Agharkar Research Institute

Penicilliopsis clavariiformis Solms. is a rare filamentous fungus previously reported from various woody substrates and decaying plant matter. In this study, we report the first time host association of P. clavariiformis on seeds of Diospyros ferrea (Willd.) Bakh., collected from the Manoli Reserve Forest in the Northern Western Ghats, India. The fungus was isolated using standard seed mycobiota screening methods and identified based on both morphological features such as distinctive clavarioid ascomata, septate conidiophores, and cyanophilic conidia and molecular characterization of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA region. The ITS sequence showed > 99% similarity with authenticated P. clavariiformis sequences in GenBank. This is the first confirmed report of P. clavariiformis from seeds of Diospyros ferrea, expanding its known ecological and substrate range. The finding highlights the underexplored fungal diversity associated with forest seeds and emphasizes the need for targeted mycological surveys in biodiversity hotspots like the Western Ghats. Our results contribute to the growing knowledge of seed-associated fungi and provide a baseline for future ecological and pathological investigations involving this species.

A comprehensive evaluation of 248 MAGIC population-derived wheat lines and their eight founder lines revealed significant genetic variation and adaptive diversity for key physiological traits- NDVI_1–3, SPAD chlorophyll content, canopy temperature (CT), and chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm UP and LW) under timely sown (TSIR) and late-sown (LSIR) irrigated conditions across multiple locations. Genotypes under TSIR exhibited higher canopy greenness, chlorophyll stability, and photosynthetic efficiency, whereas LSIR induced elevated CT and reduced SPAD, indicating genotypic differences in heat tolerance. Correlation and PCA analyses showed strong interrelationships among traits, with NDVI positively correlated with SPAD and Fv/Fm (r = 0.52-0.86) and negatively with CT (r = −0.13 to −0.60). PCA identified two principal adaptive axes- vigour/biomass (NDVI-CT) and pigment/stress (SPAD-Fv/Fm), explaining 65–82% of total variation. GWAS detected 54 significant marker-trait associations, predominantly on chromosome 5A, with major loci AX-95210025, AX-94980357, and AX-94448771 influencing NDVI, SPAD chlorophyll content, CT, and Fv/Fm (UP and LW). Favorable alleles enhanced canopy vigour and chlorophyll content while reducing CT, signifying integrated genetic control of photosynthetic resilience and thermal regulation. In-silico and gene regulatory network (GRN) analyses identified key heat-responsive candidate genes including TraesCS5A02G078000 (Heat shock cognate 70 kDa protein), TraesCS5A02G077900 (DnaJ co-chaperone), TraesCS1A02G098800 (DUF4408 domain protein), TraesCS7A02G143900 (Hydroxyproline O-arabinosyltransferase-like protein), and TraesCS7B02G083500 (Small heat shock protein) that regulate chlorophyll maintenance, PSII repair, and canopy cooling under stress. Collectively, this study elucidates the genetic and physiological basis of heat tolerance in the MAGIC population and identifies robust targets for marker-assisted selection and genomic improvement of thermotolerant wheat.

The growing limitations of conventional probiotics have driven interest in next-generation probiotics (NGPs), with Clostridium butyricum emerging as a promising candidate due to its spore-forming nature, metabolic adaptability, and therapeutic potential. This study presents a comprehensive characterization of C. butyricum MCC0233, focusing on its probiotic functionality, genomic attributes, and safety profile. In vitro assays revealed significant resilience of MCC0233 to gastrointestinal stress, retaining 20% viability after 2h in simulated gastric fluid and 87.9% after 6h in simulated intestinal fluid. MCC0233 demonstrated strong adhesion to intestinal epithelial cells, 143 ± 4 bacterial cells per 100 HT-29 cells and 241 ± 1 bacterial cells per 100 Caco-2 cells. The strain exhibited high antioxidant activity (82.91%) and significant cholesterol assimilation (67.02%), which is the first report of this property in C. butyricum. It also showed broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity and effective co-aggregation with various enteric pathogens. The whole-genome sequencing revealed a 4.62 Mbp genome with 4,151 protein-coding genes and a GC content of 28.8%. Functional annotation identified genes linked to probiotic traits, including those involved in butyrate production, biosynthesis of branched-chain and aromatic amino acids, and folate (vitamin B9) synthesis. Comparative genomics highlighted strain-specific features contributing to its functional potential. Importantly, both in vitro and in silico safety assessments confirmed the absence of transferable antimicrobial resistance genes, virulence factors, or plasmids. These findings establish C. butyricum MCC0233 as a robust, safe, and multifunctional next-generation probiotic candidate, with promising applications in gut health, metabolic regulation, and microbial therapeutics.

