Ectopic Hormone Production from Ovarian Tumor: A Review

Although ectopic hormone-production is uncommon complication, certain tumors can produce symptoms due to the secretion of various bioactive substances accompanied by the aberrantly located tumors. Because of the potential for the ovary to act as a source of aberrant hormone secretion, in the literature, ectopic hormone production from ovarian tumor includes granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF), parathyroid hormone-related protein (PTHrP), adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), peptide-YY, gastrin and insulin. All patients may present with syndromes of hormone excess. Failure to localize the ovarian tumor preoperatively may be associated with a significantly higher risk of subsequent unnecessary ablative procedures. Better characterization of hormonal forms relatively specific for neoplasia may enhance the clinical value of ectopic hormones as tumor markers, especially in malignancies that are commonly associated with ectopic hormone production. These circumstances may recommend complete preoperative evaluation of the pelvis in female patients presenting with nonlocalizable endocrine tumors.

Preparation of oximoether derivatives of osthole and their pesticidal properties

To explore non-food bioactive products for pesticide candidates,and high value-added application of crop plants in agriculture,by using osthole(a natural coumarin isolated from a Chinese herbal medicine Cnidium monnieri)as a lead compound,a series of osthole derivatives containing oximoether groups were synthesized,and evaluated for their agricultural activities against Tetranychus cinnabarinus and Mythimna separata.The key steric configurations of eight derivatives were confirmed by X-ray crystallography.Especially compound 4r showed potential insecticidal activity(>2-fold of osthole)against M.separata,and 4g displayed good acaricidal activity against T.cinnabarinus(LC_(50)=0.566 mg/mL,>2-fold of osthole).Their structure-activity relationships were also concluded.It will pave the way for future application of osthole derivatives as coumarin-kind botanical pesticides in crop protection.

Antifouling Activities of Marine Bacteria Associated with Sponge (Sigmadocia sp.)

The present study aimed at assessing the antifouling activity of bacteria associated with marine sponges. A total of eight bacterial strains were isolated from the surface of sponge Sigmadocia sp., of them, SS02, SS05 and SS06 showed inhibitory activity against biofilm-forming bacteria. The extracts of these 3 strains considerably affected the extracellular polymeric substance producing ability and adhesion of biofilm-forming bacterial strains. In addition to disc diffusion assay, microalgal settlement assay was carried out with the extracts mixed with polyurethane wood polish and coated onto stainless steel coupons. The extract of strain SS05 showed strong microalgal settlement inhibitory activity. Strain SS05 was identified as Bacillus cereus based on its 16S rRNA gene. Metabolites of the bacterial strains associated with marine invertebrates promise to be developed into environment-friendly antifouling agents.

Mangrove derived fungal endophytes–a chemical and biological perception

The potential of mangrove-derived endophytic fungi as a promising source of diverse and structurally unprecedented bioactive natural products is unquestionable and continues to attract considerable attention.This review highlights new bioactive mangrove fungal metabolites and known compounds with hitherto unreported biological activities described during the last 10 years.The compounds are categorized according to their reported biological activities,including cytotoxic,anti-infective,in addition to a wide range of miscellaneous activities such as protein kinase,αglucosidase,acetylcholinesterase and tyrosinase inhibitory activities,as well as antiangiogenic and neovascularisation effects,radical scavenging,DNA-binding affinity,and calcium and potassium channel blocking activity.