Ayse Nalbantsoy

Ege University · Department of Bioengineering

In this study, the probiotic properties and optimum growth conditions of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum BG24 were investigated. L. plantarum BG24 have a high probiotic potential due to its growth at low pH and high bile salt concentrations and its ability to utilize lactose. The adhesion rate of BG24 to Caco-2 cells was 37.51% and it showed resistan...

Propolis is a valuable natural substance obtained by honey bees after being collected from the bark, resin of trees, plant leaves and mixed with their saliva, and has been widely used for various biological activities. The properties of propolis can vary widely by botanical origin, location of the hives and colony population. It is thought that the...

Bu çalışmada bozadan izole edilen Lactiplantibacillus plantarum BG24 suşunun probiyotik özellikleri ve optimum üreme koşulları incelenmiştir. L. plantarum BG24 suşunun probiyotik özelliklerini belirlemek için öncelikle farklı pH değerlerinde ve safra tuzu konsantrasyonlarında canlılıkları incelenmiş, ardından farklı sıcaklıklarda ve NaCl konsantras...

Venoms have evolved >100 times in all major animal groups, and their components, known as toxins, have been fine-tuned over millions of years into highly effective biochemical weapons. There are many outstanding questions on the evolution of toxin arsenals, such as how venom genes originate, how venom contributes to the fitness of venomous species,...

There are nearly 1200 species of sea cucumber in the world's seas. Among these creatures included in the Holothuroidea class, 37 species show distribution in the Mediterranean and Aegean Sea. The purpose of this study is to determine the chemical content and biological potent of five sea cucumber species, Holothuria tubulosa, Holothuria poli, Holot...

The aim of the study is to investigate the anti-tumor effect of Bifidobacterium infantis 35624 in a xenograft model in BALB/c mice injected with 4T1 cells as a support for chemotherapeutic treatments of doxorubicin in vivo. The MTT assay was used to determine the cytotoxicity of doxorubicin against cancer cells, and apoptosis was analyzed by using...

In recent years, much effort has been devoted to the development of effective anti-cancer agents. In this manner, the utilization of water-soluble sulfonated phthalocyanines is crucial for many cancer cell lines. In this study, phthalonitrile and metallophthalocyanine compounds linked by benzenesulfonic acid groups have been prepared. Antimicrobial...

Background Urinary bladder cancer (UBC) is considered one of the most prevalent malignant tumors worldwide. Complementary and integrative approaches for the treatment of bladder cancer, such as the intake of isoflavonoid phytoestrogens, are of increasing interest due to the risk of mortality and long-term morbidity associated with surgical procedur...

Immunotherapy has been applied in cancer treatments for many years as an alternative treatment method to radiotherapy, chemotherapy. It is well known that immunotherapy could suppress tumor formation by modulating the immune system of the host. The aim of the study is to investigate supportive therapy potential of acidophilus milk (AS) and propolis...

Propolis compositions are highly variable, depending on the geographic region and the season of collection. In this study, propolis samples from seven different regions of Cyprus were studied for the first time by means of chemical content and biological activities. Secondary metabolite composition was determined by LC-HRMS. While the major flavono...

We report a novel hybrid, molecular and elemental mass spectrometry (MS) setup for the absolute quantification of snake venom proteomes shown here for two desert black cobra species within the genus Walterinnesia, Walterinnesia aegyptia and Walterinnesia morgani. The experimental design includes the decomplexation of the venom samples by reverse-ph...

Propolis is a natural product with many biological activities, and it has been used in many industrial areas, such as pharmaceuticals, food and cosmetics. Thus, in this study, we aim to evaluate the chemical content, antioxidant, antiviral activities, cytotoxicity and the iNOS of propolis samples collected from 39 different regions in Turkey. Pheno...

Two newly described oleanane-type saponins (1–2), named tchihatchewosides A–B, along with thirteen known compounds, were isolated from the aerial parts of Cephalaria tchihatchewii using several type of chromatography processes. The structures of all compounds (1-15) were determined by spectroscopic (1D- and 2D-NMR, HR-ESI/MS) and chemical methods....