High-altitude, cold habitats such as the Gangotri region of the Western Himalayas remain underexplored for culturable microbial diversity. Here, we describe Dyadobacter aurulentus sp. nov., a novel cold-adapted species isolated from such an environment. This strain demonstrates unique ecological and metabolic traits, including growth at low temperatures and degradation of aromatic compounds like sodium benzoate. Genomic analysis revealed key cold adaptation features such as cold-shock proteins, fatty acid desaturases, nitrate assimilation pathways, and multidrug resistance genes, supporting survival in nutrient-limited, low-temperature soils. The strain's distinct chemotaxonomic profile, marked by elevated C16:0 and unique polar lipids, underscores its ecological specialization. Together, these features point to its potential utility in bioremediation and cold-environment biotechnology. This study broadens our understanding of the adaptive strategies and ecological functions of Dyadobacter spp. in extreme environments, with implications for bioprospecting cold-active enzymes and understanding resistance evolution in high-altitude microbial communities.

During a survey of foliicolous fungi in India, two interesting anamorphic hyphomycetous fungal specimens were collected from infected leaves of Calotropis spp. and Mallotus philippensis. Calotropis spp. produce fascicles of conidiophores from stromata, accompanied by secondary superficial hyphae bearing solitary conidiophores. The specimen on Mallotus philippensis resembled Mycovellosiella, characterized by secondary superficial hyphae bearing micronematous to semi-macronematous, mononematous, unbranched, and aseptate conidiophores. A polyphasic approach—including morphological, cultural, and multilocus phylogenetic analyses (LSU-Rpb2-ITS), coupled with genealogical concordance phylogenetic species recognition—identified its relationship with cercosporoid fungi within the family Mycosphaerellaceae. The analysis confirmed that these fungal specimens represent distinct lineages without known morphological or DNA sequence counterparts. Consequently, two new genera are proposed: Marcstadlera and Neoclypeosphaerella, with M. malloti comb. nov. and N. calotropidis comb. nov. as their respective type species. Additionally, Clypeosphaerella calotropidis, Clypeosphaerella quasiparkii, and Pseudocercospora malloti are recognized as new synonyms. Several genera in the Mycosphaerellaceae, including Marcstadlera and Neoclypeosphaerella, are monophyletic. The ultrastructure of the conidiogenous loci and hila differs between these two genera. In Marcstadlera, the loci are cylindrical or peg-like, truncate at the apex, while the conidial base is narrowly obconically truncate. In Neoclypeosphaerella, the loci are slightly protuberant and surrounded by a circular rim-like structure, forming a truncated apex with a centrally positioned small apical depression. The conidial base is obconically truncated and also surrounded by a circular rim-like structure.

Because of resistance and the absence of effective targetedtherapies,breast cancer, particularly the hormone receptor-positive (HR+) andtriple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) types, presents significant therapeuticproblems. One promising therapeutic approach is to target the redoxvulnerabilities of cancer cells. In this work, new epoxy-functionalizedphenanthridine–triazole conjugates (RM58, RM60, RM61, and RM75)are evaluated as dual redox modulators in models of breast cancer.Using molecular docking and molecular dynamics simulations (100 ns)against a panel of 14 potential protein targets linked to breast cancer,these compounds are shown to have high affinity and stable bindingto important redox-regulatory proteins, such as glutathione S-transferaseand thioredoxin. Dose-dependent cytotoxicity was demonstrated in vitroin MCF-7 (HR+) and MDA-MB-231 (TNBC) cell lines, with RM75 and RM60showing the strongest effects. According to mechanistic research,these substances cause oxidative stress overload by causing a considerablebuildup of intracellular reactive oxygen species and the depletionof glutathione and thioredoxin. Specifically in the TNBC model, thisredox imbalance led to robust caspase-3/7-mediated apoptosis, lossof membrane potential, and mitochondrial dysfunction. Untargeted LC–MS/MSmetabolomic profiling revealed clear metabolic reprogramming, withsignificant changes found in the pathways. These findings show thata sequence of metabolic alterations and cellular apoptosis is inducedby the dual disruption of antioxidant defenses. These integrativeresults suggest that antioxidant disruption by epoxy–phenanthridineconjugates leads to metabolic collapse and apoptosis, highlightingRM75 as a promising redox-active lead. However, in vivo efficacy,pharmacokinetics, and safety studies are needed to advance this scaffoldtoward clinical evaluation.

This article reviews the possibility of new thiazolidinone derivatives as Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) selective inhibitors in terms of the molecular docking and Structure-Activity Relationship (SAR) analysis. Ten derivatives (TZD-1 to TZD-10) were selected, designed, modeled, and docked in COX-2 active site (PDB ID: 5IKR) with the help of AutoDock Vina and PyRx. The binding affinities, forms of interactions, as well as amino acids involved were documented in order to evaluate inhibitory potentials. Compounds with the best activity (TZD-4, TZD-2 and TZD-10) had a large interaction with catalytically essential residues (Ser530, Tyr355 and Arg120) with the score of binding 10 kcal/mole or less. SAR analysis demonstrated the insufficient negative linear correlation between the lipophilicity (logP) and the binding score (r = -0.62, p = 0.047), which implies that moderately lipophilic derivates bind the COX- Molecular weight on the other hand was weakly significantly correlated with binding affinity. The results give insight of the structural and physicochemical properties that play a part in COX-2 inhibition and rational construction of thiazolidinone-bearing anti-inflammatory agents.