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11 Creative Methods for Crafting Interactive Presentations

Table of Contents

Microsoft PowerPoint is the quintessential presentation software that has set the standard for creating visual aids for speeches, lectures, and meetings. With tons of templates, themes, and tools, it allows you to create interactive presentation slides that grab an audience’s attention.

PowerPoint offers a rich feature set, including text formatting, animations, transitions, and multimedia integration, so you can make both straightforward and sophisticated presentations.

It’s used across various sectors — educational, corporate, and more — because it’s reliable, compatible with numerous devices, and remains a go-to software for professionals who want a tried-and-true solution to get their point across.

Also read → How to Create an Interactive PowerPoint Presentation

2. iSpring Suite

iSpring Suite is a powerful tool designed for creating engaging presentations, especially for eLearning and corporate training. As it integrates seamlessly with PowerPoint, it enables you to transform conventional slides into dynamic online learning experiences with quizzes, role-plays, screen recordings, and interactions.

Its responsive design ensures presentations are accessible across various devices. Besides, you can save them as SCORM and xAPI packages to upload to a learning management system (LMS) and track learner progress and results with ease.

iSpring Suite is extremely easy to use, and with all its awesome features, it’s a must-have for anyone who wants to create immersive content for teaching and training.

Prezi is an online presentation tool that breaks away from the traditional slide-based format. It offers a dynamic platform for storytelling and information sharing.

With Prezi, you can create non-linear presentations on an endless canvas that allows you to zoom in to and out from details and move around freely. This approach keeps your audience engaged and makes the entire experience more interactive and memorable.

With its user-friendly interface, wide range of templates, and the ability to collaborate in real time, Prezi is a popular choice among professionals, educators, and students who want to go beyond static slides.

Visme is another online tool designed for creating presentations, infographics, and other visual content. Offering a wide range of customizable templates, graphics, and data visualization tools, it stands out with its emphasis on design and ease of use.

It’s Visme’s collaborative capabilities allow teams to work together seamlessly that makes it a good choice for businesses and marketers who want to transmit complex ideas in a more appealing format.

With its comprehensive suite of design tools, Visme is a great alternative to traditional presentation software that empowers users to bring their ideas to life in a visually compelling manner.

5. SlideDog

SlideDog is a unique presentation tool that stands out for its ability to mix and match all kinds of multimedia and presentation styles within a single interface. Unlike traditional presentation software that locks you into one format, SlideDog lets you combine PowerPoint slides, PDFs, Prezis, web pages, video clips, and even live feeds in a single presentation.

The tool is easy to use with its drag-and-drop interface and has neat features like live sharing, audience engagement tools, and remote control via smartphone. It’s a flexible and innovative solution for anyone looking to bring some energy and interaction to their sessions without being limited to a single platform or format.

To learn about other tools that are available on the market, read this article on the best interactive presentation software .

How to Create an Interactive Presentation with iSpring Suite in 5 Easy Steps

As mentioned, iSpring Suite is a powerful tool for crafting presentations that captivate and involve your audience. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to unleash the full potential of this tool and make presentations interactive.

Step 1. Install iSpring Suite

First, you’ll need to have iSpring Suite installed on your computer. It works as an add-in to PowerPoint, so make sure you have PowerPoint installed as well. Once installed, open PowerPoint, and you’ll see the iSpring Suite tab added to your ribbon, signaling that you’re ready to start.

Step 4. Narrate your slides

A voice-over is a great way to guide your audience through the content and ensure they’re following along. With iSpring Suite, you can record audio narration for each slide, adding a personal touch and making your interactive slideshow more engaging.

Or you can use a built-in text-to-speech tool that allows you to generate a natural sounding voice-over without a narrator. Just choose a language and voice, add text, and your narration is ready!

Text-to-Speech functionality in iSpring Suite

Content creator:

Helen Colman

She enjoys combining in-depth research with expert knowledge of the industry. If you have eLearning insights that you’d like to share, please get in touch .

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Google Workspace vs. Microsoft 365: What’s the best office suite for business?

Google Workspace has become a powerful, feature-filled alternative to Microsoft Office. We break down the pros and cons of each suite to help you decide which is right for your business.

Once upon a time, Microsoft Office ruled the business world. By the late ‘90s and early 2000s, Microsoft’s office suite had brushed aside rivals such as WordPerfect Office and Lotus SmartSuite, and there was no competition on the horizon.

Then in 2006 Google came along with Google Docs & Spreadsheets , a collaborative online word processing and spreadsheet duo that was combined with other business services to form the Google Apps suite, later rebranded as G Suite, and now as Google Workspace . Although Google’s productivity suite didn’t immediately take the business world by storm, over time it has gained both in features and in popularity, boasting 6 million paying customers , according to Google’s most recent public stats in March 2020.

Microsoft, meanwhile, has shifted its emphasis away from its traditional licensed Office software to Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365), a subscription-based version that’s treated more like a service, with frequent updates and new features. Microsoft 365 is what we’ve focused on in this story.

Nowadays, choosing an office suite isn’t as simple as it once was. We’re here to help.

Google Workspace vs. Microsoft 365

Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 have much in common. Both are subscription-based, charging businesses per-person fees every month, in varying tiers, depending on the capabilities their customers are looking for. Although Google Workspace is web-based, it has the capability to work offline as well. And while Microsoft 365 is based on installed desktop software, it also provides (less powerful) web-based versions of its applications.

Both suites work well with a range of devices. Because it’s web-based, Google Workspace works in most browsers on any operating system, and Google also offers mobile apps for Android and iOS. Microsoft provides Office client apps for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, and its web-based apps work across browsers.

The suites also offer the same basic core applications. Each has word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, email, calendar, and contacts programs, along with videoconferencing, messaging, and note-taking software. Each has cloud storage associated with it. But those individual applications are quite different from one suite to the other, as are the management tools for taking care of them in a business environment. And both suites offer scads of additional tools as well. So it can be exceedingly difficult to decide which suite is better for your business.

That’s where this piece comes in. We offer a detailed look at every aspect of the office suites, from an application-by-application comparison to how well each suite handles collaboration, how well their apps integrate, pricing, support, and more. Our focus here is on how the suites work for businesses, rather than individual use.

Pricing: Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 subscriptions compared

“Follow the money” is the hallowed refrain of investigators everywhere, and when you’re starting to decide which office suite is better for you, it’s a good place to start as well. Individuals can use several of the online apps from both suites — including Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides as well as Microsoft Word Online, Excel Online, and PowerPoint Online — for free, but businesses should look to the paid Workspace and Microsoft 365 subscriptions for necessary security and management features.

Check out the following tables, first for Google Workspace, and then for Microsoft 365, to compare plans and pricing.

Google Workspace pricing options for business

Google Workspace comes in four commercial versions: Business Starter, Business Standard, Business Plus, and Enterprise. Business Starter, at $6 per user per month, comes with the full suite of applications and 30GB of storage per user. At $12 per user per month, the Business Standard plan includes all that, plus 2TB of storage per user as well as archiving, enterprise search capabilities, and additional administrative tools. Business Plus at $18 per user per month includes everything the Business Standard version offers, plus even more administrative controls and business tools.

