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Faculty of Applied Sciences

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Subject: search.filters.subject.0601 Biochemistry and Cell Biology

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Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    Cheminformatics identification and validation of dipeptidyl peptidase-IV modulators from Shikimate pathway-derived phenolic acids towards interventive type-2 diabetes therapy
    (MDPI AG, 2022-10) Balogun, Fatai Oladunni; Naidoo, Kaylene; Aribisala, Jamiu Olaseni; Pillay, Charlene; Sabiu, Saheed
    Recently, dipeptidyl peptidase-IV (DPP-IV) has become an effective target in the management of type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2D). The study aimed to determine the efficacy of shikimate pathway-derived phenolic acids as potential DPP-IV modulators in the management of T2D. The study explored in silico (molecular docking and dynamics simulations) and in vitro (DPP-IV inhibitory and kinetics assays) approaches. Molecular docking findings revealed chlorogenic acid (CA) among the examined 22 phenolic acids with the highest negative binding energy (-9.0 kcal/mol) showing a greater affinity for DPP-IV relative to the standard, Diprotin A (-6.6 kcal/mol). The result was corroborated by MD simulation where it had a higher affinity (-27.58 kcal/mol) forming a more stable complex with DPP-IV than Diprotin A (-12.68 kcal/mol). These findings were consistent with in vitro investigation where it uncompetitively inhibited DPP-IV having a lower IC50 (0.3 mg/mL) compared to Diprotin A (0.5 mg/mL). While CA showed promising results as a DPP-IV inhibitor, the findings from the study highlighted the significance of medicinal plants particularly shikimate-derived phenolic compounds as potential alternatives to synthetic drugs in the effective management of T2DM. Further studies, such as derivatisation for enhanced activity and in vivo evaluation are suggested to realize its full potential in T2D therapy.
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    Diversity, stability and applications of mycopigments
    (Elsevier BV, 2023-10) Abel, Grace; Amobonye, Ayodeji; Bhagwat, Prashant; Pillai, Santhosh
    The role of fungi as major pigment producers in the environments has endeared their application as sources of industrially important pigments. Compared to synthetic colorants, fungal pigments are rapidly becoming the preferred choice due to their biodegradability, eco-friendliness and versatility. Besides their uses as colourants, their functions as preservatives and/or bioactive agents have promoted their potential across numerous industries. In the past, more focus has been placed on enhancing the production levels of fungal pigments with little attention to the stabilization of the pigments and other important areas of concern. To this end, this review draws attention to the diverse classes of fungal pigments with emphasis on their existing and future applications, especially in the food and textile industries. Emphasis was also placed on the factors affecting fungal pigment stability and the techniques to efficiently circumvent the instability. Finally, the application of emerging technologies such as copigmentation, microencapsulation, metabolic engineering, and chemo-informatics tools in enhancing the mycopigment industry are highlighted.
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    Biocatalytic and biological activities of Kigelia africana mediated silver monometallic and copper-silver bimetallic nanoparticles
    (NISCAIR, 2022-01-08) Biyela, Buyani; Mohanlall, Viresh
    Aqueous extract of Kigelia africana leaves have been utilized for the synthesis of silver (AgNPs) and copper-silver bimetallic nanoparticles (Ag-CuNPs) that were generally found to be spherical and oval in shape. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized using UV-Vis, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM/EDX), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The antimicrobial activities were evaluated against both gram-negative and gram-positive strains of bacteria. The UV-Vis and FTIR techniques revealed the formation of nanoparticles and the active components were adsorbed on the surface of the particles thereby stabilizing the nanoparticles. The SEM reveals uniform microspheres of AgNPs and anisotropic particles for Ag-CuNPs. TEM shows the size of synthesized particles. The nanoparticles inhibited the growth of both gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria. The bimetallic nanoparticles synthesized from aqueous extract of K. africana leaves showed greater inhibition against Escherichia coli as compared to the monometallic nanoparticles. The AgNPs was more effective for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol and 4-nitroaniline as compared to Ag-CuNPs. The results of this study confirmed that Kigelia africana leaf and fruit aqueous extract can successfully reduce metallic ions to synthesize metallic nanoparticles that have antimicrobial and biocatalytic properties.