The opioid receptor mu1 (OPRM1) mediates the action of morphine. Although genetic background plays an important role in the susceptibility toward abuse of drugs as evident from familial, adoption and twin studies, association of specific single-nucleotide polymorphisms of OPRM1 gene with narcotic addiction is to be established. Here, we demonstrate the involvement of A118G polymorphism of exon1 of human OPRM1 gene (hOPRM1), with heroin and alcohol addiction, in a population in eastern India. Statistical analysis exhibited a significant association of G allele with both heroin and alcohol addiction with a risk factor of P trend < 0.05. The functional significance of G allele in A118G single-nucleotide polymorphisms was evaluated by studying the regulation of protein kinase A (PKA), pCREB, and pERK1/2 by morphine in Neuro 2A cells, stably transfected with either wild type or A118G mutant hOPRM1. Unlike acute morphine treatment, both chronic morphine exposure and withdrawal precipitated by naloxone were differentially regulated by A118 and G118 receptor isoforms when both PKA and pERK1/2 activities were compared. Results suggest that the association of A118G polymorphism to heroin and alcohol addiction may be because of the altered regulation of PKA and pERK1/2 during opioid and alcohol exposures.

Bioinoculants are environmentally friendly, energy efficient and economically viable resources in sustainable agriculture. Knowledge of the structure and activities of microbial population in the rhizosphere of a plant is essential to formulate an effective bioinoculant. In this study, the bacterial community present in the rhizosphere of an important oilseed legume, Arachis hypogaea (L.) was described with respect to adjoining bulk soil as a baseline control using a 16S rDNA based metagenomic approach. Significantly higher abundance of Gamma-proteobacteria, a prevalence of Bacillus and the Cytophaga-Flavobacteria group of Bacteroidetes and absence of the Rhizobiaceae family of Alpha-proteobacteria were the major features observed in the matured Arachis-rhizosphere. The functional characterization of the rhizosphere-competent bacteria was performed using culture-dependent determination of phenotypes. Most bacterial isolates from the groundnut-rhizosphere exhibited multiple biochemical activities associated with plant growth and disease control. Validation of the beneficial traits in candidate bioinoculants in pot-cultures and field trials is necessary before their targeted application in the groundnut production system.

Desgalactotigonin and oleanolic acid 3-O-β-d-glucuronide were isolated from Chenopodium album and were evaluated for cytotoxic activity against various cancer cell lines.

Cancer of uterine cervix is the second most common cancer among women worldwide but it is the leading cancer in Indian women. Though high-risk human papillomavirus (HR-HPV) is the major etiological agent for the development of cervical carcinogenesis, HPV infection alone is not sufficient, but together with immunological, environmental or genetic cofactors might be responsible for cervical carcinogenesis. Therefore, we investigated the association of SNPs in TNF-LTA locus with susceptibility to cervical cancer/precancer in 400 subjects comprising 200 cases and 200 controls by PCR-RFLP followed by sequencing and TNF levels by ELISA. Significant association was established for TNFA -308 G/A (Pc =0.01) and LTA +252 A/G (Pc =0.02) polymorphisms with respect to cancer vs. controls. Interestingly, TNFA -857 C/T SNP and AGGCCT haplotype exhibited protective effect for cervical cancer (Pc =0.04), (Pc =0.02). Functional correlation was also established between TNF -308 G/A and elevated plasma levels (P= 0.03). Therefore, SNPs in TNF-LTA locus may play a critical role in cervical carcinogenesis.

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