The composition of lignans extracted from Podophyllum hexandrum rhizomes was studied by sequential extraction with supercritical CO2, ethyl acetate modified CO2 and methanol modified CO2. The results were compared with the extracts obtained by Accelerated Solvent Extraction (ASE) and soxhlet's methods. The lignan contents comprised of Podophyllotoxin, deoxypodophyllotoxin, 4′-demethylpodophyllotoxin, Picropodophyllotoxin, Isopicropodophyllotoxin, Podophllotoxin-β-D-glucopyranoside, and 4′-demethylpodophyllotoxin β-D-glucopyranoside in the extracts of Podophyllum hexandrum rhizomes obtained by different methods was studied. There was a variation in the concentration of lignan in the extracts obtained by different methods of extraction. Podophyllotoxin formed the major component (36.55%) of the extract obtained by SFE and picropodophyllotoxin, isopicropodophyllotoxin, deoxypodophyllotoxin, and 4′-demethylpodophyllotoxin were present in 6.82, 1.51, 1.46, and 0.85%, respectively, whereas 4′-demethylpodophyllotoxin β-D-glucopyranoside was 1.89% in the extract obtained by ASE, which is higher than SFE extracts. Soxhlet's derived extract contains better concentration of isopicropodophyllotoxin (24.49%) than SFE. A simple, isocratic, and reliable analytical HPLC-UV (DAD) method was developed for simultaneous identification and quantification of different seven lignans in the extracts of different extraction techniques.

Chemical investigations on ethanolic extract of Argyrolobium roseum led to the isolation of Pinitol as the major constituent of the plant. Pinitol is chemically known as 3-O-methyl-D-Chiro-inositol and has been found to possess anti-diabetic activity. It helps in the regeneration of beta cells, present in the areas of the pancreas called as islets – of Langerhans. These cells make and release insulin, a hormone which controls the level of glucose in the blood. Pinitol was isolated from the ethanolic extract of the plant and a sensitive & reliable method, based on Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (PNMR), was developed and used as an analytical tool for quantification and identification of this relatively UV insensitive compound in the alcoholic extract of the plant. The method involves the use of pyrazinamide (an anti-tuberculosis drug), as a reference. Validation of the method was carried out by preparing a known concentration of an artificial mixture of pinitol and pyrazinamide. The recovery of pinitol in the mixture was in the range of 98.5–101.3%. Pinitol in pure form was isolated from the ethanolic extract of A. roseum by repeated column chromatography over silica gel followed by crystallization in methanol. Pinitol isolated from the plant was identified on the basis of 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR, DEPT (45°, 90° and 135°) experiments and mass spectral data. The method was successfully applied for the quantitation of pinitol in various extracts of the said plant.

We synthesized 36 chalcone-like (E)-3-(substitutedphenyl)-1-hetrylprop-2-en-1-ones by condensing 2-acetylfuran/2-acetylpyrrole with substituted benzaldehydes under basic conditions. Of the 36 molecules synthesized, 10 are new to the literature. Bio-evaluation studies of these molecules revealed that compounds 5, 9, 15, 25, and 29 were potent NorA efflux pump inhibitors against Staphylococcus aureus by reducing MIC of ciprofloxacin fourfold, while compounds 11, 21, 25, and 26 showed promising anticancer activity in all four tested cancer cell lines (HL-60, MOLT-4, PC-3, and HeLa). Compound 25 emerged as a very good potentiator of ciprofloxacin against multidrug resistant S. aureus and also showed promising anticancer activity. The present communication describes syntheses, bio-evaluation, and structure-related activity of the (E)-3-(substitutedphenyl)-1-hetrylprop-2-en-1-ones.

A specific and sensitive UPLC-qTOF-MS/MS method has been developed for the simultaneous determination of curcuminoids. These Curcuminoids comprises of curcumin, a principal curcuminoid and other two namely, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin obtained from rhizomes of Curcuma longa an ancient Indian curry spice turmeric, family (Zingiberaceae).

Callus tissues derived from leaf segments of Onosma echioides var hispidum on three basal media viz. Murashige & Skoog (MS), Gamborg et al (B 5 ) and White’s containing 3% sucrose produce napthaquinone pigments in presence of and NAA. However, β-β,dimethylacrylshikonin synthesis was triggered in dark in undifferentiated parenchyma cells on B 5 agar medium containing 1 x10 −5 M Kn and 2×10 −6 M IBA when proliferated calli after 16 weeks (4 th generation) were transferred to it and incubated at 23 ± 1 °C. The pigment biosynthesis increased linearly from 4 th to 6 th week after a lag of first 3 weeks. Callus grew exponentially after a lag of 2 weeks and diminished from 6 th week onward. During 8 weeks of growth, callus grew from 0.8 to 8.2 g and the β-β, dimethylacrylshikonin showed the highest level of 25.41 μg g −1 of fresh tissue. Light microscopic examination of semi-thin sections of pigmented tissue revealed pigment accumlation between the plasma membrane and cell wall and also in the intercellular spaces. Exposure of cultures to white fluorescent light for more than 2 h resulted in complete repression of pigment bosynthesis. The investigations suggest that the regulatory mechanism for the biosynthesis and accumulation of napthaquinone pigment(s) may be similar to that of Lithospermum erythrorhizon . Pigment producing capability of callus cultures of O. echioides var hispidum can be exploited as an alternative raw source for the production of shikonin derivatives.