Growth promoting effects of endophytic fungus Piriformospora indica in small cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum Maton)

Piriformospora indica, an endophytic fungus of Sebacinales, colonizes the roots of a wide range of host plants and provides various benefits to the plants. Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum Maton) is an economically valuable spice crop of the tropics. In this work, we describe differentially expressed transcripts responding to P. indica root colonization in small cardamom for elucidation of molecular basis of growth and development. During the study, a wild genotype of cardamom was propagated under in vitro conditions using full strength Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with 1 mg l⁻¹ BAP (for shoot induction) and basal MS liquid medium (for root induction). Cardamom plantlets were co-cultivated with P. indica. Microscopic observation confirmed the presence of P. indica inside the roots of cardamom plantlets. Growth parameters of control and P. indica colonized plantlets were observed for three months at an interval of 15 days. P. indica colonization resulted in a significant increase in the morpho-physiological traits of the host plant. The growth enhancement was visible after 15 days of co-culture. There was a significant increase (p < 0.05) in the number and length of leaves, height of the plant and chlorophyll content in P. indica colonized plants compared to non-colonized control plant. In addition to this, the expression levels of auxin, nitrate reductase, vegetative storage protein and phosphate transporter genes were upregulated by 3.45, 3.26, 1.62 and 1.19 times respectively by the co-cultivation of P. indica in cardamom plantlets.

Anjana H. N., K. N. Anith, Sabu K K. 2023. Growth promoting effects of endophytic fungus Piriformospora indica in small cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum Maton). 2023. Symbiosis. DOI: 10.1007/s13199-023-00949-1

Expression profiling of stress responsive genes in cell suspension of Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton under abiotic stress

Cardamom is an economically important spice, valued for its multiple utility from culinary to medical purposes. The plant is highly susceptible to both abiotic and biotic stresses. Despite the fact that several studies focusing on stress in cardamom have been conducted; a molecular analysis at the cellular level has not been reported. This study highlights the molecular response of homogenous population of cardamom cell suspension following the temperature and drought stresses for a short period of time (20 mins). Temperature stress at 30, 35, and 40°C caused a significant increase in the transient expression of genes, sHSP 17.8 and sHSP 17.9, which are molecular chaperones involved in protein folding coping with the heat stress response of plants. Drought stress with various concentrations of PEG 6000 has demonstrated only a little increase in the expression of transcription factors, WRKY 35 and WRKY 71. The study implies that sHSP 17.8 and sHSP 17.9 play a crucial role during heat stress, which is a major limiting factor for the cultivation of cardamom in lower altitudes where atmospheric temperature is usually high. But WRKY 35 and WRKY 71 genes are found not to have a high impact at the cellular level in response to drought stress in cardamom when it is exposed to a brief duration of drought. Understanding the molecular mechanism underlying abiotic stress response in cardamom will aid in developing elite varieties adaptable to lower altitudes and to cope with the frequent climatic variations.

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Soumya S. Dharan and K.K. Sabu. Expression profiling of stress responsive genes in cell suspension of Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton under abiotic stress. Journal of Plantation Crops 2023, 51(1): 23-30. https://doi.org/10.25081/jpc.2023.v51.i1.8188

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Phytochemical Profiling and Biological Effects of Glycyrrhiza glabra L.

Glycyrrhiza glabra L. commonly known as licorice belonging to the family Leguminosae is an ayurvedic medicinal plant having substantial pharmacological properties such as anti-inflammatory and anticancer effects. Analysed ethnopharmacological studies show phytochemical and biological activities of the plant extract and serve as a resource for studying anti- endometriosis. According to WHO, 176 million women in the world are affected with endometriosis condition and up to 30-50% of women may experience infertility. Our study aims to evaluate in vitro activity of ethanolic extract of Glycyrrhiza glabra in different cell lines, DPPH assay and HPLC studies in order to propose it to be an effective remedy in endometriosis treatment. In vitro cytotoxic assessment of the extract was determined in estrogenic (MCF 7), non-estrogenic (MDAMB 231) and endometrial cancer cell lines (Ishikawa) along with its safety assessment in normal cell lines (L929). The extract of G. glabra exhibited DPPH radical scavenging activity with 77.09% inhibition in 100 μg concentration. Cytotoxic activity of extract in MCF 7, MDAMB 231, endometrial cancer cells- Ishikawa and significant cell viability in normal L929 cell line shows promising effect of the extract and suggests it as a possible therapeutic adjuvant for treating endometriosis.

Reshmi Nair R J, Lakshmi S, Suja K P and K K Sabu. 2023. Phytochemical Profiling and Biological Effects of Glycyrrhiza glabra. Research Journal of Biotechnology 18(5): 1-7. Published on 13 April 2023. https://doi.org/10.25303/1805rjbt01007

Unraveling microRNA mediated gene regulation in Centella asiatica (L.) Urb. by high-throughput sequencing based small-RNA profiling

Centella asiatica is a widely spread herb mostly found in the tropics having extensive medicinal values. Here, we report for the first time, transcriptome-wide characterization of miRNA profile from the leaves of C. asiatica using high-throughput Illumina sequencing. We identified 227 conserved and 109 putative novel miRNAs. Computational screening revealed potential mRNA targets for both the conserved and novel miRNAs encoding diverse transcription factors and enzymes involved in plant development, disease resistance, metabolic and signaling pathways. Gene ontology annotation and KEGG analysis revealed the miRNA targets to be involved in a wide range of metabolomic and regulatory pathways. The differential expression of the miRNA encoding genes in diverse tissues was determined by real-time PCR analysis. We also found that gene expression levels of miR156, 159 and 1171 was reduced in salicylic acid treated axenic shoot cultures of C. asiatica compared to its control. Furthermore, RLM-RACE experiments mapped miRNA-mediated cleavage at two of the mRNA targets. The present study represents the large-scale identification of microRNAs from C. asiatica and contributes to the base for the up-coming studies on miRNA-mediated gene regulation of plant secondary metabolite pathways in particular Gouri Priya Ranjith, Jisha Satheesan, K K Sabu. 2023. Unraveling microRNA mediated gene regulation in Centella asiatica (L.) Urb. by high-throughput sequencing based small-RNA profiling. Tropical Plant Biology, Springer. https://10.1007/s12042-023-09342-0