Enterprise has everything that Business Plus does, as well as more administrative controls and a low-code application builder. You’ll have to contact Google for pricing details for Enterprise.

Google Workspace business plans

For more detailed information, check out Google’s page comparing pricing plans . Also note that some features available in higher-level Google Workspace plans are available for purchase as standalone services. Additionally, Google offers specialized versions of Workspace Enterprise for healthcare and life sciences, retail, manufacturing, and government organizations, and there are a range of free and paid Workspace versions for nonprofits and educational institutions .

Microsoft 365 pricing options for business

Microsoft 365 business subscriptions are more complicated and range from $5 per user per month for Microsoft 365 Business Essentials, the most basic version for small businesses, to $35 per user per month for Microsoft 365 E5, the most feature-packed version for enterprises. Confusingly, Microsoft renamed all of its small business plans from Office 365 to Microsoft 365, but at the enterprise level, it offers both Office 365 and Microsoft 365 plans.

The tables below outline what you get with each version. The three plans in the first table are for small businesses with up to 300 employees; the ones in the second table are meant for larger organizations.

Microsoft 365 small business plans

Office 365 and microsoft 365 enterprise plans.

Scroll right to see all plans.

Find out more about Microsoft 365 small business plans , as well as the Office 365 enterprise plans and Microsoft 365 enterprise plans . Microsoft also offers an array of Microsoft 365 plans for educational, government, nonprofit, and other institutions .

In addition, many Office apps and services are available on an à la carte basis. Some companies prefer to pay for a lower-level plan and then pay for one or two of these items as add-ons rather than paying for a higher-level comprehensive plan.

Google Workspace vs. Microsoft 365: App by app

Every business has different needs, and yours may place greater value on certain apps than others. For some companies, word processing and email might be the most important apps in an office suite, while others might need a powerful spreadsheet program above everything else.

To help, we’ve compared the major office apps in Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 so you can zero in on the apps that are most important to your business and let their strengths and weaknesses guide your overall decision. We’ve included only the highlights below; if you want more details about each app, we’ve linked to Computerworld articles that offer in-depth comparisons.

Word processing: Google Docs vs. Microsoft Word

Deciding on whether your business would be better off with Google Docs or Microsoft Word is fairly straightforward. Which is more important to your users: easy-to-use collaboration or the greatest range of document creation and editing features? For collaboration, Google Docs is better. For as fully featured a word processor as you’ll find anywhere, you’ll want Word.

By saying Word has superior features, I don’t mean a bunch of tools that your business may never use. I mean great capabilities that make your workflow easier and more productive.

For example, if you’re creating a report, brochure, resume, or almost any other kind of document, Word offers an excellent set of pre-built templates so you can get writing fast, knowing that your document will have a solid, useful design. Word has 300 different business templates alone, while Google Docs only has 55 total templates of all kinds, including personal, business, and educational ones. (Microsoft claims Word has thousands of templates, but we couldn’t count them all.) Word also offers more chart types and styles for embedding into documents.

Microsoft Word has far more powerful features than Google Docs, including many pre-built templates from which to choose when creating a new document. (Click image to enlarge it.)

But Google Docs outshines Word when it comes to live collaboration. Collaborating is seamless and has been built into the app from the ground up, while in Word it’s more difficult to use, not as comprehensive, and feels tacked-on rather than an integral part of the program.

When it comes to document sharing and live collaboration, Google Docs outshines Microsoft Word by a wide margin. (Click image to enlarge it.)

For non-live collaboration — editing and marking up documents for review by others — Word has always been the gold standard, but Google Docs has come a long way and now is nearly as good as Word. Word’s editing tools have slightly finer-grained controls, but apart from that, they’re about even.

Spreadsheets: Google Sheets vs. Microsoft Excel

Do users in your company mostly work alone on spreadsheets, or do they frequently collaborate with others? The answer to that will determine whether Excel or Google Sheets is better for your business.

For those who primarily work by themselves, Excel is the clear winner. As with Word, its wide selection of templates offers an embarrassment of riches. For example, there are more than 80 templates just for different types of budgets. Whether it’s a business budget or a special-purpose budget, such as for a marketing event, you’ll likely find one that fits your needs and that can be easily edited. By contrast, Google Sheets has only three different budget templates.

Excel also offers far more chart types than Google Sheets — 19 in all — including popular ones such as column, line, pie, bar, and area; more complex ones such as radar, surface, and histogram; and some that are known mainly to data professionals, like box & whisker. And many chart types have multiple subtypes — for example, among the bar charts you’ll find clustered bar, stacked bar, and so on, and each of those has two variations. Google Sheets has only seven main types of charts and a handful of individual charts that can’t be categorized. It’s also simpler to create charts with Excel than it is in Google Sheets.

Excel has far more sophisticated features than Google Sheets, including many more chart types. (Click image to enlarge it.)

Google Sheets far outpaces Excel in real-time collaboration, though. As with Docs, collaboration is baked directly into Sheets. Not only does it have more powerful tools, but they’re naturally integrated and easy to access. The same holds true for editing and commenting on spreadsheets.

Google Sheets’ collaboration tools are powerful and easy to use. (Click image to enlarge it.)

Presentations: Google Slides vs. Microsoft PowerPoint

As with word processing and spreadsheet apps, whether Google Slides or PowerPoint is best for your business comes down to a single point: Do you prize collaboration or powerful features in a presentation program? If collaboration is king in your company, Google Slides is better. For every other reason, PowerPoint is.

For example, PowerPoint’s QuickStarter feature makes quick work of starting a presentation. Choose the topic of your presentation, and QuickStarter walks you through creating an outline, starter slides, templates, and themes. Although Google Slides does offer an Explore tool that suggests layouts as well as images and other content related to your slideshow topic, it is in no way equivalent to QuickStarter.

microsoft 365 05 powerpoint quickstarter

PowerPoint has numerous features Google Slides can’t match, including QuickStarter, which walks you through creating an outline, starter slides, templates, and themes. (Click image to enlarge it.)

Similarly, with PowerPoint, it’s easier to add graphics, transitions, animations, and multimedia. It has more chart and table types as well. And it offers sophisticated options when it comes to giving the presentation itself, with innovative capabilities such as Rehearse Timings, which times how long you take on each individual slide as you rehearse a presentation. That way, you won’t get bogged down on any individual slide, and you can practice giving each slide its just due. Google Slides has nothing like it.

However, Google Slides rules when it comes to collaboration, with far outstrips the kludgy and awkward capabilities built into PowerPoint. And because Slides offers fewer capabilities than Excel, it’s slightly easier to create slides in it, because it doesn’t pack as many features into the interface.

Slides isn’t as powerful as PowerPoint, but its interface is less cluttered and confusing. (Click image to enlarge it.)

Email: Gmail vs. Microsoft Outlook

If you prize simplicity, you’ll favor Gmail over Outlook. Gmail has a much cleaner and less cluttered interface than Outlook’s, offering the best balance between ease of use and powerful features. However, Outlook has made some headway towards being more straightforward to use with a new simplified Ribbon you can turn on.

