Recent advances in polysaccharides from Ophiopogon japonicus and Liriope spicata var. prolifera.[Pubmed: 29634971]

O. japonicus and L. spicata var. prolifera are distinguished as sources of highly promising yin-tonifying medicinals, namely Ophiopogonis Radix and Liriopes Radix. Liriopes Radix is generally medicinally used as a substitute for Ophiopogonis Radix in various prescriptions due to their extremely similar nature. Ophiopogonis Radix and Liriopes Radix are both very rich in bioactive polysaccharides, especially β‑fructans. Over the past twelve years, except for work on physical entrapment and chemical modification of obtained β‑fructans, the vast majority of studies are carried out to investigate the bioactivities of O. japonicus polysaccharides (OJP) and L. spicata var. prolifera polysaccharides (LSP), mainly including anti-diabetes, immunomodulation, anti-inflammation, antioxidation, anti-obesity, cardiovascular protection, etc. In addition, OJP and LSP are considered to have the potential to regulate intestinal flora. The main purpose of this review is to provide systematically reorganized information on structural characteristics and bioactivities of OJP and LSP to support their further therapeutic potentials and sanitarian functions.

[Comparison of development condition of different Liriope spicata seedlings].[Pubmed: 29052388]

The study identified the main morphological index of the seedlings classification including seedling age,the root width and number of newborn buds and coarse roots, according to the local agricultural production techniques and assessment of Liriope spicata's growth and development condition. After carrying on K cluster analysis of the morphological, we separated the seedlings into two levels. The first level (Ⅰ)： the new talent with the root width exceeding two point five millimeters, the new born buds exceeding three, and with the coarse root exceeding one. The second level (Ⅱ)： the old talent with the root width below one millimeters, the newborn buds below two and without coarse root. The study surveyed the plants' growth index dynamics, as well as the yield and quality of the tuberous root. The experimental results suggested that the growth condition of seedling Ⅰwas better, the yield of earthnut higher, the quality of earthnut more excellent. The study lied the foundation of L. spicata's grading standards and standardized production.

Error-prone PCR mutation of Ls-EPSPS gene from Liriope spicata conferring to its enhanced glyphosate-resistance.[Pubmed: 28911747]

Liriope spicata (Thunb.) Lour has a unique LsEPSPS structure contributing to the highest-ever-recognized natural glyphosate tolerance. The transformed LsEPSPS confers increased glyphosate resistance to E. coli and A. thaliana. However, the increased glyphosate-resistance level is not high enough to be of commercial value. Therefore, LsEPSPS was subjected to error-prone PCR to screen mutant EPSPS genes capable of endowing higher resistance levels. A mutant designated as ELs-EPSPS having five mutated amino acids (37Val, 67Asn, 277Ser, 351Gly and 422Gly) was selected for its ability to confer improved resistance to glyphosate. Expression of ELs-EPSPS in recombinant E. coli BL21 (DE3) strains enhanced resistance to glyphosate in comparison to both the LsEPSPS-transformed and -untransformed controls. Furthermore, transgenic ELs-EPSPS A. thaliana was about 5.4 fold and 2-fold resistance to glyphosate compared with the wild-type and the Ls-EPSPS-transgenic plants, respectively. Therefore, the mutated ELs-EPSPS gene has potential value for has potential for the development of glyphosate-resistant crops.

Structure features and in vitro hypoglycemic activities of polysaccharides from different species of Maidong.[Pubmed: 28732860]

Structures and in vitro hypoglycemic activities of polysaccharides from different species of Maidong were studied. The primary structures of polysaccharides were elucidated on the basis of GC, GC-MS, infrared, NMR and periodate oxidation-Smith degradation. Liriope spicata polysaccharide (LSP), Ophiopogon japonicus polysaccharide (OJP) and Liriope muscari polysaccharide (LMP) were composed of β-fructose and α-glucose. The average molecular weights of LSP, OJP and LMP were 4742, 4925 and 4138Da with polydispersity indexes of 1.1, 1.2 and 1.1, respectively. The backbones of polysaccharides were formed by Fruf-(2→, →2)-Fruf-(6→, →6)-Glcp-(1→ and →1, 2)-Fruf-(6→ with a molar ratio of 5.0:18.2:1.0:5.3 (LSP), 6.8:15.8:1.0:5.8 (OJP), 8.3:12.3:1.0:3.9 (LMP), respectively. The RT-PCR and western blot analysis indicated that LSP, LMP and OJP increased the expression of PI3K, AKT, InsR, PPARγ and decreased the expression of PTP1B in mRNA level and protein level in IR HepG2 cells. Furthermore, glucose consumption was increased after treated with polysaccharides. These results revealed that LSP, OJP and LMP had potential anti-diabetic effects.