Bioactive Metabolites from Natural Sources (2nd Edition)

A special issue of Metabolites (ISSN 2218-1989). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Metabolism".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024 | Viewed by 3808

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Plant Physiology, Faculty of Biology, Sofia University, 1164 Sofia, Bulgaria
Interests: plant development; phenolic metabolites; phytoimmunity; plant biotech-nology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Department of Plant Physiology, Faculty of Biology, Sofia University, 1164 Sofia, Bulgaria
Interests: plant biotechnology; ex situ conservation; plant cell, tissue and organ cultures; plant secondary metabolites (triterpenoid saponins, flavonoids, phenols); programmed cell death; hypersensitive response in plants

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Issue is dedicated to studies investigating compounds derived from nature. Nature is the best source of bioactive metabolites (BAMs), and knowledge about different classes of metabolites is constantly increasing. Organisms such as bacteria, algae, plants, and insects use their metabolites for their own benefit, but BAMs can often be beneficial for other organisms. BAMs are represented by primary and secondary metabolites, including amino acids, fatty acids, peptides, phytohormones, sugars, phenolics, terpenoids, and alkaloids. Synthetic molecules based on biomolecules are an additional useful source for the accelerated production of BAM-like compounds with increased efficiency. Molecular mechanisms and their regulation are of interest in terms of defining developmental, abiotic, and biotic factors that influence the level and activity of BAMs. Biotechnological approaches for increasing BAM production in an environmentally friendly fashion assist in furthering practical applications in agriculture, food quality, and human health.

This Special Issue invites you to the share latest advances, answering questions about various aspects of BAMs: What BAMs are produced in nature—different classes, evolution? What do we know about their mechanisms of action? Why they are useful for the organisms that synthesize them? How could they be useful by other organisms? How can we regulate their production in vitro and in vivo? Studies highlighting additional interesting aspects of BAM application will also be considered.

Dr. Miroslava Zhiponova
Dr. Zhenya P. Yordanova
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Metabolites is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • primary metabolites
  • secondary metabolites
  • nature-based synthetic molecules
  • molecular mechanisms
  • models
  • evolution
  • food
  • agriculture
  • health
  • in vitro biological activities
  • in vivo biological activities

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 1999 KiB  
Article
How Does In Vitro Digestion Change the Amount of Phenolics in Morus alba L. Leaf? Analysis of Preparations and Infusions
by Monika Przeor
Metabolites 2024, 14(1), 31; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo14010031 - 01 Jan 2024
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Abstract
The application of Morus alba L. in traditional oriental medicine and cuisine has resulted in numerous studies on its health-promoting effects. However, if the process is not monitored by the manufacturers, the processing of the leaves alters the obtained health-promoting properties and results [...] Read more.
The application of Morus alba L. in traditional oriental medicine and cuisine has resulted in numerous studies on its health-promoting effects. However, if the process is not monitored by the manufacturers, the processing of the leaves alters the obtained health-promoting properties and results in different health qualities in the final composition of dietary supplements. This article aims to analyze changes (using the HPLC/DAD method) in the proposed conditioned mulberry leaves in terms of key compounds (phenolic acids and flavonols) responsible for antioxidant activity after being digested in in vitro conditions. The analyzed material was leaves of white mulberry (Morus alba L.) cv. Żółwińska wielkolistna, conditioned (1–4 h) and non-conditioned. The conditioning process of mulberry proposed here, e.g., for industry production, resulted in variable transformations of polyphenols during in vitro digestion. For many polyphenols, especially those shown in the highest amounts, significant correlations were found between their content and conditioning, as well as the stage of digestion. In the case of mulberry infusions, the amounts of individual polyphenols were several times lower than in the preparations, which was due to the degree of dilution. Their amounts tended to decrease in the course of digestion. Taking this into account, it seems justified to continue research on the in vivo bioavailability of bioactive components from conditioned Morus alba L. leaves. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioactive Metabolites from Natural Sources (2nd Edition))
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Review

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13 pages, 829 KiB  
Review
Resurrection Plants—A Valuable Source of Natural Bioactive Compounds: From Word-of-Mouth to Scientifically Proven Sustainable Use
by Dimitar Djilianov, Daniela Moyankova, Petko Mladenov, Tanya Topouzova-Hristova, Aneliya Kostadinova, Galya Staneva, Diana Zasheva, Strahil Berkov and Lyudmila Simova-Stoilova
Metabolites 2024, 14(2), 113; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo14020113 - 07 Feb 2024
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Abstract
Resurrection plant species are a group of higher plants whose vegetative tissues are able to withstand long periods of almost full desiccation and recover quickly upon rewatering. Apart from being a model system for studying desiccation tolerance, resurrection plant species appear to be [...] Read more.
Resurrection plant species are a group of higher plants whose vegetative tissues are able to withstand long periods of almost full desiccation and recover quickly upon rewatering. Apart from being a model system for studying desiccation tolerance, resurrection plant species appear to be a valuable source of metabolites, with various areas of application. A significant number of papers have been published in recent years with respect to the extraction and application of bioactive compounds from higher resurrection plant species in various test systems. Promising results have been obtained with respect to antioxidative and antiaging effects in various test systems, particularly regarding valuable anticancer effects in human cell lines. Here, we review the latest advances in the field and propose potential mechanisms of action of myconoside—a predominant secondary compound in the European members of the Gesneriaceae family. In addition, we shed light on the possibilities for the sustainable use of natural products derived from resurrection plants. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioactive Metabolites from Natural Sources (2nd Edition))
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Other

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14 pages, 1722 KiB  
Protocol
Exploring the Significance, Extraction, and Characterization of Plant-Derived Secondary Metabolites in Complex Mixtures
by Ruchi Barthwal and Rohit Mahar
Metabolites 2024, 14(2), 119; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo14020119 - 11 Feb 2024
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Abstract
Secondary metabolites are essential components for the survival of plants. Secondary metabolites in complex mixtures from plants have been adopted and documented by different traditional medicinal systems worldwide for the treatment of various human diseases. The extraction strategies are the key components for [...] Read more.
Secondary metabolites are essential components for the survival of plants. Secondary metabolites in complex mixtures from plants have been adopted and documented by different traditional medicinal systems worldwide for the treatment of various human diseases. The extraction strategies are the key components for therapeutic development from natural sources. Polarity-dependent solvent-selective extraction, acidic and basic solution-based extraction, and microwave- and ultrasound-assisted extraction are some of the most important strategies for the extraction of natural products from plants. The method needs to be optimized to isolate a specific class of compounds. Therefore, to establish the mechanism of action, the characterization of the secondary metabolites, in a mixture or in their pure forms, is equally important. LC-MS, GC-MS, and extensive NMR spectroscopic strategies are established techniques for the profiling of metabolites in crude extracts. Various protocols for the extraction and characterization of a wide range of classes of compounds have been developed by various research groups and are described in this review. Additionally, the possible means of characterizing the compounds in the mixture and their uniqueness are also discussed. Hyphenated techniques are crucial for profiling because of their ability to analyze a vast range of compounds. In contrast, inherent chemical shifts make NMR an indispensable tool for structure elucidation in complex mixtures. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bioactive Metabolites from Natural Sources (2nd Edition))
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