Gmail offers a streamlined interface and intuitive ways to accomplish your most important email tasks. (Click image to enlarge it.)

Whether it’s creating, responding to, or managing email, Gmail offers an intuitive interface with easy-to-use tools for getting your work done fast. My favorites include an AI-driven option that suggests words and phrases as you type, a “nudge” feature for surfacing forgotten messages, and a handy snooze button for delaying incoming messages.

When it comes to power features, however, Outlook rules. For example, Outlook’s Focused Inbox lets you see and respond to the most important emails first, and its Clean Up feature does a great job of simplifying long email threads so they’re easier to follow. And because the contacts and calendar functions are part of Outlook itself, they’re well integrated with email. Gmail relies on the separate Google Contacts and Calendar apps, which can be a bit more cumbersome to navigate.

Even with a new, simplified Ribbon option, Outlook’s interface can be quite confusing to use. (Click image to enlarge it.)

If your users want every bell and whistle possible, Outlook provides them all. For getting things done quickly, Gmail is a better choice.

Collaboration: Google Chat, Meet, and Spaces vs. Microsoft Teams

As I’ve noted multiple times in this article, when it comes to collaborating on documents, Google Workspace is far superior to Microsoft 365 — it’s baked right into the interface, rather than feeling like an afterthought as it does in the Office apps. Everything is in front of you to invite people to collaborate, set their collaboration rights, and chat with them while you do the work together. There’s a deeper learning curve for using collaboration in Office, and even when you learn how to do it, it’s not nearly as seamless as in the Google apps.

Working together on individual documents is only one part of the equation, though. When it comes to more complex, enterprise-wide collaboration features, Microsoft 365 includes tools that beat anything Google Workspace offers. Microsoft Teams, for example, combines group chat, online meetings, videoconferencing, customized workspaces, calendars, and shared team file repositories in a way that’s more sophisticated and useful than anything Google has. And Teams has deep ties to the rest of the Office platform, offering effortless integration with Outlook, SharePoint, OneDrive for Business and more.

Teams is a group-chat platform that integrates closely with the rest of Microsoft 365. (Click image to enlarge it.)

For its part, Workspace offers Google Meet for videoconferencing and Google Chat for messaging. A relatively new addition to the Workspace app set is Spaces, a workflow integration and collaboration platform that’s integrated with Google Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Meet, and Tasks. Spaces lets you create shared workspaces where you can chat, share files, and assign tasks. These tools are useful and straightforward, although not quite as powerful as Microsoft 365’s offerings.

Creating a new shared workspace in Spaces. (Click image to enlarge it.)

Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace each offer their own social-network-like place to interact with one another, Yammer in the case of Microsoft 365 and Currents for Workspace. Neither of them is directly integrated with its respective office suite, though, and Google recently announced that it’s phasing out Currents in favor of Spaces.

Storage and file sharing: Google Drive vs. Microsoft OneDrive for Business and SharePoint

Both suites come with substantial amounts of storage, aside from the cheapest Google Workspace version, Starter, which offers only 30GB per person. The next two Workspace options include 2TB or 5TB per person, and the Enterprise plan includes unlimited storage. Microsoft 365’s small business and lower-tier enterprise plans include 1TB of storage per user, while its E3 and E5 plans include 5TB of storage per user.

There’s little to differentiate Google Workspace’s and Microsoft 365’s storage-and-shared-documents features from one another. Both Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive for Business integrate directly with their own office suites, and both allow you to access the files on any device. In Workspace, the files live in the cloud by default rather than on the devices themselves, although you can also store them locally. In Microsoft 365 they typically live on each device and also in the cloud, and it all syncs together, although you have the option of keeping specific files and folders cloud-only.

If you’re worried about offline access for the cloud-first Google Workspace, it offers management tools that allow administrators to set whether users can access their documents and use Docs, Sheets, and Slides when their computers aren’t connected to the internet. The tools allow admins to install a policy on each computer allowing that access, or else let each user decide whether to allow offline access.

OneDrive has a nice feature called OneDrive Files on Demand that lets users decide, on a file-by-file and folder-by-folder basis, which files to store on individual devices and which to leave in the cloud, although the files and folders in the cloud are still available for download when you want them on a device.

Almost all Microsoft 365 business and enterprise plans also include a free version of Microsoft’s SharePoint service, called SharePoint Online. SharePoint Online adds substantial features to storage and sharing. It manages and organizes documents, workflows, and other shared information, typically via a series of mini-sites.

SharePoint Online is delivered as a service and is hosted by Microsoft, so businesses do not need to purchase and manage their own servers and infrastructure for it. However, they may need admins to handle a number of SharePoint Online tasks, such as content management and portal design.

There’s also a for-pay version of SharePoint, called SharePoint Server, that is available under a separate license and isn’t included as part of Microsoft 365. With SharePoint Server, your business hosts and manages the physical and software infrastructure required for SharePoint. That means performing tasks such as racking servers; applying security patches and feature updates; and monitoring uptime, reliability, and security. With SharePoint Online, those tasks are handled by Microsoft.

Google doesn’t offer a true equivalent to SharePoint Online in Google Workspace. Subscribers to the Business, Education, and Enterprise plans can use a feature called Team Drives, which are Google Drive folders that can be accessed and managed by more than one person. They can be used as handy repositories for members of a team to store and share documents, images, and other files, but Team Drives are not integrated intranet sites like those offered by SharePoint.

One final note: Google’s search tools for finding documents in Google Drive are far better than Microsoft’s search tools in OneDrive, and its Cloud Search function extends Google’s search power across all of a company’s content. That being said, it’s generally easier to browse OneDrive using File Explorer than it is to browse Google Drive on the web.

Other tools and extras with Google Workspace vs. Microsoft 365

Microsoft 365 goes well beyond suite basics, with plenty of extra applications and smaller apps. Foremost among them is Access, which can be used to build business applications, either based on templates or completely from scratch. It’s designed for non-developers, although it does require some coding smarts. Access is available for Windows only, and subscribers to Microsoft 365 Business Basic and Microsoft 365 E1 don’t get it.

Access is among the tools included with most business and enterprise Microsoft 365 plans. (Click image to enlarge it.)

Another PC-only program included with most business and enterprise subscriptions is the Windows-based desktop publishing software Publisher. The OneNote note-taking app is a very useful yet underutilized part of the Office suite. Microsoft 365 also comes with Microsoft Forms, an app that lets you create surveys, quizzes and polls, and Microsoft Planner , which, as its name implies, helps teams create plans, and assign tasks, share files, chat about what you’re working on, and keep track of updates. It can work by itself or integrate with Microsoft Teams.

Another application included with some Microsoft 365 business and enterprise plans is Power Automate (previously called Microsoft Flow), which allows businesses to automate repetitive tasks and integrate them into workflows — for example, automatically sending an alert when a new item is added to SharePoint. Other apps and services included with some plans include PowerApps, a low-code app development tool; MyAnalytics, a productivity analysis tool; Delve, a tool that lets users find and organize content in Microsoft 365; Stream, an enterprise video service; Sway, a tool for creating web-based presentations; and Kaizala, a mobile work management app aimed at frontline workers.

