Volume 78, Issue 1-2

The COVID-19 mainly causes respiratory disorders with high infection and severe morbidity and mortality. Neurologists have concerns about potential neurological side effects, profits, and timing of COVID-19 vaccines. This study aimed to review systematically research for the COVID-19 vaccine and neurological complications. Data was searched in Scopus, ISI web of knowledge, Medline, PubMed, Wiley, Embase, International Clinical Trials Registry Platform and Clinical Trials, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar. Two reviewer authors individually searched and assessed the titles and abstracts of all articles. The third reviewer resolved disagreement between them. Data were documented regarding study location, study design, type of complications, number of patients, various types of COVID-19 vaccine, and type of neurological complications. Six studies in COVID-19 vaccine and neurological complications include two studies about neurological manifestations after the mRNA vaccines, four records about side effects of vector-based vaccine were included in the study. The main neurological complication associated mRNA vaccines were body aches, paresthesia, and difficulty walking, erythema migrans lesion, fatigue, myalgia, and pain in the left lateral deltoid region. The major neurological complication related to vector-based vaccines were urinary retention difficulty, feeding and ambulating, arm soreness, mild fatigue, chills, left-sided facial droop, headaches, a generalized epileptic seizure, hemianopia, and mild aphasia, acute somnolence and right-hand hemiparesis, acute transverse myelitis, deep vein thrombosis in her left leg, a vigilance disorder and a twitching, a severe immobilizing opsoclonus myoclonus syndrome, and encephalitis. A large spectrum of severe neurological unfavorable has been reported. These complications could occur as a result of molecular stimulation and later neuronal damage. Generally, the advantages of COVID‐19 vaccination are dominant on the risks of a neurological complication at both individual and population levels. Future investigations will be required to find any relationship between neurological complications and COVID‐19 vaccines principally as new strains of the virus and new vaccines are technologically advanced against them.

Santalum genus belongs to the family of Santalaceae, widespread in India, Australia, Hawaii, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia, and valued as traditional medicine, rituals and modern bioactivities. Sandalwood is reported to possess a plethora of bioactive compounds such as essential oil and its components (α-santalol and β-santalol), phenolic compounds and fatty acids. These bioactives play important role in contributing towards biological activities and health-promoting effects in humans. Pre-clinical and clinical studies have shown the role of sandalwood extract as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, neuroleptic, antihyperglycemic, antihyperlipidemic, and anticancer activities. Safety studies on sandalwood essential oil (EO) and its extracts have proven them as a safe ingredient to be utilized in health promotion. Phytoconstituents, bioactivities and traditional uses established sandalwood as one of the innovative materials for application in the pharma, food, and biomedical industry.

Sakuranetin (SKN), a naturally derived 7- O -methylated flavonoid, was first identified in the bark of the cherry tree ( Prunu s spp.) as an aglycone of sakuranin and then purified from the bark of Prunus puddum . It was later reported in many other plants including Artemisia campestris , Boesenbergia pandurata , Baccharis spp., Betula spp., Juglans spp., and Rhus spp. In plants, it functions as a phytoalexin synthesized from its precursor naringenin and is the only known phenolic phytoalexin in rice, which is released in response to different abiotic and biotic stresses such as UV-irradiation, jasmonic acid, cupric chloride, L-methionine, and the phytotoxin coronatine. Till date, SKN has been widely reported for its diverse pharmacological benefits including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimycobacterial, antiviral, antifungal, antileishmanial, antitrypanosomal, glucose uptake stimulation, neuroprotective, antimelanogenic, and antitumor properties. Its pharmacokinetics and toxicological properties have been poorly understood, thus warranting further evaluation together with exploring other pharmacological properties such as antidiabetic, neuroprotective, and antinociceptive effects. Besides, in vivo studies or clinical investigations can be done for proving its effects as antioxidant and anti-inflammatory, antimelanogenic, and antitumor agent. This review summarizes all the reported investigations with SKN for its health-beneficial roles and can be used as a guideline for future studies.

Bacterial sialidases are enzymes that are involved in a number of vital processes in microorganisms and in their interaction with the host or the environment. Their wide application for scientific and applied purposes requires the search for highly effective and non-pathogenic producers. Here, we report the first description of sialidase from Oerskovia paurometabola . The extracellular enzyme preparation was partially purified. The presence of sialidase was confirmed in native PAGE treated with the fluorogenic substrate 4MU-Neu5Ac. Maximum enzyme activity was registered at 37 °C and in the pH range of 4.0–5.5. The influence of metal ions and EDTA was examined. It was demonstrated that EDTA, Mn 2+ and Ba 2+ ions inhibit the sialidase activity to different extent, while Cd 2+ , Fe 2+ and Fe 3+ have stimulating effect on it. These features are studied for the first time concerning sialidase of Oerskovia representative. Cell bound sialidase and sialate aldolase were also established.

