Biorhizome: A Biosynthetic Platform for Colchicine Biomanufacturing

Supramolecular Self-Assembled Hydrogel for Antiviral Therapy through Glycyrrhizic Acid-Enhanced Zinc Absorption and Intracellular Accumulation

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common pathogen that causes respiratory infections in infants and children worldwide, significantly impacting hospitalization rates in this age group. Zinc ions are considered to have broad-spectrum antiviral potential against RNA viruses, including RSV. However, poor organism absorption and low intracellular accumulation of zinc require repeated high-dose supplementation, which may lead to unnecessary toxic side effects. In this research, a Zn2+-mediated glycyrrhizinic acid (GA)-based hydrogel (ZnGA Gel) was introduced and potentially developed to be a clinically available drug candidate for RSV therapy. ZnGA Gel was fabricated based on the cooperation of two potential RSV inhibiting molecules (Zn2+ and GA), where Zn2+ promoted self-assembly of GA and reduced its gel concentration and GA promoted zinc absorption and distribution in lung tissue in vivo. The facile construction of supramolecular hydrogel by the self-assembled coordination complex made it an injectable, temperature-sensitive, and pH-responsive controlled-release drug delivery for Zn2+. Most importantly, GA was observed to enhance organism absorption and intracellular accumulation of Zn2+ and was identified as a zinc ionophore for the first time. GA can colonize on the cell membrane and disturb cell membrane potential, resulting in an enhanced cell membrane permeability. In the presence of GA, more than 4.7-fold increasing Zn2+ concentrations materialized in the intracellular cytoplasm, compared to Zn2+ alone administration. This intracellular Zn2+ accumulation directly boosted the antiviral activities through improved inhibition of RSV replication-associated proteins and significantly inhibited RSV replication. Oral administration of ZnGA Gel on the RSV-infected mice model achieved an ideal therapeutic effect by effectively lowering viral load in the lungs, alleviating lung injury symptoms, and reducing inflammatory cell infiltration at pathological sites. The mechanism involved the inhibition of RSV replication-related proteins, aligning with our in vitro results. Additionally, ZnGA Gel had demonstrated biocompatibility, and reasonable supplementation of zinc was acceptable and effective for infants and children in clinical practice. Hence, the ZnGA Gel developed by us holds promise as an effective anti-RSV medicine in the future.

Methods for Chromosome Doubling

The completely homozygous genetic background of doubled haploids (DHs) has many applications in breeding programs and research studies. Haploid induction and chromosome doubling of induced haploids are the two main steps of doubled haploid creation. Both steps have their own complexities. Chromosome doubling of induced haploids may happen spontaneously, although usually at a low rate. Therefore, artificial/induced chromosome doubling of haploid cells/plantlets is necessary to produce DHs at an acceptable level. The most common method is using some mitotic spindle poisons that target the organization of the microtubule system. Colchicine is a well-known and widely used antimitotic. However, there are substances alternative to colchicine in terms of efficiency, toxicity, safety, and genetic stability, which can be applied in in vitro and in vivo pathways. Both pathways have their own advantages and disadvantages. However, in vitro-induced chromosome doubling has been much preferred in recent years, maybe because of the dual effect of antimitotic agents (haploid induction and chromosome doubling) in just one step, and the reduced generation of chimeras. Plant genotype, the developmental stage of initial haploids, and type-concentration-duration of application of antimitotic agents, are top influential parameters on chromosome doubling efficiency. In this review, we highlight different aspects related to antimitotic agents and to plant parameters for successful chromosome doubling and high DH yield.

Mitotic Poisons in Research and Medicine

Cancer is one of the greatest challenges of the modern medicine. Although much effort has been made in the development of novel cancer therapeutics, it still remains one of the most common causes of human death in the world, mainly in low and middle-income countries. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cancer treatment services are not available in more then 70% of low-income countries (90% of high-income countries have them available), and also approximately 70% of cancer deaths are reported in low-income countries. Various approaches on how to combat cancer diseases have since been described, targeting cell division being among them. The so-called mitotic poisons are one of the cornerstones in cancer therapies. The idea that cancer cells usually divide almost uncontrolled and far more rapidly than normal cells have led us to think about such compounds that would take advantage of this difference and target the division of such cells. Many groups of such compounds with different modes of action have been reported so far. In this review article, the main approaches on how to target cancer cell mitosis are described, involving microtubule inhibition, targeting aurora and polo-like kinases and kinesins inhibition. The main representatives of all groups of compounds are discussed and attention has also been paid to the presence and future of the clinical use of these compounds as well as their novel derivatives, reviewing the finished and ongoing clinical trials.

Biotechnological production of ruscogenins in plant cell and organ cultures of Ruscus aculeatus

Ruscus aculeatus is a threatened medicinal plant whose main bioactive components, the ruscogenins, have long been used in the treatment of hemorrhoids and varicose veins, but recently demonstrated activity against some types of cancer. Plant cell biofactories could constitute an alternative to the whole plant as a source of ruscogenins. In this pipeline, despite the in vitro recalcitrance of R. aculeatus, after many attempts we developed friable calli and derived plant cell suspensions, and their ruscogenin production was compared with that of organized in vitro plantlet and root-rhizome cultures. Root-rhizomes showed a higher capacity for biomass and ruscogenin production than the cell suspensions and the yields were greatly improved by elicitation with coronatine. Although ruscogenins accumulate in plants mainly in the root-rhizome, it was demonstrated that the aerial part could play an important role in their biosynthesis, as production was higher in the whole plant than in the root-rhizome cultures.