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This review aims to provide synoptic documentation on acclaimed anecdotal plant-based remedies used by Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) communities to manage COVID-19. The theoretical approaches that form the basis for using the anecdotally claimed phytotherapies were reviewed against current scientific evidence.

In this paper plant-based remedies for managing COVID-19 were searched on social and print media to identify testimonies of people from different communities in LAC countries. Information was extracted, evaluated and reviewed against current scientific evidence based on a literature search from databases such as Journal Storage (JSTOR), Excerpta Medica Database (EMBASE), SpringerLink, Scopus, ScienceDirect, PubMed, Google Scholar and Medline to explore the scientific basis for anecdotal claims.

A total of 23 medicinal plants belonging to 15 families were identified as phytotherapies used in managing COVID-19 in LAC communities.

The plant-based remedies contained valuable phytochemicals scientifically reported for their anti-inflammatory, antiviral, antioxidant and anticancer effects. Anecdotal information helps researchers investigate disease patterns, management and new drug discoveries. The identified acclaimed plant-based remedies are potential candidates for pharmacological evaluations for possible drug discovery for future pandemics.

The purpose of this article is to provide information about interactions between pink-pigmented facultative methylotroph (PPFM) organisms and plants, their molecular mechanisms of methylotrophic metabolism, application of PPFMs in agriculture, biotechnology and bioremediation and also to explore lacuna in PPFMs research and direction for future research.

Research findings on PPFM organisms as potent plant growth promoting organisms are discussed in the light of reports published by various workers. Unexplored field of PPFM research are detected and their application as a new group of biofertilizer that also help host plants to overcome draught stress in poorly irrigated crop field is suggested.

PPFMs are used as plant growth promoters for improved crop yield, seed germination capacity, resistance against pathogens and tolerance against drought stress. Anti-oxidant and UV resistant properties of PPFM pigments protect the host plants from strong sunshine. PPFMs have excellent draught ameliorating capacity.

To meet the ever increasing world population, more and more barren, less irrigated land has to be utilized for agriculture and horticulture purpose and use of PPFM group of organisms due to their draught ameliorating properties in addition to their plant growth promoting characters will be extremely useful. PPFMs are also promising candidates for the production of various industrially and medicinally important enzymes and other value-added products. Wider application of this ecofriendly group of bacteria will reduce crop production cost thus improving economy of the farmers and will be a greener alternative of hazardous chemical fertilizers and fungicides.

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Jamun is an underutilised fruit crop of India whose utilization needs to be considerably increased. Despite its impressive nutritional profile and several health benefits, its cultivation is still very limited. Hence, this study aims to highlight the essential nutrients, health benefits and value-added products of jamun fruit and seed.

Major sources of bibliometric information such as Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed and Google Scholar were extensively searched with keywords such as nutritional composition of jamun, bioactive compounds, health benefits and jamun-based food products to obtain a database of 317 papers. Thirty four publications met the criteria for review.

Jamun fruit (Syzygium cumini L.) is known for its attractive colour, astringent taste, enormous nutrients and nutraceutical properties; nevertheless, this fruit is seasonal, perishable and underutilised. Furthermore, the fruit is used for the treatment of diabetes and also possess anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-obesity and cardio-protection properties. Investigations were done on the production of value-added food products such as read-to-serve beverages, jam, cookies and cake from jamun due to their several health benefits. The present review was an attempt to provide spotlights on the health benefits and food product applications of jamun fruit and its by-products.

This review systematically collates evidence from various published sources regarding the nutritional profile, development of food products from jamun and their health benefits. The compiled information will help researchers and professional become aware of the significance of jamun fruit and thereby enhances its processing and applications in food systems.

Phytochemicals are known for their iron chelation ability with no side effects. Lignans and polyphenols in flaxseed have iron-chelating and antioxidant abilities. Therefore, this study aims to assess the ability of flaxseed to reduce iron overload and minimize its negative health effects.

A randomized control trial was conducted. A total of 96 patients were enrolled in this study and randomized into three groups: two intervention groups had 3 or 7 g of whole flaxseed and a control group took a placebo (gram seeds). Interventions were administered for 12 weeks. A hematological profile, ferritin quantification in serum, and liver function tests were performed to evaluate the effects of flaxseed.