Resveratrol is a naturally occurring polyphenolic compound exhibiting therapeutic activities. However, the stability can be altered by UV light, pH and changes in temperature. Encapsulation would be an ideal strategy to improve the stability and bioavailability. Thus, trans-resveratrol (Res) was encapsulated within hybrid nanoparticles consisted wi...

A new hederagenin-type triterpene saponin; hederagenin 28-O-β-D-galactopyranosyl-(1→6)-β-D-glucopyranosyl ester named sumbulianoside A (1), together with twelve known saponins were isolated from the n-butanol extract of Cephalaria sumbuliana (Caprifoliaceae) from which, one known saponin, dipsacus saponin A (2) was isolated, for the first time from...

Astragaloside VII (AST-VII), a major cycloartane saponin isolated from Turkish Astragalus species, turned out to be one of the most active metabolites demonstrating Th1/Th2 balanced immune response. As Quillaja saponins are extensively used in adjuvant systems, this study made an attempt to improve AST-VII based adjuvant systems by using different...

Adjuvants are substances that increase the immune response to a given antigen. In the development of novel vaccine adjuvants/systems, saponins are one of the most attractive molecules due to their altered immunomodulatory activities. In this study, we tried to develop PEG (polyethylene glycol)/cholesterol-based lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) to deliver...

Background: Human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) is overexpressed in a subset of cancers including 25% of breast cancers. Since combination therapy consisting of multiple therapeutic approaches is considered a promising regimen, we examined combination treatment modalities in a xenograft model in Balb/c mice injected with 4T1-HER2 cells....

Background Cancer is a major cause of death worldwide and most of the therapeutic approaches are relatively ineffective in eliminating cancer especially due to drug resistance. As an alternative, therapy with live microorganisms can induce a robust proinflammatory and anti-cancer immune response in the microenvironment of the tumor. In the present...

The essential oils (EOs) were isolated by hydrodistillation from wild and cultivated Pistacia lentiscus L. var. chia—mastic gum tree (Anacardiaceae) from two natural habitats, namely from Cesme–Uzunkoy (1) and Mordogan (2), and one cultivated source, Cesme–Germiyan (3), in Izmir, Turkey. This comparative study evaluated the chemical composition and...

Psephellus genus includes approximately 75–80 species in the world and 34 taxons of them are distributed in Anatolia. It has occured as a new genus by transferring 12 sections from genus Centaurea. Psephellus goeksunensis (Aytaç & H. Duman) Greuter & Raab-Straube (Syn. Centaurea goeksunense) is an endemic species of Adana region. In this study, n-h...

Carthamus tinctorius L. (Safflower) has been often preferred because of rich fatty acid, flavonoid, alkaloid, and polysaccharide contents in its different parts in medicine and industrial area. Although its antioxidant, antienflamatuar, and antitumor properties have been proven in many studies, the mechanism underlying the anticancer activity is st...

Different parts of Prunus persica as fruits, flowers, leaves and kernels have been consumed with dietary and therapeutic purposes traditionally. During fruit production, remarkable amount of leaves which can hold important bioactive groups as phenolics, have been left unutilized. The aim of this study was to investigate cytotoxic, antimicrobial and...

The comparisons of Western Palaearctic vipers illustrate the appearance of several common toxin families for this region, but the composition ratio can be strongly divers between species as well as based on the used approaches. The Vipera anatolica senliki is a recently described subspecies of the critically endangered Anatolian Meadow viper (V. an...

Animal venoms are highly complex mixtures of bioactive agents and are investigated for the knowledge of biodiversity and development of potentially new therapeutical strategies. Therefore, neglected and newly discovered species are getting more into the focus of proteomic as well as transcriptomic studies. Over the past years, snake venom analyses...

