The Effects of Plant Growth Regulators, Carbohydrate Substrates and Photoperiod on Shoot, Root and Callus Induction from Rhizome Shoot Bud Explants of 'Bentong' Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe)

2026-03-08T05:54:18+00:00

Zingiber officinale Roscoe from Bentong, also known as the ‘Bentong’ ginger, is a premium Malaysian-grown ginger recognised for its distinctive aroma, strong pungency, and elevated levels of 6-gingerol and 6-shogaol. In vitro platforms such as callus and cell suspension cultures represent a promising approach for the production of novel secondary metabolites from this valuable crop. This study aims to assess the effects of plant growth regulators, carbohydrate substrates and photoperiod in the induction of friable callus from rhizome bud explants of Z. officinale Roscoe from Bentong for subsequent studies on the establishment of cell suspension cultures. Explants were subjected to surface sterilisation and cultured in treatments of 2,4-D and kinetin, different carbohydrate substrates and photoperiods. Results in this study indicated that treatment with 2.5 mg/L 2,4-D resulted in 93.33% callus induction and 0.257 ± 0.06 g fresh weight, whereas treatment with 2.0 mg/L kinetin resulted in 85.71% callus formation, with 0.106 ± 0.02 g callus fresh weight. Both treatments of 2,4-D and kinetin produced yellowish white friable callus. The concentration of 30 g/L sucrose was considered the optimal carbohydrate level for callus induction in rhizome bud explants of ‘Bentong’ ginger. Additionally, explants cultured under continuous dark conditions achieved the highest percentage of callus induction (70.0%) with the highest callus fresh weight (0.270 ± 0.07 g). This study successfully induced friable callus from rhizome bud explants of ‘Bentong’ ginger (Z. officinale Roscoe), providing a suitable foundation for subsequent callus and cell suspension culture studies aimed at producing valuable secondary metabolites from this ginger cultivar.

Anti-HHV-1 Mechanism and Pharmacokinetic Profile of Bioactive Compounds from Phaleria macrocarpa (Scheff.) Boerl Fruit

2026-05-18T23:20:10+00:00

This study reports on Phaleria macrocarpa fruit protein aqueous extract (PMFPAE) compounds, the mechanistic anti-human herpes virus type-1 (HHV-1) insights, and pharmacokinetic profiles. The mechanistic insight of PMFPAE treatment on the virus UL27 gene expression that encodes the viral attachment glycoprotein, gB, was determined to be downregulated at all replication phases, especially at 8 hr post-treatment, concurring with the late replication phase. Seven main water-soluble compounds in PMFPAE were identified via liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). These include organic acids (D-gluconic acid), xanthones (mangiferin, homomangiferin), and flavonoids (quercetin, myricetin 5-methyl ether, oroxylin A, and apigenin 7-glucuronide-4′-(6′‘-malonylglucoside)). All the compounds have drug-likeness properties according to Lipinski’s Rule of Five except for apigenin 7-glucuronide-4′-(6′‘-malonylglucoside). Except for quercetin and oroxylin A, the compounds have low gastrointestinal absorption, indicating low possibility for oral use. ProTox-II predicted D-Gluconic acid as the least toxic, and quercetin has the highest toxicity. CarcinoPredEL indicated none of the compounds to be carcinogenic. In molecular docking studies, two compounds, homomangiferin and apigenin 7-glucuronide-4’-(6′‘ malonylglucoside), showed strong binding affinity towards virus glycoprotein gB. Five compounds have strong binding towards the virus glycoprotein gD, including mangiferin, myricetin 5-methyl ether, homomangiferin, apigenin 7-glucuronide-4’-(6′‘ malonylglucoside), and quercetin. Homomangiferin can bind to both virus attachment glycoproteins gB and gD, with additional antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. Strong binding affinities of mangiferin and homomangiferin to site I (subdomain IIA) of human serum albumin (HSA) suggest effective compound transport within the bloodstream, enhancing their stability and half-life. In conclusion, PMFPAE consists of multifacet drug-like bioactive compounds that inhibit viral entry by binding to gB and gD and have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. The predicted pharmacokinetic profile suggests that compounds of PMFPAE are more suitable for development as an anti-HHV topical agent due to the limited gastrointestinal absorption, toxicity of several key compounds, and limited binding to HSA.

Malaysian Applied Biology

The Effects of Plant Growth Regulators, Carbohydrate Substrates and Photoperiod on Shoot, Root and Callus Induction from Rhizome Shoot Bud Explants of 'Bentong' Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe)

Anti-HHV-1 Mechanism and Pharmacokinetic Profile of Bioactive Compounds from Phaleria macrocarpa (Scheff.) Boerl Fruit