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In the floriculture industry, postharvest senescence is one of the glaring challenges restricting the marketability of cut flowers. Hence, maintaining good quality of cut flowers and extending flower longevity are considered to be the most crucial factors in the cut flower trade. Therefore, to gain better understanding of the specific physiological and biochemical aspects of petal senescence we conducted an experiment to evaluate the efficacy of Boric acid (BA) on flower longevity in excised flowers of Digitalis purpurea L. Isolated buds were harvested at stage IV i.e, 1 day before anthesis and divided into 5 sets, with one set of buds held in distilled water (DW) designated as control. The other 4 sets were supplemented with 24h pulse treatment of different concentrations of BA viz., 50, 100, 150 and 200 µM. The application of BA at 150 µM concentration was found to be most effective in increasing flower longevity by about 4 days as compared to control. The enhanced longevity coincided with higher values of floral diameter, fresh mass, dry mass and solution uptake. Flowers with delayed senescence also retained higher soluble proteins, sugars and phenols in addition to lower bacterial density compared to control. Moreover, this ameliorated flower longevity has also been shown to be positively associated with increased activities of various antioxidant enzymes viz., superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and reduced activity of lipoxygenase (LOX). Resumo Na indústria da floricultura, a senescência pós-colheita é um dos desafios que restringe a comercialização das flores de corte. Portanto, manter a boa qualidade das flores de corte e prolongar a longevidade das flores são considerados os fatores mais importantes no comércio de flores de corte. Portanto, para obter uma melhor compreensão dos aspectos fisiológicos e bioquímicos específicos da senescência das pétalas, conduzimos experimento para avaliar a eficácia do ácido bórico (BA) na longevidade das flores em flores cortadas de Digitalis purpurea L. Botões isolados foram colhidos no estágio IV, ou seja, 1 dia antes da antese e dividido em 5 conjuntos, sendo um conjunto de gemas mantido em água destilada (DW) designado como controle. Os outros 4 conjuntos foram suplementados com tratamento de pulsing de 24 horas de diferentes concentrações de BA (50, 100, 150 e 200 µM). A aplicação de BA na concentração de 150 µM foi considerada mais eficaz no aumento da longevidade das flores em cerca de 4 dias em comparação com o controle. O aumento da longevidade coincidiu com os maiores valores de diâmetro floral, massa fresca, massa seca e absorção de solução. Flores com senescência retardada também retiveram proteínas, açúcares e fenóis mais solúveis, além de menor densidade bacteriana em comparação com o controle. Além disso, a longevidade melhorada da flor também mostrou estar positivamente associada ao aumento das atividades de várias enzimas antioxidantes, como superóxido dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) e ascorbato peroxidase (APX) e redução da atividade da lipoxigenase (LOX).

As general awareness for using herbal drugs in today’s health practice is increasing, the world is endorsing extraordinary increase in the consumption of herbal products. This increase in the demand has led to consumers’ dissatisfaction due to substandard products, making the herbal market risky. There is need to set standard that will help to evaluate herbal drugs to ensure formulation of high quality products. The present investigation is conducted to evaluate the physiochemical measures of accessible mother tinctures from Aconitum napellus, Kalmia latifolia, Crataegus monogyna, Atropa belladonna and Digitalis purpurea. Mother tinctures were collected from five manufacturers in Pakistan and evaluated for physiochemical parameters, % alcohol contents, weight in dry/ml, % non-volatile matter and pH. World synchronization, following WHO specific guidelines for herbal products standardization is needed. Also, regulation should be endorsed to control herbal market adoption of WHO guideline. Key words: Herbal drugs, standardization, quality control, Aconitum napellus, Kalmia latifolia, Crataegus monogyna, Atropa Belladonna, Digitalis purpurea.

Nanobiotechnological improvements defined on the utilization of biological materials and principles have enormously partaken to revolutionize physical, chemical, and biological sciences. However, the exploration of plant nanobiotechnology is still in its outset. The search for novel tools to monitor plant biomolecules is an emerging issue for the nanobiotechnologists. Given this, a genetically encoded FRET-based nanobiosensor has been developed to monitor the popular plant cardiac glycoside – digoxin, which is used as the most common prescription drug for heart-related illnesses across the world. Digoxin is sourced from the leaves of the foxglove plant (Digitalis purpurea L.) and has a significant demand in the medical sector. Moreover, with the rising popularity of the herbal formulations in the global market, attention towards the authentication and quality control of the herbal drugs is important. Furthermore, digoxin has a very narrow therapeutic range, i.e., 0.6 nM - 2.6 nM. Therefore, strict monitoring of blood digoxin levels is necessary. Besides, previously used techniques for drug authentication and quantification of small-molecule drugs in blood samples are not the best choice available. The nanobiosensor is based on the FRET (Fluorescence Resonance Energy Transfer) mechanism, and it is constructed in such a way that it gives a changed FRET output in the presence of digoxin. Two fluorophores, enhanced cyan fluorescent protein (ECFP) and Venus, were attached on either end of the sensory domain - human nuclear receptor ROR-gamma (RORγt). The developed nanobiosensor was named as fluorescent indicator protein for digoxin, (FLIP-digoxin). The ligand binding affinity of FLIP-digoxin was calculated as 425 μM. Affinity mutants of the FLIP-digoxin were also generated to measure digoxin in wide concentration ranges. This sensor offers high-throughput qualitative analysis of digoxin in Digitalis preparations procured from local drug stores. It confirms the authenticity of the preparations through the detection of digoxin. The FLIP-1n was also able to monitor digoxin concentration in serum samples in lesser than 5 min. The nanobiosensor was found pH stable, digoxin-specific, non- interfered by the biological serum species and can perform high throughput screening of the Digitalis powder, infusion and tincture preparations.