It was observed that flaxseed with synthetic iron chelators caused a significant reduction in ferritin levels compared with synthetic chelators. The pre-transfusion hemoglobin level was also improved in the intervention group. A significant reduction (p value 0.0003) in ferritin levels among intervention groups indicated that flaxseed reduced the iron overload. It can be concluded that flaxseed reduced iron overload in thalassemia major patients with no side effects and may reduce iron overload solely when taken in adequate quantity.

Although the study targets a non-specific protein-ferritin for the evaluation of iron-overload, the initial ferritin value and reduction in these levels indicate the efficacy of ferritin for reducing iron overload in thalassemia major patients. Moreover, this is the first study, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, that demonstrates the iron-chelation ability of flaxseed in thalassemia major patients, suggesting the use of flaxseed for iron chelation.

This study aims to identify the bioactive compounds in the Onion (Allium burdickii [A.B]) bulb using Raman and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) spectroscopy. It assessed the extraction conditions of bioactive compounds from A.B. while evaluating the best extraction conditions.

The research opted for an experimental qualitative approach. It examined the extraction conditions of A.B., namely, temperature (°C), time (min) and mass-to-liquor ratio (M:R) using ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometry. Identification of bioactive compounds present in the dye was performed using Raman spectroscopy and the validation of the results was done by FTIR spectroscopy.

The study determined the best extraction conditions (time, temperature, M:R) for A.B bulb. The study confirmed the presence of bioactive compounds.

The limitation was quantification of bioactive compounds in A.B bulb.

The findings prove that the A.B. bulb can provide a sustainable source of bioactive compounds (functionalized compounds). The study provides suitable extraction conditions for A.B. and further elaborates on the techniques for identifying bioactive compounds in A.B. bulb extracts.

The study provides A.B. as a source of bioactive compounds and a clean dye for textile coloration.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, there is no documented study on the qualitative analysis of bioactive compounds in A.B using Raman and FTIR. Therefore, the study fulfils the identified need to ascertain alternative procedures for the analysis of bioactive compounds.

This article intends to explore critical factors that affect the adoption of organic farming in emerging economies. The authors respond to the calls from policymakers, non-government organizations, business firms and scholars to improve the farmers' awareness of the negative impact of synthetic chemical pesticides, phosphorus, potassium fertilizers and mineral nitrogen used in traditional farming.

Through self-administered survey questionnaires, responses were obtained from 397 farmers (conventional) regarding organic farming adoption in Haryana (India). The survey responses were collected between October 2022 and December 2022. The authors apply the “partial least squares structural equation modeling” (PLS-SEM) to test the framed hypotheses.

The present article demonstrates six critical determinants of organic farming adoption, i.e. behavioral, cultivation, economic, governmental, marketing, and social factors. These six factors drive 71.0% (R²) variation in organic farming adoption. Governmental factors have a positive but insignificant influence on organic farming adoption. Interestingly, the impact of behavioral and cultivation factors is crucial per path coefficient values.

For the first time, the authors conducted a study on organic farming adoption in Haryana that lies in its context-specific implementation, utilization of localized knowledge and expertise, regional policy support, agricultural diversification and community participation. Future research can build upon by adding agriculture scientists to the study to respond to the cost, quality of the crop and impact of socio-economic policies as moderators/mediators on adoption decisions.

In the developing field of nano-materials synthesis, copper oxide nanoparticles (NPs) are deemed to be one of the most significant transition metal oxides because of their intriguing characteristics. Its synthesis employing green chemistry principles has become a key source for next-generation antibiotics attributed to its features such as environmental friendliness, ease of use and affordability. Because they are more environmentally benign, plants have been employed to create metallic NPs. These plant extracts serve as capping, stabilising or hydrolytic agents and enable a regulated synthesis as well.

Organic chemical solvents are harmful and entail intense conditions during nanoparticle synthesis. The copper oxide NPs (CuO-NPs) synthesised by employing the green chemistry principle showed potential antitumor properties. Green synthesised CuO-NPs are regarded to be a strong contender for applications in the pharmacological, biomedical and environmental fields.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the anticancer potential of CuO-NPs plant extracts to isolate and characterise the active anticancer principles as well as to yield more effective, affordable, and safer cancer therapies.