The benzylisoquinoline alkaloids of Annona muricata have been isolated, but their physiological or ecological role is unknown. The objective was to explore whether these secondary metabolites are involved in defense against phytopathogenic fungi. To do this, the alkaloidal response of 6-leaf seedlings of A. muricata was analyzed, previously inoculated with Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and Rhizopus stolonifer . Before and after inoculation, alkaloidal extracts of roots, stems, and leaves were obtained, and the antifungal activity was evaluated in vitro . The alkaloids anonaine, reticuline, nornuciferine, assimilobine, and coreximine were identified. C. gloeosporioides caused variable increases in the production of anonaine, reticuline and nornuciferine (10–1200%), while R. stolonifer only stimulated the increase of nornuciferin and anonaine (10%) in the stems and leaves. The alkaloidal extracts of inoculated seedlings increased the antifungal activity, both against the pathogen elicitor and against the second target pathogen. These findings suggest that the alkaloids participate in the antifungal defense mechanism.

Three sesquiterpene lactones ( 1–3 ) were isolated from the aerial part of Tithonia diversifolia (Hemsl.) A. Gray grown in the Hoa Binh province in Viet Nam. The structures of these three sesquiterpene lactones were identified as tagitinin A ( 1 ), 1 β -hydroxytirotundin 3-O-methyl ether ( 2 ), and tagitinin C ( 3 ) by analyzing spectroscopic data. For the first time, compound 2 was isolated from T. diversifolia growing in Viet Nam. Furthermore, contrary to existing literature, we determined that compound 1 was the major isolate. Compounds 1 and 3 significantly decreased numbers of acute myeloid leukemia OCI-AML3 cells by promoting apoptosis and causing cell cycle arrest at G0/G1 phase at concentrations as low as 2.5 μg/mL (compound 1 ) and 0.25 μg/mL (compound 3 ). Additionally, all three compounds showed cytotoxic activity against five human cancer cell lines (A549, T24, Huh-7, 8505, and SNU-1), with IC 50 values ranging from 1.32 ± 0.14 to 46.34 ± 2.74 μM. Overall, our findings suggest that compounds 1 and 3 may be potential anti-cancer therapeutics and thus warrant further study.

An efficient and rapid preparative method for the separation and purification of flavonoid glycosides from the Ginkgo biloba extract ( GB E) was developed by sephadex LH-20 and preparative high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). 40 g GB E of 24% flavonoids were loaded onto the sephadex LH-20 column and five fractions (1.15, 2.57, 1.32, 4.45, and 3.31 g) at flavonoid content of 72.3, 54.2, 63.5, 51.2, and 59.2% were produced. Ultimately, 12 flavonoid glycosides that are at least purities of 97.7% were obtained from 100 mg of each fraction by preparative HPLC. The fraction A, B, and D each contained two flavonoids, yielded 35, 30, 23, 20, 25, and 25 mg, respectively. The fraction C and E each contained three flavonoids, produced 20, 13, 15, 18, 15, and 20 mg, respectively. The chemical structures of the purified compounds were identified by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI/MS).

The aim of this research was to evaluate insecticidal activities of the essential oil of Rhynchanthus beesianus rhizomes against adults of Liposcelis entomophila and Tribolium castaneum . Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analyses revealed the presence of 44 compounds with β -eudesmol (19.1%), elemol (8.1%), α -terpineol (8.0%), methyl eugenol (6.5%), and caryophyllene (4.8%) being the major constituents. Bioactivity-directed chromatographic separation of the oil led to the isolation of four constituents, elemol, β -eudesmol, methyl eugenol, and α -terpineol. The essential oil exhibited fumigant toxicity against the adults of L. entomophila and T. castaneum with LC 50 values of 0.57 and 4.96 mg/L air while the two isolates, methyl eugenol and α -terpineol possessed fumigant toxicity against the booklice (LC 50  = 0.15 and 0.48 mg/L air, respectively) and the beetles (LC 50  = 1.81 and 4.96 mg/L air, respectively). The oil also possessed contact toxicity against the booklice and the beetles with LD 50 values of 121.56 μg/cm 2 and 54.93 μg/adult, respectively, while the two isolates β -eudesmol and elemol showed contact toxicity against L. entomophila (LD 50  = 99.21 and 35.19 μg/cm 2 , respectively) and T. castaneum (LD 50  = 35.26 and 8.89 μg/adult, respectively). The results indicate that the oil of R. beesianus rhizomes and its isolates have potential as a source for natural insecticides.