Digitalis contain cardiac glycosides and used in the treatment of congestive heart failure. Digitalis drug obtain from Digitalis Purpurea L. belongs to family scrophulariaceae. 200 years ago William Withering discover the use of digitalis in CHF treatment in 1785.In 18th century a controversy has existed about the benefits and risks of digitalis in patients with heart problems. Active component of digitalis classified as cardiac glycosides and cardiotonic steroids. The term "digitalis" or "cardiac glycosides" are used to refer to any of steroids or steroid glycosides compound which exert characteristic positively inotropic and electrophysiological effect on heart. In 20th century digitalis and its derivatives specially, digoxin is used in treatment of CHF. Cardiac glycosides are used in therapy of CHF since William Withering identify their uses. Digitalis purpurea is not only use in treatment of CHF also has wound healing, antioxidant and cytotoxic activity. In 1990 most prescribed drug is digoxin. It shows intermediate duration of action. Digoxin is use for its rate control in atrial fibrillation in the presence of marginal blood pressure. The introduction of diuretic provide an alternative more effective and safer for treatment of CHF. Keywords: CHF., Digitalis Purpurea L

With many plant-pollinator interactions undergoing change, we require a better understanding of how the addition of new interacting partners, such as antagonists, can affect plant reproduction. One such group of antagonistic floral visitors, nectar robbers, can deplete plants of nectar rewards without contributing to pollination. The addition of nectar robbing to the floral visitor assemblage could therefore have costs to the plant´s reproductive output. We focus on a recent plant colonist, Digitalis purpurea, a plant that in its native range is rarely robbed, but experiences intense nectar robbing in areas it has been introduced to. Here, we test the costs to reproduction following experimental nectar robbing. To identify any changes in the behaviour of the principal pollinators in response to nectar robbing, we measured visitation rates, visit duration, proportion of flowers visited and rate of rejection of inflorescences. To find the effects of robbing on fitness, we used proxies for female and male components of reproductive output, by measuring the seeds produced per fruit and the pollen export respectively. Nectar robbing significantly reduced the rate of visitation and lengths of visits by bumblebees. Additionally, bumblebees visited a lower proportion of flowers on an inflorescence that had robbed flowers. We found that flowers in the robbed treatment produced significantly fewer seeds per fruit on average but did not export fewer pollen grains. Our finding that robbing leads to reduced seed production could be due to fewer and shorter visits to flowers leading to less effective pollination. We discuss the potential consequences of new pollinator environments, such as exposure to nectar robbing, for plant reproduction.

We present the case of a 34-year-old woman with recurrent depressive disorder who ingested purple foxglove with suicidal intent. She bought a foxglove plant (Digitalis purpurea) over the internet and used all of its leaves to make a tea that she then drank over a period of a few hours. Seventeen hours later, she developed abdominal pain, emesis and bradycardia and was admitted via the emergency department to the intensive care unit for further treatment and monitoring. The plasma digoxin concentration measured 3.53 nmol/l (therapeutic reference range 0.77-1.50 nmol/l) 21 hours after ingestion of the tea. She remained heamodynamically and neurologically stable, was treated with antiemetics and simple analgesia and did not require digoxin-specific antibodies. Despite normal renal function, her plasma digoxin half-life was prolonged (estimated 76 h), reflecting the long half-life of the parent compound digitoxin which is the main cardiac glycoside in Digitalis purpurea. She was transferred to psychiatric care 48 h after admission. In this report, we compare this case to other similar cases, which to date have only been rarely reported in the literature.

Various plant species are widely distributed across the world; commonly exploited for their nutritive, recreational, and medicinal functions. However, many plants are known to contain toxins, a group of chemical agents capable of causing deleterious effects in humans and animals. With their high proximity to plants of different kinds, service personnel can be exposed to these toxins through ingestion, inhalation, and dermal or eye contact. This chapter presents and discusses some of the plants that service personnel must get aware of and, systematically, plant to manage them and their potential effects. These plants include those that have anticholinergic agents (Brugmansia species), calcium oxalate crystals (Dieffenbachia species), toxalbumins (Ricinus communis, Abrus precatorius), cardioactive glycosides (Nerium oleander, Digitalis purpurea, Cerberin odollam), convulsants (Conium maculatum), sodium channel activators (Rhododendron species), and irritants (Hippomane mancinella). To minimize intoxication with phytotoxins, service personnel need to be aware of such poisonous plants and how the toxins interact with the human body. Formally including phytochemistry in the military, police, prison, and immigration personnel’s training curriculum could be one of the best ways to best fit its knowledge for the safety of the personnel in operations.