Objective: To evaluate local and systemic levels of interleukin-10 (IL-10), IL-33, and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) in Thalassemia major (TM) in the presence of gingival inflammation. Material and Methods: 58 patients (TM, n=29 and systemically healthy controls, n=29) were included to the study. IL-10, IL-33, and TNF-α levels were evaluated...

The aim of this study was to reveal the biological activities and in vivo toxicity profiles of n-hexane, chloroform and methanol extracts of brown algae Halopteris scoparia L. Sauvageau. In this study, extracts were tested for their phytochemical contents and antioxidant activities. The cytotoxic activities of the extracts against cervical adenocar...

Adjuvants are chemical/biological substances that are used in vaccines to increase the immunogenicity of antigens. A few adjuvants have been developed for use in human vaccines because of their limitations including lack of efficacy, unacceptable local or systemic toxicity, the difficulty of manufacturing, poor stability, and high cost. For that re...

Snake venoms are a natural biological source that has potential therapeutic value with various protein compounds. Disintegrins originally were discovered as a family of proteins from snake venoms composed of cysteine rich low molecular weight polypeptides. Disintegrins exhibit specific binding and higher affinity toward integrin with potential inhi...

Animal secretions are of great interest in terms of drug development due to their complex protein and peptide composition. Especially, in the field of therapeutic medications such as anti-cancer drugs snake venoms receive attention. In this study, we address two Viperidae species from various habitats with a particular focus on the cytotoxic potent...

We report on the variable venom composition of a population of the Caucasus viper (Vipera kaznakovi) in Northeastern Turkey. We applied a combination of venom gland transcriptomics, and de-complexing bottom-up and top-down venomics. In contrast to sole bottom-up venomics approaches and gel or chromatography based venom comparison, our combined appr...

We report on the variable venom composition of a population of the Caucasus viper ( Vipera kaznakovi ) in Northeastern Turkey. We applied a combination of venom gland transcriptomics, as well as de-complexing bottom-up and top-down venomics, enabling the comparison of the venom proteomes from multiple individuals. In total, we identified peptides a...

Objective The aim of this study was to determine the total protein amounts, protein profiles, in vitro cytotoxicities, antimicrobial activities and hemolytic effects of skin secretions of the Lissotriton vulgaris and Triturus ivanbureschi . Methods Skin secretions were obtained, clarified, supernatants snap-frozen then lyophilized. Total protein a...

Animal secretions are of great interest in terms of drug development due to their complex protein and peptide composition. Especially, in the field of therapeutic medications such as anti-cancer drugs snake venoms receive attention. In this study we report of two Viperidae species from various habitats with a particular focus on the cytotoxic poten...

Highly bioactive compounds of the snake venom make them particular sources for anticancer agent development. They contain very rich peptide-protein structures. Therefore, they are very susceptible to environmental conditions such as temperature, pH, and light. In this study, Vipera ammodytes transcaucasiana venom was encapsulated in PAMAM-G4 dendri...

The Asian world is home to a multitude of venomous and dangerous snakes, which are used to induce various medical effects in the preparation of traditional snake tinctures and alcoholics, like the Japanese snake wine, named Habushu. The aim of this work was to perform the first quantitative proteomic analysis of the Protobothrops flavoviridis pit v...

The Asian world is home to a multitude of venomous and dangerous snakes, which are attributed to various medical effects used in the preparation of traditional snake tinctures and alcoholics, like the Japanese snake wine, named Habushu. The aim of this work was to perform the first quantitative proteomic analysis of the Protobothrops flavoviridis p...

Macrovipera lebetina obtusa (Dwigubsky, 1832) and Montivipera xanthina (Gray, 1849) (Ottoman Viper) are viper snakes from Viperidae family and found in various locations in Anatolia. Both snakes are responsible for major snake bite cases in Turkey Their venoms cause necrosis, hemorrhage, pain and local edema. Centaurea L. (Asteraceae) species draw...

Background/aim: Abnormalities in oral mucosal immunity contribute to complex pathogenesis of primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSjS). We aimed to measure saliva and serum levels of caspase-1, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interferon gamma (IFN-γ) in patients with pSjS. Materials and methods: We studied 43 pSjS patients fulfilling the AECG crite...