Finally, Microsoft offers additional tools that aren’t formally part of Microsoft 365 but integrate with it, such as To Do, a to-do list app that works with Outlook and Microsoft Planner.

That’s a lot of extras, which is both good and bad. The good is obvious — there are plenty of tools available for you. The bad may be less obvious — getting a handle on how they all work (or don’t work) together can be very confusing.

Google Workspace has fewer of these extras, and most are less powerful than Microsoft 365’s additional tools. Google Forms , which works hand-in-hand with Sheets, is probably the most powerful and useful of the extras. As the name implies, it lets you create forms for a wide variety of purposes, such as an order form, a work request, time-off request, getting feedback about an event.

Google Forms lets you quickly and easily create customized forms to get feedback. (Click image to enlarge it.)

Google Sites is another useful one. It lets you create team and company websites for individual projects, events, and other similar purposes. There’s also the Google Keep note-taking app, which is straightforward, bare-bones, and not nearly as sophisticated as Microsoft’s OneNote. AppMaker (available with the Google Workspace Business and Enterprise plans) provides a low-code app development environment.

And if you want to create drawings, particularly diagrams, you’ll appreciate Google Drawings, which is not included with Google Workspace but works in concert with it (and is free). If you create a drawing with Drawings and embed it into a Google Doc, and then make a change in the drawing file itself, the drawing in Google Docs gets updated as well.

None of these extras offers knock-your-socks-off capabilities, aside from Microsoft’s Access and PowerApps and Google’s AppMaker, which can allow those with limited programming experience to create truly useful applications. So they may not affect which suite is best for your business. For many companies, they’re nice-to-have tools, not must-have ones.

Google Workspace vs. Microsoft 365: Security and management tools

Choosing the productivity suite with the best features for your business is one thing, but often overlooked is how easy or difficult it is to manage the suite and protect your data. Even the best user-facing features can’t make up for poor or insufficient security and management tools.

Both suites are managed from a web interface, and in both instances, the interface leaves something to be desired, with somewhat confusing options and layouts. However, the simplified view in the Microsoft 365 admin center beats anything in Google Workspace because of how easily it lets you accomplish the most common tasks, including and editing new and existing users, changing licenses, paying bills, and installing Office on devices..

Interfaces aside, Microsoft 365 offers better admin account security, superior mobile administration, and more management controls. Both suites protect your data with enterprise-grade security and offer a central security center for managing user permissions and protections.

For an in-depth comparison, check out “ Google Workspace vs. Microsoft 365: Which has better management tools? ”

Google Workspace vs. Microsoft 365: Service and support

In an ideal world, nothing goes wrong with an office suite, and no one ever needs technical support. But we don’t live in that ideal world. So you’ll want to know the kind of support and updates Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 offer.

Google Workspace offers 24/7 tech support via phone, email, and chat, but for Workspace administrators only. There’s also a searchable help center for administrators and a blog covering release information for Google Workspace updates . Also useful is the Google Workspace Community , which includes forums as well as YouTube videos to help administrators accomplish common tasks. Non-administrators will have to visit Google’s general help area , which covers many Google products such as YouTube, Google Maps, and Google Photos in addition to the individual components of Google Workspace. There’s also a Google Workspace Learning Center for user training.

Microsoft also has 24/7 tech support via phone, email, and chat for Microsoft 365 administrators. The Microsoft 365 admin center help site includes help targeted at small businesses as well as enterprises, and the Microsoft 365 Training site offers comprehensive video training for admins, IT pros and Microsoft 365 users. There’s a sizable number of forums devoted to Microsoft 365 . And the Microsoft Office Help & Training area has a wide variety of help, down to the application level and including troubleshooting for both consumers and admins. As for updates, Microsoft generally releases Microsoft 365 updates one or more times a month and publishes information online about every update .

Can Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace work together?

As you’ve seen throughout this piece, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace have their own strengths and weaknesses, so you might be tempted to use both of them — for example, Microsoft 365 for document creation and Google Workspace for collaboration.

Theoretically, it’s possible. In practice, it’s a bad idea. In part that’s because Google Workspace’s documents aren’t saved as local documents with their own file formats. Instead, they live on Google’s servers. You can save them in various file formats, including Microsoft 365’s .docx, .xlsx and .pptx, and you can import files from those and other formats as well. There’s even a way to natively edit Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files in their original formats on Google’s servers. But I’ve found that formatting and layouts are often lost in translation between Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, embedded videos don’t work, not all comments are shown, resolved comments don’t appear, comments you make in Google aren’t brought back into Office, and so on.

In addition, the workflow is a nightmare if you’re transferring files back and forth between the two suites. The idea behind editing online is to have a single location where everyone can collaborate on the latest version of each file, but if you use both Workspace and Microsoft 365, various versions of the file may be stored in Google Drive, OneDrive for Business, or both.

But what about using one suite for content creation, collaboration, and storage and the other for communications like email, shared calendars, group chat, and videoconferencing? Again, it’s theoretically possible, but I don’t see the point. It makes everything much more difficult because of convoluted workflows, and you’d lose the integrations built into each suite. And there’s also the issue of businesses having to pay for, manage, and maintain two office suites, not one, when there are no obvious benefits to be gained by it.

As for integrating with other enterprise software such as Salesforce, Shopify, HubSpot, and others, there are plenty of tools for doing that with both suites. If any particular piece of enterprise software is particularly important to your business, you’d do well to test out the integrations with both Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 before deciding on a suite.

Who should use Google Workspace

Based on all this, what kind of company should use Google Workspace? It’s pretty straightforward: If collaborating on documents is baked into your company’s DNA — or you want to bake it in — Google Workspace is for you. Its live collaboration features far outstrip anything Microsoft 365 has to offer. They’re such an integral part of the suite’s design and so simple to use, it requires practically no time at all to get up and running with them.

Google Workspace is also a good bet if your company doesn’t need all the sophisticated features of Microsoft 365’s individual apps. Each individual application in Google Workspace is simpler to use than Microsoft 365’s, with Gmail in particular more straightforward than Outlook. And if your users do a lot of searching for documents, Google’s search for Google Drive outstrips what Microsoft 365 has to offer.

Who should use Microsoft 365

If powerful and sophisticated features are more important to you than the best in collaboration, then Microsoft 365 is for you. Every one of its applications beats out its Google Workspace equivalent. And it’s not as if you can’t do live collaboration in Microsoft 365. It’s just a bit more of a chore and not as straightforward as in Google Workspace. And Microsoft 365’s markup features are exemplary, so it’s a good bet when people need to review each other’s work.

There are other reasons for a business to use Microsoft 365 as well. Although Google Workspace’s Team Drives are useful for sharing documents and materials, they are no match for the fully collaborative environments that SharePoint offers. If you want to manage your mail server, rather than use hosted email, you’ll also want Microsoft 365. And Microsoft Teams provides a great way for teams to share work with one another.

