More than 70% of our planet is covered by extremely cold environments, nourishing a broad diversity of microbial life. Temperature is the most significant parameter that plays a key role in the distribution of microorganisms on our planet. Psychrophilic microorganisms are the most prominent inhabitants of the cold ecosystems, and they possess potential cold-active enzymes with diverse uses in the research and commercial sectors. Psychrophiles are modified to nurture, replicate, and retain their active metabolic activities in low temperatures. Their enzymes possess characteristics of maximal activity at low to adequate temperatures; this feature makes them more appealing and attractive in biotechnology. The high enzymatic activity of psychrozymes at low temperatures implies an important feature for energy saving. These enzymes have proven more advantageous than their mesophilic and thermophilic counterparts. Therefore, it is very important to explore the efficiency and utility of different psychrozymes in food processing, pharmaceuticals, brewing, bioremediation, and molecular biology. In this review, we focused on the properties of cold-active enzymes and their diverse uses in different industries and research areas. This review will provide insight into the areas and characteristics to be improved in cold-active enzymes so that potential and desired enzymes can be made available for commercial purposes.

A library of novel naproxen based 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivatives (8–16 and 19–26) has been synthesized and screened for cytotoxicity as EGFR inhibitors. Among the synthesized hybrids, compound2-(4-((5-((S)-1-(2-methoxynaphthalen-6-yl)ethyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazol-2-ylthio)methyl)-1H-1,2,3-triazol-1-yl)phenol(15) was the most potent compound against MCF-7 and HepG2cancer cells with IC₅₀ of 2.13 and 1.63 µg/mL, respectively, and was equipotent to doxorubicin (IC₅₀ 1.62 µg/mL) towards HepG2. Furthermore, compound 15 inhibited EGFR kinase with IC₅₀ 0.41 μM compared to standard drug Erlotinib (IC₅₀ 0.30 μM). The active compound induces a high percentage of necrosis towards MCF-7, HePG2 and HCT 116 cells. The docking studies, DFT and MEP also supported the biological data. These results demonstrated that these synthesized naproxen hybrids have EGFR inhibition effects and can be used as leads for cancer therapy.

A new series of pyrazole 4–7 and pyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine 8–13 were synthesized by using a simple, efficient procedure, and screened for their in-vitro antimicrobial and antitumor activities. Symmetrical and asymmetrical 3,6-diarylazo-2,5,7-triaminopyrazolo[1,5-a]pyrimidine were synthesized by the conventional method and also subjected to microwave irradiation and under ultrasound conditions. The biological results revealed that most of the tested compounds proved to be active as antibacterial and antifungal agents. The antitumor activity of the synthesized compounds was evaluated against human cancer cell lines, MCF-7, HCT-116, and HepG-2, as compared with Doxorubicin as a control.

Gibberellic acid-stimulated Arabidopsis (GASA) gene family is a class of functional cysteine-rich proteins characterized by an N-terminal signal peptide and a C-terminal-conserved GASA domain with 12 invariant cysteine (Cys) residues. GASA proteins are widely distributed among plant species, and the majority of them are involved in the signal transmission of plant hormones, the regulation of plant development and growth, and the responses to different environmental constraints. To date, their action mechanisms are not completely elucidated. This review reports an overview of the diversity, structure, and subcellular localization of GASA proteins, their involvement in hormone crosstalk and redox regulation during development, and plant responses to abiotic and biotic stresses. Knowledge of this complex regulation can be a contribution to promoting multiple abiotic stress tolerance with potential agricultural applications through the engineering of genes encoding GASA proteins and the production of transgenic plants.