Phytochemical investigations of the aerial parts of the plant Cephalaria taurica Szabó. (Caprifoliaceae) have resulted in the isolation of nine oleanane-type triterpenoid saponins, of which two still remain undescribed. The structures of tauricosides A and B were characterized based on NMR analysis, HRESIMS spectrometry, and chemical evaluations. T...

An ethanol extract from Veratrum lobelianum Bernh. rhizomes showed larvicidal activity with LC 50 values of 11.79 ppm and 89.9 ppm against 1 st and 4 th instar larvae, respectively, at 24 h post-treatment. The extract also showed proportion not biting (PNB) value of 0.76 at 100 μg/cm ² against females of Ae . aegypti . Systematic bioassay-guided fr...

The Nose-horned Viper (Vipera ammodytes) is one of the most widespread and venomous snakes in Europe, which causes high frequent snakebite accidents. The first comprehensive venom characterization of the regional endemic Transcaucasian Nose-horned Viper (Vipera ammodytes transcaucasiana) and the Transdanubian Sand Viper (Vipera ammodytes montandoni...

Objectives: The objective of this study was to examine the anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic potential of n-hexane, ethyl acetate, and methanolic extracts of Tanacetum argenteum subsp. argenteum. Materials and methods: Tanacetum L. is the third largest genus of Asteraceae family and is represented by 60 taxa in Turkish flora. Sesquiterpene lactone...

Snake venoms are extremely important for alternative medicine applications and discovery of new bioactive molecules. Especially in the recent years, there are promising studies in the literature on the development of new therapies for targeting the cancer with the use of snake venom peptides. In the present study, PLA2 and SVMPs venom peptide fract...

In snake bite cases, general findings are various systemic and local effects including necrose, haemmorhage, pain and local edema. The Ottoman Viper, Montivipera xanthina (Gray, 1849) (Viperidae), whose venom could be haemolytic and cytotoxic, is distributed in Middle, South and West Anatolia [1]. Different Centaurea L. species (Asteraceae) are use...

Cancer and neurodegeneration are often thought of as disease mechanisms at opposite ends of a spectrum; one due to enhanced resistance to cell death and the other due to premature cell death. The ion pump Na+/K+-ATPase has an important role in cellular mechanism, where it modulates sodium reabsorption and homeostasis of the extracellular compartmen...

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer type in women after skin cancer. In 2015, approximately 40,290 women expected die from breast cancer. The ion pump Na+/K+-ATPase is a key regulator of maintain ionic and osmatic balance in cells and also plays a vital role in the regulation of cellular homeostasis, cell differentiation and proliferatio...

Vipers are one of the largest venomous snake families, that can be found in a wide range all over the world. A large agglomeration of various vipers is found around the Mediterranean Sea, where the Transdanubian Sand Viper (Vipera ammodytes montandoni), with their main area of occurrence in Bulgaria, was captured in the north-west of Turkey. The Tr...

Two new tridesmosidic cycloartane-type triterpene glycosides (1 and 2) were isolated from the methanolic extract of the roots of Astragalus brachycalyx FISCHER (A. brachycalyx) along with ten (3–12) known cycloartane-type triterpene glycosides. Structures of the new compounds were established as 3-O-β-d-xylopyranosyl-6-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-16-O-β-d...

A new cycloartane sapogenol and a new cycloartane xyloside were isolated from Astragalus karjaginii BORISS along with thirteen known compounds. The structures of the new compounds were established as 3-oxo-6α,16β,24(S),25-tetrahydroxycycloartane (1) and 6-O-β-d-xylopyranosyl-3β,6α,16β,24(S),25-pentahydroxycycloartane (2) by 1D- and 2D-NMR experimen...

Purpose: This cross-sectional study aims to evaluate saliva, serum levels of interleukin-21 (IL-21), IL-33, and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in patients with generalised chronic periodontitis or aggressive periodontitis. Materials and methods: Before initiation of any periodontal treatment, saliva and serum samples were collected and clinical periodo...