This story was originally published in February 2020 and updated in September 2022.

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Chancellor Norman Lamont speaks to the media at the Treasury, 16 September 1992.

Black Wednesday 20 years on: how the day unfolded

Within minutes of the London markets opening, it was clear the pound was going to come under renewed pressure.

There were only three days until the weekend referendum in France on the Maastricht treaty. Unlike the UK, French voters were preparing to decide on plans drawn up by the then president of the European commission, Jacques Delors, for majority voting and closer economic ties. Polls suggested 58% were against.

Sterling had joined the EU's longstanding Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM) in 1990 but had struggled to remain inside its designated floating band. Now circling City speculators saw a chance to attack Britain's currency and wreck a fledgling monetary union that many of them thought would never work.

The Italian lira and Spanish peseta were also under pressure, but it was the pound that was grabbing the headlines.

George Soros's Quantum Fund led a field of speculators who borrowed UK gilts only to sell them and buy them back later at cheaper prices. They repeated the trick every few minutes, making a profit each time. Soros said later he had made £1bn from selling sterling he didn't own .

By mid-morning the selling was so intense that Bank of England officials were buying £2bn of sterling an hour.

The prime minister, John Major, was staying in Admiralty house in Whitehall. He was told about the frenzy of selling and convened a meeting of key ministers. He talked about the possibility of interest rate rises beyond the already sky-high 10% and the need for further interventions by the Bank of England. Senior Conservatives Michael Heseltine, Douglas Hurd and Kenneth Clarke joined Major and the chancellor, Norman Lamont , who was on the end of a phone.

At 11am they agreed to push up interest rates to 12%.

Jim Trott, former chief dealer for the Bank of England, described the day as "stunningly expensive" . He said that behind the scenes he bought more sterling in four hours that day than anybody had before or since. All of his purchases lost value during the day – and went down even more when the government pulled out.

The ERM demanded that currencies stayed within a band set in relation to other currencies in the club. To maintain the currency values relative to each other, countries with the most valuable currencies had to sell their own and buy the weakest. In September the deutschmark was the most powerful currency and sterling the weakest within its band.

As Trott tells it, the Bank of England was furiously buying sterling but little was done by the Bundesbank to sell deutschmarks.

"The cavalry were the Bundesbank. We kept on looking over the hill, but there was no dust and there were no hats and no sabres. And then later at the conference call they suddenly didn't speak English, which was extraordinary. So we were kind of stretched on that day," he said. Thirteen years later, Treasury papers would be released showing the cost to be an estimated £3.3bn.

By lunchtime it was obvious the efforts of the central bank and attraction of high UK interest rates were outweighed by a complete lack of confidence in the UK's ability to stabilise its currency. News had filtered through to traders that the head of the German Bundesbank was in favour of Britain devaluing its currency. If this was his view, it explained why he was unwilling to spend money propping up the UK at a higher exchange rate. He obviously believed it was a doomed project and not worth any more German taxpayers' money.

Knowing Britain had a paucity of foreign currency reserves to sell, speculators such as Soros confidently moved in for the kill .

The radio news bulletins that afternoon quoted traders using words such as "slaughter" and "disaster" to describe the situation.

Lamont called Major to say the game was up, but Major disagreed and insisted interest rates should rise further to 15%. When the market closed later that afternoon, sterling was still outside its currency band.

At 7.40pm, after Major conceded defeat, Lamont, flanked by Treasury mandarin Gus O'Donnell and his adviser David Cameron, who were later to be Cabinet secretary and coalition prime minister respectively, declared that Britain had suspended its membership of the ERM.

The TV news bulletins went into overdrive. The BBC's Peter Jay said leaving the ERM would wreck the government's plans to bring down inflation by the end of the decade, though a cheaper currency would spur growth.

In parliament the next day John Smith, the Labour leader, derided the Major government's economic policy. He said: "The real lesson of the ERM crisis was that 'before you can have a strong currency you need a strong economy'."

European monetary union
European Union
George Soros
Norman Lamont

Macbeth and Issues of Gender

William Shakespeare's Macbeth is both the author's shortest and bloodiest play. It is therefore a natural choice for high school students. Plays are meant to be performed and not merely read, as is usually the case in the high school classroom. Therefore, it is a happy occurrence that instructors may now use video recordings, audio recordings, and DVDs to bring the performance element into the classroom. But performance on film was not Shakespeare's medium. On stage, the audience gets to look where it wants. The actors get to say their lines without fear of winding up on the cutting floor. When we switch from a play to a film, the director is king, and we now have possibly quite a different experience.

The artistry of cinema and the difficult task of taking a stage play and reinterpreting it for a different medium offer students and teachers a plethora of interesting, and sometimes controversial choices to examine. The intention of this curriculum unit is to examine many of these cinematic alterations and interpretations and to use them to enrich the classroom discussion of Macbeth . How do the costumes add to or conflict with our understanding of the characters? Does the casting seem appropriate? For instance, is a particular Lady Macbeth too old, too young, too sexy, or too ugly to have caused the reactions in Macbeth that we see? Why was a particular location chosen? Was the director looking for authenticity, trying to convey a message, or did he simply run out of money? What changes in mood occur when lighting or the background music are added? Many such questions and more may be posed when considering a scene of Macbeth on film, or of any adaptation of literature to film.

Macbeth is an appealing play for both male and female twelfth grade high school students. The subject matter of the play is known to involve murder and violence, and at first glance, not much more than a man whose ambition got the better of him. We have in Macbeth what appears to be the ultimate man, one who knows exactly what he wants, a man of action. However, Shakespeare is capable of writing far more nuanced characters than that. I propose that we look at many non-linguistic issues of film to help illuminate the subtleties in the language of Shakespeare.

Macbeth is introduced to us before he ever appears on stage. This is a technique that Shakespeare often employs. We learn of Macbeth's "valiant," "brave," and "noble" virtues, his exploits on the battlefield, and of the admiration of his king before he steps foot onto the stage. The exploits of Macbeth in battle are vividly described. We learn that Macbeth unhesitatingly "unseam'd" the "merciless Macdonwald" "from the nave to the chaps," and with a bit of foreshadowing of future events, "fix'd his head upon [their] battlements." We learn that "brave Macbeth" killed so many that his sword "smok'd with bloody execution." We discover that, even when "shipwrecking storms and direful thunders break," and the opposition begins "a fresh assault," neither Macbeth nor Banquo were anymore dismayed than eagles are by sparrows, or lions by gentle rabbits. Thus they turn the tide of battle so completely, and vanquish their enemies so thoroughly, that "poor Sweno, the Norweyan lord" must beg to have their dead soldiers buried on Scottish soil.

"The narrative casts forth an image of Macbeth as an almost superhuman engine of destruction," says Derek Cohen. "The phrase 'carv'd out his passage' is no neutral description of warrior's progress, but a terrible image of bloody slaughter as Macbeth makes a corridor of bodies between himself and Macdonwald. The smoking sword speaks not only of the hidden demonism of the hero, but also the wrath with which he wreaks his righteous havoc" (Cohen 130).

