Presently, the use of protective food additives such as benzoic acid and sodium nitrate is quite common. However, it was found that these additives, which initially appeared to be harmless, led to the emergence of a number of health problems. Cancer and diseases and deaths with no apparent causes are among the leading concerns. Therefore, the studies which can reveal the genotoxic potential of food preservatives and their negative effects on human health are very important in terms of ensuring food safety. Many model organisms are used to show these negative effects. Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) is an important model organism, which is frequently used in determining the negative effects and toxic doses of substances that are toxic to or may have toxic effects on humans. In the present study, the aim was to determine the effects of different doses of benzoic acid and sodium nitrate, which are among the protective food additives known to cause certain diseases in humans, on lifespan, fertility and physical growth of C. elegans. Within the scope of the study; instead of the standard nutrient, C. elegans was supplemented with 5 different doses (0.006 g, 0.01 g, 0.02 g, 0.05 g, 0.1 g/10 mL) of benzoic acid and consequently, sodium nitrate, and lifespan, fertility and physical growth changes were examined in C. elegans which were exposed to different doses of benzoic acid and sodium nitrate. The findings were evaluated by reaching to comparisons with the control groups. At the end of the study, it has been determined that 0.01 g, 0.02 g, 0.05 g, 0.1 g/10 mL doses of benzoic acid, and all the administered doses of sodium nitrate (0.006 g, 0.01 g, 0.02 g, 0.05 g, 0.1 g/10 mL) have detrimental effects on lifespan, fertility and physical growth in C. elegans. On the other hand, 0.006 g/10 mL dose of benzoic acid did not cause any significant difference in lifespan and when compared to the control group. However, at a dose of 0.006 g/10 mL of benzoic acid, physical growth and fertility was found to be less than that of control group. As a result, it was determined that benzoic acid and sodium nitrate have negative effects on lifespan, fertility and physical growth due to dose increase.

Özet Yonca (Medicago sativa L.), yüksek adaptasyon kabiliyeti ve üstün kalite özelliklerinden dolayı yaygın olarak yetiştirilmektedir. Ülkemizde de yem bitkileri içerisinde büyük oranda yonca yetiştiriciliği yapılmaktadır. İyi bir yem bitkisi üretim sistemi içerisinde, üstün özelliklere sahip yonca çeşitlerinin seçilmesi üreticiler açısından son derece önemlidir. Bu araştırma, farklı orijinli altı adet yonca çeşidinin (Costanze, Occitane, Bilensoy, Sunter, Kayseri ve Gea) Sivas ekolojik koşullarında bazı agronomik özellikler ve kalite özelliklerinin belirlenmesi amacıyla 2015-2017 yılları arasında, Sivas/Merkez ve Sivas/Çongar olmak üzere iki farklı lokasyonda yürütülmüştür. Araştırmada, yonca çeşitlerinin ana sap uzunluğu, ana sap kalınlığı, yaş ot, kuru madde verimleri, ham kül, organik madde, ham protein, ham lif, ADF ve NDF özellikleri incelenmiştir. Araştırma sonucunda, yonca çeşitlerinin, en yüksek kuru madde ve ham protein verimine ikinci yılda ulaştığı belirlenmiştir. İki yıllık ortalama verilere göre, Costanze, Occitane ve Gea yonca çeşitleri, Kayseri, Sunter ve Bilensoy çeşitlerinden önemli derecede yüksek kuru madde ve ham protein verimine sahip olurken, Bilensoy ve Sunter çeşitlerinin ise NDF oranlarının daha yüksek değerlere sahip olduğu belirlenmiştir. Araştırma bulgularına göre, Sivas ekolojik koşullarında Costanze, Occitane, Bilensoy ve Gea çeşitlerinin yetiştirilmesi ile daha fazla ve kaliteli ot verimi elde edileceği sonucuna varılmıştır.

The aim of the present study is to conduct a general content evaluation of water extract obtained from the seeds of Gundellia tournefortii by GC-MS (Gas chromatography–Mass spectrometry) analysis, to determine its macro and micro element concentrations, antimicrobial activity and total antioxidant level (TAS), total oxidant level (TOS), oxidative stress index (OSI) values, and to reveal its anti-carcinogenic properties on various cell lines. Rel Assay Diagnostics kits were used to determine TAS, TOS and OSI values. By determining the minimum inhibition concentration (MIC) value by Microdilution Broth method, antimicrobial activity analyses were performed on microorganisms which are Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 29213), Enterococcus faecalis (ATCC 29212), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853), Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Bacillus cereus (ATCC11778), Klebsiella pneumonia (ATCC 13883), Candida albicans (ATCC 10231) and Candida tropicalis (DSM11953), respectively. By MTT method, cytotoxic activity was determined on normal mouse fibroblast cell line, HUVEC and 3 different human cancer cell lines. As a result, it was determined that Gundelia tournefortii plant extract has a rather weak antimicrobial activity except for on S. aureus strain, a good antioxidant activity, and a cytotoxic activity in some cells. As for the oxidative stress index of the plant, it was found to be low. In addition, in terms of macro and micro nutrient content of the plant Gundellia tournefortii has concentrations of 3.64% N, 0.11% P, 3.78% K, 0.22% Ca, 0.57% Mg, 268.4 mg/kg Fe, 16.7 mg/kg Zn, 19.4 mg/kg Mn and 8.3 mg/kg Cu.

Evelik plant (Rumex crispus L.), which is also known as Labada plant, is a perennial herbaceous plant specie belonging to Polygonaceae family that are mostly a meter in length. Rumex species have a distribution in the Northern hemisphere and have more than 100 species. In Turkey, 24 Rumex species are present. Evelik leaves are used frequently in the Anatolia for the preparation of stuffed wraps. Additionally, it is one of the oldest plants known to be used for herbal remedies. It is believed that this plant is especially potent in gastrointestinal illnesses. Evelik leaves, but especially the roots are used for drugs in medicine. In the present study, determination of macro and micro nutritional elements was aimed in Evelik leaves sampled from naturally grown plants in Sivas province. Phosphor (P) was determined calorimetrically at 882 nm by using spectrophotometer. Potassium (K), Iron (Fe), Manganese (Mn), Zinc (Zn), and Copper (Cu) were determined by using Atomic absorbtion spectrometry. Nitrogen (N) was determined by using Kjeldahl distillation method. Results revealed that the element concentrations determined in Evelik leaves were N (2.59 %); P (0.360 %); K (6.85 %); Mg (0.66 %); Ca (0.48 %); Fe (225.8 mg/kg); Zn (27.5 mg/kg); Mn (30.4 mg/kg); Cu (8.9 mg/kg). In conclusion, it was revealed that the Evelik leaves are sufficient for both macro and micro nutritional elements and have a higher K concentration.

In this study, it was aimed to determine the chemical components in the ethanol extract of the turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) plant rhizomes sold as powder in spice-sellers and to determine its antioxidant activity properties. For this purpose, turmeric rhizomes powder was extracted by maceration method using ethanol solvent and its chemical content was determined by Gas chromatography-Mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. After chemical components were determinate for the turmeric ethanol extract, the inhibitory activities of these chemicals against the Crystal structure of Human peroxiredoxin 5 (HP5) (PDB ID: 1HD2) and Bovine Xanthine Oxidase (BXO) (PDB ID: 3NRZ) downloaded from the Protein Data Bank site were compared.