Here we report the first characterization of the endemic Mount Bulgar Viper (Montivipera bulgardaghica) and Radde's mountain viper (Montivipera raddei) venom by a combined approach using intact mass profiling and bottom-up proteomics. The cytotoxicity screening of crude venom as well as isolated serine proteases revealed a high activity against A54...

Chemical investigation of the aerial parts of Dianthus elegans var. elegans afforded two previously undescribed saponins, named dianosides M-N (1–2), together with four oleanane-type triterpenoid glycosides (3–6). Their structures were elucidated as 3-O-α-L-arabinofuranosyl-16α-hydroxyolean-12-ene-23α, 28β-dioic acid (1) and 3-O-α-L-arabinofuranosy...

The broad geographic distribution of venomous snakes (viperidae) with their diverse habitats and different environmental conditions make vipers ideal for analyzing substantial variation in venom composition and assess potential causes of venom variation.[1] Hereinafter we focused on the venom composition of three viper species with different habita...

In the present study, phytochemical investigation of the young leaves of Eremurus spectabilis let to the isolation six compounds (1–6). Their structure was determined by spectroscopic analysis and comparison with the literature data. All compounds were isolated for the first time from E. spectabilis. Isolated compounds and prepared extracts did not...

Phytochemical investigations on n-butanol extract of Cephalaria balansae Raus. (Caprifoliaceae) led to the isolation of four previously undescribed triterpenoid saponins based on hederagenin type aglycone, namely, balansoides A-D, along with ten known compounds. Their structures were proposed based on 1D and 2D NMR spectroscopic data, HRESIMS analy...

There are very few reports on the phytochemistry of the Arabis L. (Brassicaceae) species in the literature. Here we present essential oil composition of aerial parts of two endemic Arabis species from Cyprus. The essential oils of Arabis purpurea Sm. and Arabis cypria Holmboe afforded very low oil yields (< 0.01% (v/w) yield). Sixty six compounds w...

Skin-parotoid secretions of amphibians contain a large number of biologically active compounds which are thought to play several roles, either in the regulation of the physiological functions of the skin or in defense mechanisms against predators or microorganisms. Especially, the biodiversity of biochemical compounds in the auricular and skin glan...

A water-distilled essential oil (EO) from the aerial parts of Pimpinella cypria Boiss. (Apiaceae), an endemic species in northern Cyprus, was analyzed by GCFID and GC-MS. Forty-five compounds were identified in the oil, which comprised 81.7% of the total composition. The compound classes in the oil were oxygenated sesquiterpenes (33.9%), sesquiterp...

Introduction/Aim: Breast cancer is the second most common cancer type in women after skin cancer. In 2015, approximately 40,290 women expected die from breast cancer. The ion pump Na+/K+-ATPase is a key regulator of maintain ionic and osmatic balance in cells and also plays a vital role in the regulation of cellular homeostasis, cell differentiatio...

Introduction/Aim: Cancer and neurodegeneration are often thought of as disease mechanisms at opposite ends of a spectrum; one due to enhanced resistance to cell death and the other due to premature cell death. The ion pump Na+/K+-ATPase has an important role in cellular mechanism, where it modulates sodium reabsorption and homeostasis of the extrac...

Vipers are distributed in a wide range all over the world but especially located around the Mediterranean Sea. The transcaucasian nose-horned viper (Vipera ammodytes transcaucasia) is spread in the north-east of Turkey and sections of Georgia. The investigation of venomous vipers is interesting for the search of different kinds of pharmacological d...

In this study, cytotoxicity of ethanol extract of propolis (EEP) originating from Sivas, Turkey was screened against several cancer cell lines, namely PC-3, U87MG, A-549, mPANC96, CaCo-2, MCF-7, HeLa, MDA-MB-231 and a non-tumor cell line HEK293 by MTT assay. The inhibition levels of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) were also determined by usi...