As a result, we are thoroughly prepared to meet a man who is decisive, brave, undaunted by overpowering enemies — a man who knows what he needs to do and does it, and certainly a man who does not flinch from bloody acts. So it is with great surprise, perhaps astonishment, that we see this great man of the battlefield, this man among men, brought to his knees by the powers of "equivocation," manipulation, and persuasion by the women of the play. Or is that what has happened? Was it instead a form of permission for Macbeth to act out his ambitions already lurking in his heart? We have already heard about Macbeth's ambitions and thoughts so horrible that he wonders, "why do I yield to that suggestion/Whose horrid image doth unfix my hair/And make my seated heart knock at my ribs" (I, iii).

Scholar Dennis Biggins says that "Shakespeare carefully avoids portraying a Macbeth helplessly caught in the grip of irresistible demonic forces; the Weird Sisters' malice is evident in all their traffickings with him, yet nowhere are we shown invincible proof of their power over him" (256). Was this man, who fights so bravely on the battlefield, so weak and uncertain of his own actions once at home that he can be swayed with a well-constructed argument, or a trick of fortune telling? What comments is Shakespeare making about gender stereotypes of his time? What happens when a man or woman attempts to "o'erleap" the role that has been spelled out for them in society and go another way?

This curriculum unit will address these questions. Students will examine selected scenes from four screen adaptations of Macbeth: Roman Polanski's Macbeth (1971) , Orson Welles' Macbeth (1948) , Men of Respect (1990) , and Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood (1957), or its more direct translation, The Castle of the Spider's Web . Each director has his own approach, visible in camera angles, lighting, sound, casting, omission and inclusion of Shakespeare's lines, and the addition of scenes never written by Shakespeare. We will examine Macbeth through the questions it raises about the nature of men and women. How are the witches and Lady Macbeth depicted? Who do they cast? How are they dressed? How do they sound and move? Students will view selected scenes of the women in Macbeth to enrich their discussions of Shakespeare's apparent attitudes. What is Shakespeare's original intent, and do the directors aim to be faithful to this, or do they alter the meaning of the play as written to suit a contemporary audience or personal point of view?

The world that Shakespeare has created in Macbeth is a world of men and women living with gender stereotypes: crossing them, fighting against them, and the blurring of roles. Interestingly, according to Holinshed's Chronicles of Scotland , the inspiration for many of Shakespeare's plays, we learn that in the days of the historic Macbeth, once the actual King of Scotland, women were not kept in a quiet, weak, uninvolved role. We learn from Carolyn Asp that "Holinshed actually writes of this period that 'in the daies also the women of our countries were of no lesse courage than the men; for all stout maidens and wives. . .marched as well in the field as did the men, and so soone as the armie did set forward, they slue the first living creature that they found, in whose bloud they not onlie bathed their swords, but also tasted thereof with their mouthes"(158). Shakespeare, on the other hand, creates a world where it is unnatural for women to fight. In Act IV, scene iii, Ross is explaining to Macduff how bad things go under the rule of Macbeth, so bad in fact, that "your eye in Scotland would. . .make our women fight." Asp believes that "this comment suggests that Shakespeare took liberties with his source in order to create an artistic world in which he could examine male and female stereotypes"(158).

Men and women do have differences, to be sure, and Kimbrough refers to these differences as "infinitesimal." The differences really exist not in the body, he says, but in the mind, and by Shakespeare's era, the separation between men and women had become "an absolute division of humanity, not into subtypes of one species, but into separated types, each treated as if it were itself a separate species" (175). The separate species of the male was on top, women below. Shakespeare examines these strict distinctions in his plays. Women dress as men, as just one example, who were really boys playing women. He enjoys the opportunity to examine human nature, and clearly, he can see the reality beyond the roles played by men and women - the each is capable of the characteristics and strengths of the other. "Shakespeare sensed that humanhood embraces manhood and womanhood. Shakespeare sensed that so long as one remains exclusively female or exclusively make, that person will be restricted and confined, denied human growth. . .his works move toward liberating humanity from the prisons created by inclusive and exclusive gender labeling" (Kimbrough 175).

Although both the men and women of Shakespeare's Macbeth are important, the focus of this curriculum unit is the women of the play: Lady Macbeth and the witches. Macbeth may appear at first to be a stereotypical, uncomplicated man, and will become more complex later on; Lady Macbeth, however, reveals her complicated personality from the start.

Lady Macbeth

Lady Macbeth is one of the strongest women in all of Shakespeare's plays. However, consider how she must contend with the role of women in her world. In order for Lady Macbeth to carry out her plans, she feels she must pray that the gods "unsex [her] here." Even then, it is not her intent to carry out the murder of Duncan herself, but to spur on her husband to "catch the nearest way." "And the irony of this attempt to masculate herself is highlighted by the fact that she was trying to be the 'good and dutiful' wife of the newly emerging middle-class culture, trying to 'better' her husband" (Kimbrough 187).

Shakespeare's Scotland is a warrior society with little place for women. "Women are subordinate to men and divorced from political influence because they lack those qualities that would fit them for a warrior society"(Asp 158). We have already seen how Macbeth's first entrance into the play follows his brave actions on the battlefield.

In Macbeth , and elsewhere in Shakespeare, as in Elizabethan literature in general, to be 'manly' is to be aggressive, daring, bold, resolute, and strong, especially in the face of death, whether giving or receiving. To be 'womanly' is to be gentle, fearful, pitying, wavering, and soft, a condition often signified by tears. That machismo was a positive cultural virtue in Shakespeare's day is what gives point to Lady Macbeth's strikes against her husband. Indeed, the play opens and closes with ceremonial and romantic emphasis on brave manhood. In the beginning, such is the theme of the description given of 'brave Macbeth' by that 'good and hardy soldier' whose 'words become thee as thy wounds. /They smack of honor both.' (Kimbrough 177).

Lady Macbeth is not aligned with the stereotypes in Shakespeare's Macbeth , but nonetheless she must contend with them from both inside and outside herself. Asp outlines many examples of ways that the characters of Macbeth cannot overcome their male/female stereotypical roles. Despite Lady Macbeth's desire to be more like a man for the task at hand, she proves to be still the weak female when it comes to the actual deed. She needs wine to maintain her courage. As she says, "That which hath made them drunk hath made me bold" (II, ii). She jumps and starts at every sound saying, "Hark! Peace! It was the owl that shriek'd" while waiting for her husband to return from his murderous act. She thinks of killing Duncan herself when she has the daggers in her hands, but holds back, saying, "Had he not resembled/My father as he slept, I had done 't"(II, ii). The speech of both Macbeths is "staccato," demonstrating the fear they are both feeling at that moment.

