Curcumin, a yellow-colored molecule derived from the rhizome of Curcuma longa, has been identified as the bioactive compound responsible for numerous pharmacological activities of turmeric, including anticancer, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidiabetic, etc. Nevertheless, the clinical application of curcumin is inadequate due to its low solubility, poor absorption, rapid metabolism and elimination. Advancements in recent research have shown several components and techniques to increase the bioavailability of curcumin. Combining with adjuvants, encapsulating in carriers and formulating in nanoforms, in combination with other bioactive agents, synthetic derivatives and structural analogs of curcumin, have shown increased efficiency and bioavailability, thereby augmenting the range of applications of curcumin. The scope for incorporating biotechnology and nanotechnology in amending the current drawbacks would help in expanding the biomedical applications and clinical efficacy of curcumin. Therefore, in this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the plethora of therapeutic potentials of curcumin, their drawbacks in efficient clinical applications and the recent advancements in improving curcumin’s bioavailability for effective use in various biomedical applications.

Secondary metabolites are incontestably key specialized molecules with proven health-promoting effects on human beings. Naturally synthesized secondary metabolites are considered an important source of pharmaceuticals, food additives, cosmetics, flavors, etc., Therefore, enhancing the biosynthesis of these relevant metabolites by maintaining natural authenticity is getting more attention. The application of exogenous jasmonates (JAs) is well recognized for its ability to trigger plant growth and development. JAs have a large spectrum of action that covers seed germination, hypocotyl growth regulation, root elongation, petal expansion, and apical hook growth. This hormone is considered as one of the key regulators of the plant’s growth and development when the plant is under biotic or abiotic stress. The JAs regulate signal transduction through cross-talking with other genes in plants and thereby deploy an appropriate metabolism in the normal or stressed conditions. It has also been found to be an effective chemical elicitor for the synthesis of naturally occurring secondary metabolites. This review discusses the significance of JAs in the growth and development of plants and the successful outcomes of jasmonate-driven elicitation of secondary metabolites including flavonoids, anthraquinones, anthocyanin, xanthonoid, and more from various plant species. However, as the enhancement of these metabolites is essentially measured via in vitro cell culture or foliar spray, the large-scale production is significantly limited. Recent advancements in the plant cell culture technology lay the possibilities for the large-scale manufacturing of plant-derived secondary metabolites. With the insights about the genetic background of the metabolite biosynthetic pathway, synthetic biology also appears to be a potential avenue for accelerating their production. This review, therefore, also discussed the potential manoeuvres that can be deployed to synthesis plant secondary metabolites at the large-scale using plant cell, tissue, and organ cultures.

Isoflavones are ecophysiologically active secondary metabolites derived from the phenylpropanoid pathway. They were mostly found in leguminous plants, especially in the pea family. Isoflavones play a key role in plant–environment interactions and act as phytoalexins also having an array of health benefits to the humans. According to epidemiological studies, a high intake of isoflavones-rich diets linked to a lower risk of hormone-related cancers, osteoporosis, menopausal symptoms, and cardiovascular diseases. These characteristics lead to the significant advancement in the studies on genetic and metabolic engineering of isoflavones in plants. As a result, a number of structural and regulatory genes involved in isoflavone biosynthesis in plants have been identified and characterized. Subsequently, they were engineered in various crop plants for the increased production of isoflavones. Furthermore, with the advent of high-throughput technologies, the regulation of isoflavone biosynthesis gains attention to increase or decrease the level of isoflavones in the crop plants. In the review, we begin with the role of isoflavones in plants, environment, and its benefits in human health. Besides, the main theme is to discuss the updated research progress in metabolic engineering of isoflavones in other plants species and regulation of production of isoflavones in soybeans.

Pre-harvest sprouting is a critical phenomenon involving the germination of seeds in the mother plant before harvest under relative humid conditions and reduced dormancy. As it results in reduced grain yield and quality, it is a common problem for the farmers who have cultivated the rice and wheat across the globe. Crop yields need to be steadily increased to improve the people’s ability to adapt to risks as the world’s population grows and natural disasters become more frequent. To improve the quality of grain and to avoid pre-harvest sprouting, a clear understanding of the crops should be known with the use of molecular omics approaches. Meanwhile, pre-harvest sprouting is a complicated phenomenon, especially in rice, and physiological, hormonal, and genetic changes should be monitored, which can be modified by high-throughput metabolic engineering techniques. The integration of these data allows the creation of tailored breeding lines suitable for various demands and regions, and it is crucial for increasing the crop yields and economic benefits. In this review, we have provided an overview of seed dormancy and its regulation, the major causes of pre-harvest sprouting, and also unraveled the novel avenues to battle pre-harvest sprouting in cereals with special reference to rice using genomics and transcriptomic approaches.

Seaweed extracts are considered effective therapeutic alternatives to synthetic anticancer, antioxidant, and antimicrobial agents, owing to their availability, low cost, greater efficacy, eco-friendliness, and non-toxic nature. Since the bioactive constituents of seaweed, in particular, phytosterols, possess plenty of medicinal benefits over other conventional pharmaceutical agents, they have been extensively evaluated for many years. Fortunately, recent advances in phytosterol-based research have begun to unravel the evidence concerning these important processes and to endow the field with the understanding and identification of the potential contributions of seaweed-steroidal molecules that can be used as chemotherapeutic drugs. Despite the myriad of research interests in phytosterols, there is an immense need to fill the void with an up-to-date literature survey elucidating their biosynthesis, pharmacological effects, and other biomedical applications. Hence, in the present review, we summarize studies dealing with several types of seaweed to provide a comprehensive overview of the structural determination of several phytosterol molecules, their properties, biosynthetic pathways, and mechanisms of action, along with their health benefits, which could significantly contribute to the development of novel drugs and functional foods.

Bacterial communities in rhizosphere and root nodules have significant contributions to the growth and productivity of the soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.). In this report, we analyzed the physiological properties and dynamics of bacterial community structure in rhizosphere and root nodules at different growth stages using BioLog EcoPlate and high-throughput sequencing technology, respectively. The BioLog assay found that the metabolic capability of rhizosphere is in increasing trend in the growth of soybeans as compared to the bulk soil. As a result of the Illumina sequencing analysis, the microbial community structure of rhizosphere and root nodules was found to be influenced by the variety and growth stage of the soybean. At the phylum level, Actinobacteria were the most abundant in rhizosphere at all growth stages, followed by Alphaproteobacteria and Acidobacteria, and the phylum Bacteroidetes showed the greatest change. But, in the root nodules Alphaproteobacteria were dominant. The results of the OTU analysis exhibited the dominance of Bradyrhizobium during the entire stage of growth, but the ratio of non-rhizobial bacteria showed an increasing trend as the soybean growth progressed. These findings revealed that bacterial community in the rhizosphere and root nodules changed according to both the variety and growth stages of soybean in the field.