Biochemistry Research International
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Acceptance rate8%
Submission to final decision87 days
Acceptance to publication9 days
CiteScore4.000
Journal Citation Indicator0.580
Impact Factor3.0

Effects of Different Solvents on the Total Phenol Content, Total Flavonoid Content, Antioxidant, and Antifungal Activities of Micromeria graeca L. from Middle Atlas of Morocco

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Biochemistry Research International publishes original research articles as well as review articles covering all areas of biological chemistry.

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Chief Editor, Professor Andrei Surguchov, is based at the University of Kansas Medical Center, USA. His current research focuses on the structure-function relationship of proteins involved in neurodegeneration and ocular diseases.

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Research Article

Chemical Constituents and Antimicrobial and Antioxidant Activities of Essential Oil from Dried Seeds of Xylopia aethiopica

The study aimed to investigate the chemical composition and antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of the essential oil from dried seeds of Xylopia aethiopica. The essential oil was obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC/FID and GC/MS. The essential oil yield was 1.35%. Forty-nine compounds were identified in the essential oil with 1,8-cineole (16.3%), β-pinene (14.8%), trans-pinocarveol (9.1%), myrtenol (8.3%), α-pinene (5.9%), and terpinen-4-ol (5.6%) as major components. The antimicrobial activity of this essential oil was studied using disk diffusion and broth microdilution methods on four bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Enterococcus faecalis, Escherichia coli, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and one fungus (Candida albicans). The essential oil exhibited excellent activity against S. aureus, E. faecalis, and C. albicans and moderate activity against E. coli. Among all strains tested, C. albicans showed the best sensitivity with a MIC of 50 mg/mL. The antioxidant activity was examined using a DPPH-free radical scavenging assay. The essential oil of X. aethiopica showed low antioxidant activity (IC50 = 784.604 ± 0.320 mg/mL) compared to that of ascorbic acid and the reference compound (IC50 = 0.163 ± 0.003 mg/mL). The results indicate that consumption of X. aethiopica seeds can reduce the virulence of food-borne pathogens and their resistance to antibiotics.

Research Article

Aqueous Extract of Leaves and Flowers of Acmella caulirhiza Reduces the Proliferation of Cancer Cells by Underexpressing Some Genes and Activating Caspase-3

The increasing prevalence of cancers and the multiple side effects of cancer treatments have led researchers to constantly search for plants containing bioactive compounds with cell death properties. This work aimed at evaluating the antiproliferative effect of an Acmella caulirhiza extract. After evaluation of the in vitro antioxidant potential of the three extracts of Acmella caulirhiza (aqueous (AE-Ac), hydroethanolic (HEE-Ac), and ethanolic (EE-Ac)) through the scavenging of DPPH and NO radicals, the extract with the best antioxidant activity was selected for bioactive compound assessment and antiproliferative tests. Subsequently, the cytotoxic activity was evaluated on the viability of breast (MCF-7), brain (CT2A, SB-28, and GL-261), colon (MC-38), and skin (YUMM 1.7 and B16-F1) cancer lines using the MTT method. Then, the line where the extract was the most active was selected to evaluate the expression of certain genes involved in cancerogenesis by RT-PCR and the expression of cleaved caspase-3 involved in cell death mechanism by western blot. The AE-Ac showed the best scavenging activity with IC50s of 0.52 and 0.02 for DPPH and NO, respectively. This AE-Ac was found to contain alkaloids, flavonoids, and tannins and was more active on YUMM 1.7 cells (IC50 = 149.42 and 31.99 μg/mL for 24 and 48 h, respectively). Results also showed that AE-Ac downregulated the expression of inflammation (IL-1b and IL-6 ), growth factors (PDGF , IGF , E2F1, and E2F2), and antiapoptotic protein genes (Bcl-2 and Bcl-6 ). The cleaved caspase-3 was positively modulated by the AE-Ac inducing thus cell death by apoptosis. AE-Ac showed inhibitory effects on the expression of genes involved in cancer progression making it a potential health intervention agent that can be exploited in cancer therapy protocols.

Review Article

A Comprehensive Exploration of Bioluminescence Systems, Mechanisms, and Advanced Assays for Versatile Applications

Bioluminescence has been a fascinating natural phenomenon of light emission from living creatures. It happens when the enzyme luciferase facilitates the oxidation of luciferin, resulting in the creation of an excited-state species that emits light. Although there are many bioluminescent systems, few have been identified. D-luciferin-dependent systems, coelenterazine-dependent systems, Cypridina luciferin-based systems, tetrapyrrole-based luciferins, bacterial bioluminescent systems, and fungal bioluminescent systems are natural bioluminescent systems. Since different bioluminescence systems, such as various combinations of luciferin-luciferase pair reactions, have different light emission wavelengths, they benefit industrial applications such as drug discovery, protein-protein interactions, in vivo imaging in small animals, and controlling neurons. Due to the expression of luciferase and easy permeation of luciferin into most cells and tissues, bioluminescence assays are applied nowadays with modern technologies in most cell and tissue types. It is a versatile technique in a variety of biomedical research. Furthermore, there are some investigated blue-sky research projects, such as bioluminescent plants and lamps. This review article is mainly based on the theory of diverse bioluminescence systems and their past, present, and future applications.

