum multiflorum Thunb. is an important medicinal plant that synthesizes phenolic compounds. Recently, this plant was screened for the production of pharmacologically active and cosmetic ingredients. In the present study, we identified optimal conditions for adventitious root cultures of these plants to optimize the scale-up of the production of biomass and bioactive compounds. Various parameters, such as inoculum density (3–15 g L-1) and duration of growth (1–7 weeks), were optimized in a 3-L airlift bioreactor. Based on the results of the optimization experiments, large-scale (5 and 20-L) and pilot-scale (500-L) adventitious root culture systems were established. We found that 4 weeks of culture with an inoculum density of 5 g L-1 resulted in the highest root dry weight (DW; 13.64 g L-1), and the highest concentration of bioactive compounds (53.87 mg g-1 DW total phenolics and 27.96 mg g-1 DW total flavonoids); thus, these culture conditions were suitable for increasing biomass and bioactive compound concentration. An optimal yield of 4.01 kg dry root biomass was achieved in a 500-L pilot-scale bioreactor. In addition, the potential mechanisms underlying changes in the activities of catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD) and lipid preroxidation (MDA) were studied. At the same time, low oxidative damage was observed, which could be related to the high levels of bioactive compounds and increased activity of antioxidant enzymes. These results will aid in the improvement of the commercial production of biomass and secondary metabolites of P. multiflorum for use in the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.

Wong Kak Ming is currently pursuing his PhD at Monash University Malaysia. He has completed his Honors in Bachelor of Science (Biotechnology) at the same campus. His current research is focused on the isolation and identification of bioactive compound(s) from the plant Hemigraphis alternata. The project is supervised by Dr. Emily Goh Joo Kheng and Dr. Cheow Yuen Lin.

Studies suggested that the therapeutic properties of plants are originated from bioactive compounds found within them. These compounds are candidates for drug development and extensive works have been conducted to isolate them. The plant of interest is Hemigraphis alternata (Red flame ivy). Previous studies suggested that leaves of Hemigraphis alternata exhibited promising antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities, but there is no work which has isolated and identified the bioactive compounds from this plant. This represents the first study to do so. Our study aims to investigate the antioxidant properties of methanol crude extract of H. alternata freeze dried leaves using iron chelation, ferric reducing and nitric oxide scavenging assay, and to study its anti-inflammatory activity using LPS-activated RAW 264.7 nitric oxide production inhibition assay and lipoxygenase enzyme assay. This is followed by isolation of chemical constituents via bioassays-guided purification. The current work has successfully isolate H. alternata fractions that can chelate iron and reduce ferric, inhibit LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 nitric oxide production and inhibit lipoxygenase enzyme. These assays are used to guide purification work to isolate corresponding active constituents, which will be identified using different spectroscopic methods.

Mun-Chual Rho has completed his PhD from Tohoku University and Post-doctoral studies from Kitasato Institute. He is the Director of Natural Product Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology. He has published more than 100 papers in reputed journals and has been serving as an Editorial Board Member of repute.

The activation of TLR4 leads to the induction of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) signal cascades that initiate the production of pro-inflammatory molecules, including tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin (IL)-6, IL-8 and IL-12. This pathway is biologically important for regulating host homeostasis; however, the inability to regulate excessive TLR4 activation causes abnormal inflammatory responses. In our ongoing studies of TLR4 inhibitors from traditional medicinal resources, we have determined that a 95% EtOH extract of Curcuma phaeocaulis rhizomes has a half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) value of 8.8 μg per mL. This extract was progressively fractionated with EtOAc, n-BuOH, and H2O, and the EtOAc-soluble fraction was subjected to various chromatographic experiments, which allowed us to isolate new guaiane-type (2 and 6) and furanogermacrane-type (11) sesquiterpenoids as well as twelve known compounds: Procurcumenol (1), procurcumadiol (3), zedoarondiol (4), phaeocaulisine E (5), wenyujinin L (7), phacadinane B (8), curcumenolactone A (9), curcumenolactone B (10), zedoarofuran (12), curcolonol (13), 4α-hydroxy-8,12-epoxyeudesma-7,11-diene-1,6-dione (14) and neolitacumone A (15). The THP-1-Blue cell line was used to evaluate the inhibitory effects of our isolated compounds 1-15 on TLR4 activation. LPS-induced TLR4 activation was inhibited by 4, 8 and 9 [with an IC50 value of 22.5±1.0 μM (4), 54.8±1.2 μM (8) and 91.0±6.3 μM (9)] relative to the positive control luteolin (IC50 value: 2.6±0.8 μM), whereas the remaining compounds showed little to no inhibition. Interestingly, phaeocaulisine E, a 10-epimer of zedoarondiol that exhibits a β-orientation at OH-10, produced no inhibitory effects (IC50>100 μM), suggesting that in guaiane-type sesquiterpenoids, the configuration at OH-10 may affect the inhibition of TLR4 activity. These findings suggest that sesquiterpenoids from C. phaeocaulis may be promising as inhibitors for TLR4-mediated inflammatory disease. Additional research is needed to evaluate relatively effective new candidate compounds that could target LPS-stimulated TLR4 activity.