Macduff arrives, discovers the murdered Duncan, and awakens the household. Lady Macbeth enters feigning outrage by the disturbance, and Macduff replies with concern for her gentle nature as a woman, "O gentle lady, /'Tis not for you to hear what I can speak:/The repetition, in a woman's ear, /Would murder as it fell" (II, iii). In fact, he is correct to be concerned, because shortly thereafter, she is overcome by the news of murder. It is not Duncan's death that overwhelms her womanly sensibilities, but the news that Macbeth has gone beyond their plan and murdered the chamberlains who had been "mark'd with blood" of Duncan. Macbeth admits, "That I did kill them" (II, iii), and Lady Macbeth exclaims, "Help me hence, ho!" (II, iii) as she faints, Macduff requesting, "Look to the lady" (II, iii). Despite her attempts to go beyond her own gender, in the end, she proves that she remains a "lady."

Derek Cohen states, "The equation of manliness with violence, a truism in the criticism of Macbeth, has a curious double edge. It is from Lady Macbeth that Macbeth himself takes his images of manliness. His fears and scruples, his anxious dependence on his wife's opinions bespeak a sensitive 'femaleness' in his own nature which is visibly belied by her brutality. We are left in gender limbo"(133).

So Shakespeare seems to have deliberately chosen to examine what happens when a man or a woman departs from sexual stereotypes. In the case of Lady Macbeth, we see the tragic result of one who pushes for the ultimate act of violence, in a manly fashion, not able to predict the "manliness" she will unleash in her husband, or the distance it will create between herself and her "partner in greatness."

Women as Forces of Evil and Lady Macbeth

Women are a dangerous presence in Macbeth . According to Stephanie Chamberlain, fear of the power of women was a strong force in early modern England. Women could wield control over patrilineage in ways men could not. Women could be unfaithful in marriage, thus changing the lineage, and a husband could be duped into raising another man's child. Women could pass on traits, both wanted and unwanted, through nursing, rearing of children, and neglect of children. It was feared that women would commit infanticide. Chamberlain tells us, "Perhaps no other early modern crime better exemplifies cultural fears about maternal agency than does infanticide, a crime against both person and lineage"(3).

Coursen suggests, in fact, that the story of Adam and Eve underlies the entire play. He says, "The myth vibrating beneath the surface of Macbeth is of the original myths - that of the fall from a state of grace" (375). When she says, ". . .look like the innocent flower, /But be the serpent under't (I, v), he believes that "The serpent suggests the deception which slithered into Eden to tempt Eve," and that "Lady Macbeth here is the tempting serpent and, of course, is also the deceived" (376).

In Act I, scene seven, we see Lady Macbeth acting as the ultimate temptress. She skillfully pulls out all the stops to manipulate her husband. When Macbeth informs his wife that "We will proceed no further in this business" (I, vii), she impugns the ultimate definition of manhood, his sexual prowess, when she replies, "Art thou afeard/ To be the same in thine own act and valor/As thou art in desire?"(I, vii), and then almost immediately questions whether or not he would choose to "live a coward." He replies, "I dare do all that may become a man" (I, vii), feeling he must defend himself against her accusations. She does not stop there. First she acts as if the idea originated with Macbeth and not herself saying, "What beast was't then/That made you break this enterprise to me?" (I, vii) and adds, "When you durst do it, then you were a man" (I, vii). She continues to wheedle seductively, saying, "And, to be more than what you were, you would/Be so much more the man." (I, vii). Next, in the very same speech, Lady Macbeth utters the cryptic lines stating that, rather than back out of this promise to kill Duncan, she would sooner take "the babe that milks me:/I would, while it was smiling in my face, /Have pluck'd my nipple from his boneless gums/And dash'd the brains out" (I, vii).

When Macbeth responds with, "If we should fail?" (I, vii), we see that she had indeed succeeded in convincing him to go through with the murder of Duncan after all. And she is not through yet. She has the entire plan worked out, and all her husband must do is follow instructions. Macbeth is so in awe of his wife's power and force at that point that he states that she should "Bring forth men-children only;/For thy undaunted mettle should compose/Nothing but males" (I, vii). Apparently, Macbeth feels he must prove his manhood to his wife even though seemingly all of Scotland has acknowledged his bravery and courage. By the end of a scene like this, what man could stand up to such a woman?

The Witches

Fear of women in early modern England is also evidenced by the accusations of witchcraft toward primarily women. "In the period 1300-1500 about two-thirds of all accused were women. A closer examination. . .indicates, however, that many of the male one-third were persecuted in the early fourteenth century, and by the end of this period the trials. . .show an overwhelming concern with women" (Anderson 172). The question is why were women the targets to such an overwhelming degree of this barbaric persecution, and why was this so readily accepted? Where were the defenders of women?

Anderson and Gordon point to the lowly position of women in the Middle Ages, "even in the earlier period of 'courtly love'" (Anderson 173). They quote Eileen Power when they say, "a fundamental tenet of Christian dogma was the subjection of women, while: 'The view of woman as instrument of the Devil, a thing at once inferior and evil, took shape in the earliest period of Church history and was indeed originated by the Church.'" (173).

The belief in witchcraft, therefore, was not new when King James took the throne of England in 1603. However, as in many things, Elizabeth took a moderate approach to their prosecution. King James, on the other hand, fancied he was an expert, wrote his own book on the subject entitled Daemonologie , and even participated personally in some witch trials (Best 1). A renewed and more enthusiastic persecution of witches was exported from Scotland along with their monarch. Between 1560 and 1707, somewhere between three thousand and four thousand five hundred had "perished horribly" in Scotland, more thanin England, despite a much more meager population (Anderson 176). One of King James' acts once he took the English throne was to "extend the death penalty" to many more accused witches than had been the case under Elizabethan law.

The English, however, never matched the Scots in these large numbers. In fact, Anderson and Gordon report a study by Notestein suggesting that "self-confident and independent women who increasingly appear in late sixteenth and early seventeenth century drama probably mirrored real changes taking place in all levels of English society" (177).

Do the women of Shakespeare's Macbeth reflect a set of conflicting opinions about women of his day? "The relative mildness of English witchcraft and witch persecution can, therefore, be attributed to the difficulties involved in translating an image derived from a sexual mythology which saw women as generically inferior and inherently evil into one which could appear credible to a society which saw women in a different light" (Anderson 181).

So we have a very conflicted image of women as source material for Shakespeare's Macbeth . On one hand, we have the text from Holinshed telling us that women were courageous and powerful members of the army in the Scotland of the eleventh century. On the other had, we have the women of Shakespeare's own time circumscribed to a very definite and subordinate role, while ever more independent women begin to appear. Simultaneously, and perhaps in part because of this, women are feared and persecuted, and seen as "inherently evil." Are the witches in Macbeth the ultimate personification of that much-feared independent woman? Wouldn't women of 2007 be able to relate to operating in a society filled with conflicted feelings?

Lady Macbeth, of course, has her husband, and she very solicitously refers to him as "My thane." Lady Asaji , in the Japanese version, is careful to say "My Lord" when speaking to Washizu. The superior position of the men must not be ignored if they hope to be at all persuasive. In Early Modern England, the patriarchal family was a value enforced from many directions, especially the Christian Church. Bever explains, "European male leaders considered patriarchal families to be the foundation of society. . . 'Assertive and aggressive' women challenged this order, and could be beaten by their husbands, punished for moral offenses ranging from scolding to adultery, or, at the extreme, burned for witch craft" (956).

