Over the past decade, screening and identifying novel compounds for their biomedical applications has become an upcoming area of research. Identifying the molecular mechanisms of these compounds has become an integral part of anticancer research. β-elemene, a sesquiterpene, is renowned for its anticancer activity against a variety of cell lines. Recent studies on β-elemene have elucidated that it possesses anti-proliferative effect on cancer cells by creating an apoptotic trigger. Interestingly, it also induces protective autophagy in some cancerous cell lines and is less cytotoxic compared to other widely accepted chemotherapeutic agents. This provides an edge with the perception of limited toxicity to normal cells. This mini-review precisely focuses on the studies performed to identify the mechanism of anticancer activity of β-elemene against cancer cells of multiple origin. In accordance to the evaluation made by the studies mentioned, apoptosis has been identified to be most possible reason behind anticancer activity exerted by β-elemene against a variety of cancer cell lines. Cell cycle arrest and necrosis have been credited to be possible alternate mechanisms for the anticancer effect of β-elemene.

Marine pollution is a significant issue in recent decades, with the increase in industries and their waste harming the environment and ecosystems. Notably, the rise in shellfish industries contributes to tons of shellfish waste composed of up to 58% chitin. Chitin, the second most ample polymer next to cellulose, is insoluble and resistant to degradation. It requires chemical-based treatment or enzymatic hydrolysis to cleave the chitin polymers. The chemical-based treatment can lead to environmental pollution, so to solve this problem, enzymatic hydrolysis is the best option. Moreover, the resulting biopolymer by-products can be used to boost the fish immune system and also as drug delivery agents. Many marine microbial strains have chitinase producing ability. Nevertheless, we still lack an economical and highly stable chitinase enzyme for use in the industrial sector. So we isolate a novel marine bacterial strain Achromobacter xylosoxidans from the shrimp waste disposal site using chitin minimal medium. Placket–Burman and central composite design statistical models for culture condition optimisation predicted a 464.2 U/ml of chitinase production. The culture conditions were optimised for maximum chitinase production recording up to 467 U/ml. This chitinase from the A. xylosoxidans was 100% active at an optimum temperature of 45 °C (withstand up to 55 °C) and pH 8 with 80% stability. The HPLC analysis of chitinase degraded shellfish waste reveals a major amino acid profile composition—arginine, lysine, aspartic acid, alanine, threonine and low levels of isoleucine and methionine. These chitinase degraded products and by-products can be used as supplements in the aquaculture industry.

Natural colorants have emanated as a significant substitute to highly toxic synthetic dyes. The present study highlights the dyeing efficiency of violet pigment produced from Chromobacterium violaceum PDF23. A halophilic bacterium C. violaceum PDF23 produce violet pigments were isolated from the Great Salt Lake situated in Chennai, India. Based on morphology and 16S rRNA gene sequencing, a halophilic bacterium was identified as C. violaceum PDF23. The violet dye from C. violaceum PDF23 exhibited antimicrobial efficacy against S. aureus, B. subtilis, E. coli, P. aeruginosa, and C. albicans. The violet pigment exhibited radical scavenging potential with IC₅₀ value of 14.40 μg/mL. The dye ability of colorant was evaluated using mordants on two distinct fabrics, i.e., silk satin and cotton, and colorfastness measurements were recorded. The CIE L∗a∗b∗ qualities of the dyed fabrics were assessed, as well as their colorfastness quality. The current research findings suggest that violet pigment has potent antimicrobial and antioxidant activity and it could be used as alternative to synthetic dye in the textile industry.