Woo Song Lee has completed his PhD from Tokushima University and Post-doctoral studies from UCLA. He is the Director of Jeonbuk branch, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology. He has published more than 140 papers in reputed journals and has been serving as an Editorial Board Member of repute.

Production losses of olive flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus) were increased by infection of viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHSV). Inhibition efficacy of extract from Ecklonia cava (E. cava) was studied to find whether extract and compound of E. cava have inhibition ability for VHSV in FHM cell line and when orally administered to olive flounder. Based on lower toxicity and effective concentration, E. cava extract (GT) and compound (eckol and phlorofucofuroeckol A) were selected for further studies. In pre, post and co exposure experiments, co exposure group showed highest level of inhibition rate. Antiviral activity was time dependently increased with exposure time between virus and GT and compound in FHM cell line. In experiments in vivo, different concentrations of GT were administered to olive flounder by orally. Afterward, VHSV was challenged and observed best survival rate. In trial 1 in olive flounder, relative percent survival (RPS) of oral administered GT at 500 and 50 µg/g/day were 31.25 and 12.50%, respectively. In trial 2, RPS of 1000, 500, 50 µg/g/day were 31.57, 0 and 0% respectively. In trial 3, RPS of 1 and 2 weeks were 26.31 and 31.57%, respectively. Oral administration of GT induced inflammatory cytokines responses (IL-1β, IL-6 and IFN-γ) at early stage of oral administration. Additionally, IFN-α/β, interferon stimulated genes (ISG15) and interferon inducible antiviral Mx was activated. These results suggested that oral administration of GT has antiviral activity against VHSV through early pro and anti-inflammatory activation and antiviral responses at later stages. In conclusion, we demonstrated an inhibition ability of E. cava extracts and compounds against VHSV in FHM cell line. Moreover, orally administered E cave extract to olive flounder enhance efficacy of the immune protection against VHSV and demonstrated the anti-viral status in the fish.

Hyung Jae Jeong has completed his PhD at the age of 32 years from Gyeongsang National University and postdoctoral studies from Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology(KRIBB). He have been Researched on the application of biologically active material on field and Establishment of mass processing system for biologically active material. He has published more than 30 papers in reputed journals.

Curcuma longa is a perennial medicinal plant that is utilized widely in Asia. Here, we evaluated the effects of extracts of the aerial parts of C. longa on inflammatory processes in RAW264.7 macrophage cells. Dried aerial parts of C. longa were extracted with methanol and partitioned successively with CH2Cl2 and n-BuOH. This n-BuOH fraction (0–40 g/ml) significantly suppressed the lipopolysaccharide-mediated induction of nitric oxide, prostaglandin E2, and pro-inflammatory cytokines. Western blotting found that the levels of nitric oxide synthase and cyclooxygenase-2 were also reduced in a concentration-dependent manner, in the absence of cytotoxicity. The major components present in this extract were isolated and chemically characterized using ultra-performance liquid chromatography-quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Four flavonoids were identified: quercetine 3-O-(2G-a-L-rhamnosyl)-rutinoside (1); quercetin 3-O-rutinoside (2); quercetin 3-O-rhamnosyl-(1→2)-rhamnoside (3); and quercetin-3-O-rhamnoside (4).