Research Article

Mass Spectrometry of Putrescine, Spermidine, and Spermine Covalently Attached to Francisella tularensis Universal Stress Protein and Bovine Albumin

Bacterial and mammalian cells are rich in putrescine, spermidine, and spermine. Polyamines are required for optimum fitness, but the biological function of these small aliphatic compounds has only been partially revealed. Known functions of polyamines include interaction with nucleic acids that alters gene expression and with proteins that modulate activity. Although polyamines can be incorporated into proteins, very few naturally occurring polyaminated proteins have been identified, which is due in part to the difficulty in detecting these adducts. In the current study, bovine albumin and the recombinant universal stress protein from Francisella tularensis were used as models for mass spectrometry analysis of polyaminated proteins. The proteins were covalently bound to putrescine, spermidine, or spermine by the action of carbodiimide or microbial transglutaminase. Tryptic peptides, subjected to liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), were identified using Protein Prospector software. We describe the search parameters for identifying polyaminated peptides and show MS/MS spectra for adducts with putrescine, spermidine, and spermine. Manual evaluation led us to recognize signature ions for polyamine adducts on aspartate, glutamate, and glutamine, as well as neutral loss from putrescine, spermidine, and spermine during the fragmentation process. Mechanisms for the formation of signature ions and neutral loss are presented. Manual evaluation identified a false-positive adduct that had formed during trypsinolysis and resulted in peptide sequence rearrangement. Another false positive initially appeared to be a 71 kDa putrescine adduct on a cysteine residue. However, it was an acrylamide adduct on cysteine for a sample extracted from a polyacrylamide gel. The information presented in this report provides guidance and serves as a model for identifying naturally occurring polyaminated proteins.

Research Article

Allium ampeloprasum var. Porrum (Alliaceae) Improves Metabolic and Reproductive Disorders Associated with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome in Wistar Rats

To provide scientific evidence of the efficacy of Allium ampeloprasum against female infertility, the effects of the aqueous extract of the said plant (AE) were evaluated in rats with letrozole-induced polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). AE was administered orally to PCOS rats at doses of 192, 384, and 768 mg/kg. The positive control was co-treated with clomiphene citrate (1 mg/kg) and metformin (200 mg/kg). Normal and negative controls received distilled water. The vaginal contents of rats were examined daily under a microscope before (7 days) and during treatment. Treatments were administered orally for 15 days, and then, 6 rats from each group were sacrificed for biochemical and histological analyses. The remaining rats were mated with males of proven fertility for 5 days. The daily examination of vaginal smears allowed the evaluation of fertility index. After parturition, additional fertility parameters were determined. Results showed that in PCOS rats, AE decreased body weight (), abdominal fat weight (), serum levels of LH (), testosterone (), total cholesterol (), and LDL cholesterol (). HDL cholesterol increased and atherogenic indices decreased (). The number of Graafian follicles and corpora lutea increased, while cystic () and atretic () follicles decreased. AE also decreased oxidative stress in the ovaries, restored the estrous cycle, induced uterine epithelial cell hypertrophy, and improved fertility. These effects were attributed to phenols, flavonoids, terpenoids, and anthocyanins present in AE. The overall results justify the traditional use of A. ampeloprasum against female infertility and suggest its potential use as a dietary supplement for PCOS patients.

Research Article

Cronassial Ameliorates Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis by Inhibiting Lipid Oxidation and Carbonyl Stress in the Brain and Spinal Cord of Rats

In recent years, the pathogenetic role of oxidative stress in damaging myelin cells, a precursor to the development of myelin-related diseases such as multiple sclerosis, has gained increasing significance. Experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) in rats serves as an experimental model for human multiple sclerosis. Our study elucidates and demonstrates the antioxidant properties of Cronassial, a drug containing gangliosides, on the processes of free radical lipid oxidation and oxidative modification of proteins in the brains and spinal cords of rats with EAE. Our research results reveal an elevated production of oxidative stress products, including peroxides, hydroperoxides, and oxidized proteins, in experimental animals. This phenomenon is one of the factors contributing to myelin damage. Administering a ganglioside-containing drug normalizes the consequences of oxidative stress and inhibits the formation of reactive oxygen species. Consequently, the data obtained highlight the neuroprotective and antioxidant effects of Cronassial when administered to animals with autoimmune encephalomyelitis.

Biochemistry Research International
 Journal metrics
See full report
Acceptance rate8%
Submission to final decision87 days
Acceptance to publication9 days
CiteScore4.000
Journal Citation Indicator0.580
Impact Factor3.0
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