Digitalis purpurea L. is a cardenolide-producing medicinal and ornamental plant. Cardenolides, like digoxin, are commonly used to treat congestive heart failure, cardiac arrhythmia, and atrial fibrillation. More recently, its cytotoxic activity on several types of cancer and antiviral effect have been confirmed. As chemical synthesis is not viable, D. purpurea plants are one of the major sources of cardenolides for the pharmaceutical industry. However, cardenolide content is highly variable under natural conditions. Therefore, D. purpurea in vitro culture has been a focus of research since the second half of the twentieth century. This chapter is a compendium of these reports with emphasis on the effects of morphogenesis, culture conditions, and in vitro culture medium composition on cardenolide content. Besides, some studies on the genetic stability of Digitalis plants are summarized. Finally, we describe the biotechnological approaches reported so far to obtain a higher yield of cardenolides in vitro, such as elicitation and metabolic engineering, both recognized as promising strategies.

Predators and parasitoids regulate insect populations and select defense mechanisms such as the sequestration of plant toxins. Sequestration is common among herbivorous insects, yet how the structural variation of plant toxins affects defenses against predators remains largely unknown. The palearctic milkweed bug Lygaeus equestris (Heteroptera: Lygaeinae) was recently shown to sequester cardenolides from Adonis vernalis (Ranunculaceae), while its relative Horvathiolus superbus also obtains cardenolides but from Digitalis purpurea (Plantaginaceae). Remarkably, toxin sequestration protects both species against insectivorous birds, but only H. superbus gains protection against predatory lacewing larvae. Here, we used a full factorial design to test whether this difference was mediated by the differences in plant chemistry or by the insect species. We raised both species of milkweed bugs on seeds from both species of host plants and carried out predation assays using the larvae of the lacewing Chrysoperla carnea. In addition, we analyzed the toxins sequestered by the bugs via liquid chromatography (HPLC). We found that both insect species gained protection by sequestering cardenolides from D. purpurea but not from A. vernalis. Since the total amount of toxins stored was not different between the plant species in H. superbus and even lower in L. equestris from D. purpurea compared to A. vernalis, the effect is most likely mediated by structural differences of the sequestered toxins. Our findings indicate that predator&ndash, prey interactions are highly context-specific and that the host plant choice can affect the levels of protection to various predator types based on structural differences within the same class of chemical compounds.

We report a case of a 19-year-old woman who ingested Digitalis purpurea leaves as a suicide attempt. She developed gastro-intestinal symptoms, loss of colour vision, cardiac conduction disturbances as well as an elevated serum potassium. Treatment was initiated in analogy to medicinal digoxin poisoning by means of digoxin-specific Fab-fragments with a good effect. However during the further course we faced difficulties of prolonged intestinal absorption and inability to estimate the ingested dose or half-life of the vegetal cardiac glycoside compounds. To prevent further absorption and interrupt enterohepatic recycling, multi-dose activated charcoal was administered. Because of a relapse of cardiac conduction disturbances and hyperkalemia, two supplementary doses of Fab-fragments were given, up to a total dose of nineteen vials (one vial containing 40 mg). The important diagnostic and therapeutic differences of vegetal digitalis intoxication as compared to medicinal intoxication and the applicability of existing guidelines on medicinal digitalis intoxication in the light of these differences will be discussed here.

Metabolic engineering of Digitalis purpurea L. has emerged as a powerful biotechnological tool to enhance in vitro cardenolide biosynthesis. Thereto, Agrobacterium tumefaciens-mediated transformation protocols have been developed using nptII as selectable marker gene and uidA as reporter gene. In this work, the Arabidopsis thaliana L. VEP1 gene, encoding progesterone-5β-reductase, was expressed in cardenolide-producing D. purpurea plants. Resistance to hygromycin B was efficiently used as a selectable marker in callus induction and multiplication media. Successful transformation was confirmed in nine transgenic lines by PCR analyses using primers for the selectable marker gene (hpt) and the VEP1 gene. The number of copies of the transgene construct was estimated between one and three in different lines by quantitative PCR and inverse PCR. VEP1 expression was confirmed in eight transgenic lines by reverse transcription-quantitative PCR. Digitoxin and digoxin content were increased up to 3.8-fold (757 μg/gDW) and 2.2-fold (199 μg/gDW) respectively in transgenic plants cultivated in vitro. However, for plants grown in the greenhouse, digitoxin content was not significantly different from non-transgenic plants and digoxin production was enhanced up to 1.8-fold (87 μg/gDW). Genetic transformation thus allowed to enhance cardenolide production in vitro with higher efficiency than with other biotechnological strategies reported so far.