Ju Huck Lee received his PhD degree in 2009 from University of Connecticut Health Center. He had two postdoctoral experiences at Harvard medical school and UTHealth at Houston. he has joined Korea Research Institutue of Bioscience and Biotechnology as junior reseacher in 2015 and been studying a molecular biology of infection diseases. He has published 25 papers in prestigious journals.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) is one of the most devastating diseases causing severe economic losses in swine industry worldwide. Its causative agent, PRRS virus (PRRSV) is a positive-strand RNA virus and expresses at least 14 nonstructural proteins (nsp) and 8 structural proteins for viral replication. Since current antiviral treatments fail to prevent and control PRRSV, it has been suggested to use natural products as anti-PRRSV treatments becaue they have been sucessfully employed in many cases as antiviral agents. Thus, we investigated natural products to find anti-PRRSV drugs. To do this, PRRSV helicase nsp10 was chosen for antiviral target because it is indispensible for virus replication and in vitro high-throughput screening system for helicase activity can be easily established. Firstly, we purified a nsp10 recombinant protein from E. coli using maltose binding protein (MBP) tag affinity purification. Next, we determined that the recombinant nap10 possesses one of helicase activities, ATPase activity by ATP bioluminescence assay system. Using this assay, 44 natural product extracts (NPE) were evaluated as ATPase inhibitors and four NPEs including NPE-44 showed more than 50% ATPase inhibition. To further characterize which compounds of NPE-44 have the inhibition activity, 12 compounds were isolated from NPE-44 and tested for ATPase inhibition. Interestingly, 3 compounds were discovered to have the inhibition activity of NPE-44. Now we are investigating the cytotoxicity and antiviral activity of the NPEs having ATPase inhibition activty using cell culture based assays. Taken together, this study will certainly provide valuable information to develop new promising anti-PRRSV drugs.

Yeong Hun Song is currently a Ph.D student in the Division of Applied Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, Republic of Korea.

The production of melanin is for the protection of skin from UV radiation, but overproduction of melanin results in skin hyperpigmentation, characterized by age spots, malasma and cholasma. Tyrosinase is also essential enzyme in numerous cellular processes including insect molting and the browning of damaged fruit. In particular, this enzyme may effect on the pathogenesis of Parkinson′s disease and related neurodegenerative disorders. Tyrosinase (EC 1.14.18.1) catalyzes two distinct reaction of melanin biosynthesis from tyrosine to melanin. In the course of metabolite analysis from tyrosinase inhibitory methanol extract (80% inhibition at 20 µg/ml) of Campylotropis hirtella, we isolated fourteen phenolic compounds, among which Neorauflavane emerged as a lead structure for tyrosinase inhibition. Neorauflavane inhibited tyrosinase monophenolase activity with an IC50 of 30 nM. Thus this compound is 400-fold more active than kojic acid. In kinetic studies, Neorauflavane showed competitive inhibitory behavior against both monophenolase and diphenolase. It manifested simple reversible slow‒binding inhibition against monophenolase with the following kinetic parameters: Kiapp = 1.48 nM, k3 = 0.0033 nM-1min-1 and k4 = 0.0049 min-1. Neorauflavane efficiently reduced melanin content in B16 melanoma cells with 12.95 μM of IC50. To develop a pharmacophore model, we explored the binding mode of Neorauflavane in the active site of tyrosinase. Docking results show that resorcinol motif of B‒ring and methoxy group in A‒ring play crucial roles in the binding the enzyme.

Whan-Seok Choi has completed his MD and PhD from Catholic University Medical College. He is Professor in family department of Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea. He has published more than 50 papers in reputed journals and has been serving as a Vice Chairman of the Korean Society of Integrative Medicine.