This review article highlights the copper oxide nanoparticle's biomedical applications such as anticancer, antimicrobial, dental and drug delivery properties, future research perspectives and direction are also discussed.

Pyrus Pyrifolia (Sand Pear) is one of the most underused pear variety despite its nutraceutical potential. Therefore, this paper aims to explore the Pyrus Pyrifolia in term of origin, distribution and classification, nutritional and bioactive potential, therapeutic potential and valorization along with future prospectus.

A wide variety of publications (88) were identified through electronic databases (Science direct, PubMed, SciELO, Google scholar, Link springer and Research gate) under the umbrella of different keywords such as bioactive compounds, health benefits, nutrition, sand pear, Pyrus and Pyrus pyrifolia.

Pyrus Pyrifolia (Sand Pear) is abundant in nutritional and bioactive compounds such as phenolic acids, flavonoids, terpenoids, vitamins and minerals. It exhibits therapeutic potential as being an antioxidant, anti-obesity, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer agent. However, P. pyrifolia is not much explored by food researchers and industrialists, hence remaining underused. A few attempts have been made toward the use of P. pyrifolia for jam, jelly, candy and wine preparation. However, more research is required for the commercial processing of P. pyrifolia and to enhance its availability outside its growing area.

In this paper, nutritional and bioactive compounds of P. pyrifolia are discussed that provide knowledge to the researchers for its use as a functional ingredient.

This study aims to conduct a systematic literature review to investigate the mental health problems during COVID-19 and the role of nutrition in minimizing mental and health-related issues during COVID-19.

A literature search was done electronically on April–May 2022 in the databases Google Scholar, PubMed and Cochrane Library, reviewing all the articles published in English. There were no limitations for the study (such as study design, region or any time frame). The quality assessment was done. The beginning database search picked out a total of 654 articles, 47 in PubMed, 575 in Google Scholar, 22 in Cochrane Library and 10 records from other sources. A total of 565 (duplicates found 89) were found after removing the duplicated articles, after reading the title and abstracts were further decreased to 88 full-text articles. These 88 studies went for full-text analysis, which excluded 56 studies and generated a final 32 articles for systemic analysis. The quality of the included study for the systematic review was assessed in two ways: one is evidence-based and another one on the JBI checklist.

People in social isolation and home quarantine suffer from severe anxiety, stress, depression, loneliness, anger and panic attack. During COVID-19, the vital role of diet and nutrients in mental health has been acknowledged and helps mitigate COVID-19 infection. Many studies showed stress and anxiety due to increased unhealthy eating and lifestyle practices.

This review will explain the interlink between diet and mental health because what we eat and think is interconnected with the gut–brain axis. The dietary elements and psychobiotic help in improving the immune system and psychological distress during the pandemic. This paper describes the role of different nutrients, psychobiotics and phytochemicals, to minimize mental and health issues during the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper also contains a balanced diet plan to withstand COVID-19.

The purpose of this study was to develop an environment-friendly finishing process for coloring and functionalizing fabrics using the extracts from aronia fruit (AF) and/or aronia leaf (AL).

Coloring and functional compounds were extracted from both AF and AL to prepare dyeing and finishing agents for textiles. The bioactive compounds were identified, and their concentrations were determined by spectrophotometry and high-performance liquid chromatography. The extracts were then used to dye and finish natural fibers. The cotton and wool fabrics treated with AF, AL and a combination of AF + AL extracts were investigated in terms of coloring properties and functionalities, specifically antioxidant capacity and antibacterial property.

According to the obtained results, AF extracts contained significant amounts of anthocyanins and phenols while AL extracts contained higher amounts of phenols with very low levels of anthocyanins. It was successfully demonstrated that the AF and AL extracts can be used to dye fabrics with good color properties. Moreover, textiles treated with aronia extracts inhibited the growth of gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria and exhibited antioxidant properties.

AF extract showed superior coloring and functional properties compared to AL extract. However, the treatment solution containing both AF and AL extracts demonstrated significant synergic effects on the antibacterial and antioxidant properties of the treated fabrics.