Background: The effects of seanol are generally known in various areas, especially in autonomic nervous system using animal model. To aim of the present study was to evaluate effects of Zerex (was mainly composed of Seanol) on the Autonomous function with using HRV (heart rate variability) SA-3000, in female young adults with fatigue. Methods: This was a 4-week parallel-group, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial. This was a 4-week trial consisting of 3 visits. A total of 87 participants were randomized to either Zerex (n=58) group or the placebo group (n=29). Subjects were administered with 3 capsules of Zerex or placebo 3 times a day. HRV was measured at baseline (visit 2) and at 4-week (visit 3) using SA-3000P (Medicore, Korea). Results: There was no significant difference between Age and Sex in two groups. The differences of the mean value of HRV indices of pre-exercise resting period were not significant. However, the change of heart rate (0.81±9.40, 7.17±9.56; P=0.004) between two groups, RMSSD (Square root of the mean of the sum of the square of differences between adjacent NN intervals, 1.92±16.38, -7.53±18.85; P=0.018) was more significantly changed. The changes of SDNN (The Standard deviation of Normal to Normal intervals, 1.24±18.10, -4.19±14.34; P=0.163) was not significant. Conclusions: HRV indices were more increased in Zerex group than in Placebo group. The result of this study suggests that Zerex have a positive effect on Autonomous function, especially on parasympathetic nervous system.

Zuopeng Li is currently a Ph.D student in the Division of Applied Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, Republic of Korea.

The roots of P. cuspidatum are used as a popular food stuff for inflammation that has deep relation with bacterial neuraminidase (BNA). Methanol extract showed significant BNA inhibition (50 μg/ml), and mainly consisted of chromophoric polyphenols, which are analyzed by chromatographic isolation and UPLC-PDA-Q-TOF/MS. The principal BNA inhibitory compounds were identified as emodin, physcion-8-O-β-D-glucopyranoside, emodin-8-O-β-D-glucopyranoside, emodin-1-O-β-D-glucopyranoside, and 2-methoxy-6-acetyl-7-methyljuglone. Interesting facets was that anthraquinone glucosides showed 10-fold more potent inhibition than the corresponding aglycones. For example emodine showed 5.4 μM of IC50, while its glucosides had IC50 values of 0.85 μM and 0.43 μM respectively. Similar trend was observed on physcion (1, IC50 > 200 μM) and its glucoside (3, IC50 = 6.2 μM). Kinetic behaviors were fully characterized with the changes of Km and Vmax, the ratios of KI/KIS and Kik/Kiv, and fluorescence quenching effect. The anthraquinone was mixed type I inhibitor, while its glucosides were noncompetitive ones. The affinity constants (KSA) of inhibitors increased in proportion to their inhibitory potencies. Furthermore the most active neuraminidase inhibitors were proven to be present in higher quantities in the native roots.

Manjusha Choudhary is working as Assistant Professor in the Division of Pharmacology, in the Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Kurukshetra University, Kurukshetra, Haryana, India. She has recently completed her Ph.D degree from Kurukshetra University. She has published over 35 academic papers. Her research interest mainly focus on pharmacological evaluation of plants for various activities like antidiabetic, antiarthritic, antifertility and many more.

Objective: Cassia occidentalis Linn. belongs to Family Caesalpiniaceae is a common weed scattered from the foothills of Himalayas to West Bengal, South India, Burma, and Sri Lanka. It is used widely in folklore medicine in India as laxative, expectorant, analgesic, anti-malarial, hepatoprotective, relaxant, anti-inflammatory and antidiabetic. The present study was carried out to investigate the hypoglycaemic and hypolipidemic activities of ethanolic extract of Cassia occidentalis stem bark. Methods: Stem bark extract of Cassia occidentalis (SBCO) was administered orally at 250 and 500 mg/kg doses to normal and streptozotocin (STZ) induced type-2 diabetic mice. Various parameters like fasting blood glucose (FBG) level, serum cholesterol, high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, triglycerides (TG), total protein, urea, creatinine, serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT), serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) levels and physical parameters like change in body weight, food intake, water intake were performed for the evaluation of antidiabetic effects. Results: Both the doses of extract caused a marked decrease in FBG levels in STZ induced type 2 diabetic mice. Administration of SBCO led to the decrease in the blood glucose, food intake, water intake, organ weight, SGOT, SGPT levels with significant value and increased the levels of TG, HDL cholesterol, creatinine, cholesterol, total protein with a significant value (p<0.05-0.01). The decrease in body weight induced by STZ was restored to normal with a significant value (p<0.01) at both doses. Conclusion: Present study reveals that SBCO possess potent hypoglycaemic and hypolipidemic activities and supports the folklore use of the stem bark of plant as antidiabetic agent.

Azizah Algreiby has completed her Masters Degree in Analytical chemistry in 2013 at the University of Western Australia. She has started her PhD degree in 2014 at UWA. She works at Qassim University in Saudi Arabia as a lecturer in Analytical Chemistry.

Methane is regarded as one of the most harmful greenhouse gases that contributes to global warming. A major source of methane released into the atmosphere is through enteric fermentation of feeds in ruminants. A preliminary study of various Australian plants has investigates the ability of these plants to inhibit methanogenic bacteria present in sheep and cattle to reduce methane output. Over 300 plants have previously been screened and demonstrated that a range of Australian native and pasture species could be beneficial to livestock production in general. In particular, the Australian native Eremophila glabra was the most potent plants against methanogenic bacteria as it show a marked reduction in rumen methane emissions. My PhD study involves isolation and identification of the bioactive compounds that reduce methane in vitro from Eremophila glabra.

Professor Daniel Motlhanka has completed his PhD in Pharmacognosy from King’s College, University of London in United Kingdom in 2005. He is currently the only Professor of Pharmacognosy in Botswana. He is the leading expert in ethnopharmacological and phytochemical studies including isolation and identification of compounds from indigenous useful plants of Botswana. Professor Motlhanka is Head of Department of Basic Sciences at the Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources. He has published tremendously on Bioactivity profiles of medicinal and food plants of Botswana. Prof Motlhanka who is also a herbalist is an expert in plant based extracts used to treat many ailments. He has made presentations in international conferences in Atlanta (USA), South Carolina (USA), North Carolina(USA), Alabama(USA), Florida(USA), Manchester (UK), London(UK), Harrogate(UK), Kent(UK), Malaysia, India, Italy, Germany, Finland, Netherlands, Switzerland, Mauritius, Kenya, Pretoria (RSA), Durban(RSA), Capetown(RSA), Zambia and many seminars in Waterloo (London),London Bridge( London), St Thomas (London), Kew Gardens (London) as well as a chain of local presentations in Botswana. Professor Motlhanka is member of many associations including the Society of Economic Botany. Prof Motlhanka is passionate about environmental conservation and cultivation of endangered plants germplasm.

The aim of this study was to compare the phytochemical composition and antioxidant activity of roots and shoots of Cardiospermum corindum collected from two geographically distant regions of Botswana (Tswapong Hills and Kgale Hills). Qualitative phytochemical analysis revealed presence of alkaloids, reducing sugars, saponins, phytosterols, phenols, flavonoids and terpenoids. Analysis by thin layer chromatography, revealed that both shoots and roots of plant collected from the two respective regions showed no differences in phytochemical constituents. Total phenol and flavonoid contents were quantitatively estimated. Total phenolic content measured by Folin-Ciocalteu method varied from 164.4±2.2 to 364.2±3.1mg/L (GAE) Gallic Acid Equivalents. The order of total phenol contents were [364.2±3.1](Roots from Tswapong Hills)>[356.0±4.5](Roots from Kgale Hills)>[169.1±2.6](Shoots from Tswapong Hills)>[164.4±2.2mg/lGAE](Shoots from Kgale Hills). The total flavonoid contents as measured by aluminium Chloride method varied from 56.7±1.1 to 124.1±1.5mg/L(QE) Quercetin Equivalents. The order of the total flavonoid contents were [124.1±1.5](Shoots from Kgale Hills)>[118.8±2.6](Shoots from Tswapong Hills)>[63.3±1.6](Roots from Tswapong Hills)>[56.7±1.1mg/l QE](Roots from Kgale Hills). The antioxidant activity as determined by the DPPH radical scavenging assay, revealed that, at all tested concentrations, root extracts exhibited greater (≥86%) scavenging potency than shoot extracts (≤83%). A direct correlation between total phenolic content and free radical scavenging activity was revealed. This work has validated the use of this plant as a health improving tool. However, structural identification of the bioactive constituents should be carried out.