The witches in Macbeth fly in the face of the patriarchal society. Early in the play, the witches seem to have no such male superior. Macbeth and Banquo meet three strange women on the heath with no man in sight. Or are they women? Banquo wonders this when he says, "you should be women, / And yet your beards forbid me to interpret /That you are so" (I, iii). So even their appearance sets them apart from normal women.

Prior to this we hear about one escapade of the witches who take revenge against a sailor's wife who would not share her chestnuts! What does the witch do? She goes after the woman's husband. "Her husband's to Aleppo gone, master o' the Tiger;/ But in a sieve I'll thither sail, / And, like a rat without a tail, / I'll do, I'll do, I'll do" (I, iii). The other witches offer to send additional wind to help her. She plans to keep the sailor awake so that "Sleep shall neither night nor day/ Hang upon his pent-house lid;" (I, iii), and then proudly displays "a pilot's thumb" (I, iii). Shakespeare is letting us know a thing or two about these "weird sisters." What is his take on them? I would ask my students to speculate. They do not seem to be as malevolent as Macbeth will later become. We do not hear of brutal murders at their hands. Yet they are not dutiful wives or carefully chaperoned daughters. They are disorderly and disheveled, outside of society's norm, and worst of all, seem to enjoy that position.

Lady Macbeth and the witches have been depicted a wide variety of ways in theater performance and screen adaptations. Directors differ widely in their opinion of the proper way to portray her. Just think of the difference between stern and masculine Dame Judith Anderson in the NBC production of Macbeth in 1954 versus feminine, young and sexual Francisca Annis in Roman Polanski's Macbeth . Students will be asked to examine several productions of Shakespeare to evaluate these differences.

Kurosawa's Throne of Blood, or Cobweb Castle

Early in his career, Akira Kurosawa was pulled to make a film of Macbeth . However, when he heard that Orson Welles was already doing the same, he postponed his project and completed his version in 1957. This black and white film is in Japanese with subtitles, but would still be exciting enough to hold the attention of many students. Kurosawa follows the general outline of Shakespeare's story, though in a somewhat simplified version. He saw a connection between medieval Scotland and medieval Japan, while also being relevant to contemporary society. One place where we see subtle differences is in his depiction of Asaji, his Lady Macbeth. Anthony Dawson says, "The scene mirrors and departs subtly from Macbeth . Washizu is even less ambitious than his counterpart, more troubled and uncertain, while Asaji is much darker and more implacable than Lady Macbeth. She is the driving force throughout and . . . is unalloyed evil. . ." (167). What are her exact words? "Is she more evil?' would be a question for my students to answer for themselves.

Kurosawa creates a connection between the witch (only one in this screen version) and Lady Asaji. He uses elements of Noh Theater to portray both women while not doing so with the male characters. "It is the two women who live in this stylized and ritual world" (Richie 119). Dawson also sees a strong connection between the two female characters in the film. He states, "In Throne of Blood there are really only two women, and they are mirrors of each other - Asaji and the strange, ambiguously gendered spirit in the forest, who spins her wheel and knows, perhaps even controls, the fates of vain and mortal men who 'end in fear.' It is a man's world, but it is the woman who makes things happen" (167). This witch is notable for her androgynous appearance. She is dressed like a woman, but appears to be a man in woman's clothing. This is taking women with beards one step further, and is in complete contrast to the very lady-like appearance of Lady Asaji. Why this appearance of the witch chosen will prompt much discussion, I hope.

Lady Asaji has the most steely, single-minded persona imaginable, practically unmoving behind her white mask as she proposes the murder. However, like Lady Macbeth, her "womanly" fear appears once Washizu leaves the room to commit the deed. "Asaji, now alone, first sinks to her knees, then leaps up and moves wildly to the bloodied wall while percussion and flute beat a frenzied accompaniment. Incipient madness? Fear? We aren't sure, but it feels like a way of conveying the doubt implicit in Lady Macbeth's 'Had he not resembled/My father as I slept, I had done't.'" (Dawson 167-8)

Orson Welles' Macbeth

Orson Welles made his version of Macbeth in 1948 , thesame year that Laurence Olivier's Hamlet was due to be released. The studio producing Hamlet was so enamored of Laurence Olivier and this project that no expense was spared, either in the making of the film, its subsequent advertising, or its distribution. Life magazine featured an eleven-page spread trumpeting its arrival. The international press waited for the film in gleeful anticipation. Mr. Welles, on the other hand, was derided from the start. He had to make do with the smallest budget, and reviews panned his movie from all directions, especially in comparison to Olivier's Hamlet . Life magazine's review said, "'Orson Welles doth foully slaughter Shakespeare in a dialect version of his 'Tragedy of Macbeth'" (Anderegg 74). Nonetheless, it is today appreciated by many film critics and is an interesting film to compare to the other adaptations of Macbeth .

Welles depicts a world that is primitive, and the sets are sparse, but in fact this lends to the atmosphere of an eleventh century Scotland. Michael Anderegg, considered by Dudley Andrew, Professor of Film at Yale University, to be among the very best critics of Shakespeare films in the USA, explains that

. . .the opening precredit sequence of Macbeth . . .exemplifies Welles's approach throughout: the viewer is immediately caught up in a series of seemingly unconnected images and sounds, a melding together. . .of the rational and the irrational, the concrete and the abstract, the specific and the general. Underlying the images - of clouds, the sea, the witches, rain, flames - is a mélange of sound and musical effects. . .These incongruently juxtaposed images and sounds not only set the tone and create the atmosphere for the events to follow, but provide as well, in microcosm, an exposition of Welles's mode and methods: the film, in its entirety, will be like the mud voodoo figure of Macbeth the witches pull up from the murky depths of their cauldron - a crude, primitive, roughly molded but at the same time powerful and evocative substitute for Macbeth himself, conjured up from the materials at hand, magically brought to life by the imaginative manipulation of eccentric conjurers" (Anderegg 80-81).

Anderegg's view of the film could serve as an excellent starting point for students to consider the rest of the film

The scene based on Act I, scene seven between Lady Macbeth and Macbeth, when he first arrives home after the fateful predictions, contains numerous line deletions, a reordering of lines, and an execution of the traitor Cawdor in the background as Macbeth kisses his wife. We first glimpse Lady Macbeth lying on a bed of furs, such as the ancient Scottish might have used, and she is reading Macbeth's letter. She writhes on the bed as she reads it. When she speaks to deliver her "unsex me here" speech, she has a Scottish accent. This Lady Macbeth is not young, but when Macbeth returns to the castle, the sexual relationship is apparent.

Daniel Juan Gil makes much of the fact that Welles does not use the traditional method of filming conversations through use of the "shot/reverse shot," which is "an editing pattern that cuts between individuals according to the logic of conversation" (Corrigan 176). According to Gil, Welles' idiosyncratic film techniques are ripe with meaning. For instance, he believes that because of the lack of the shot/reverse shot filming, something that so signifies normal social contact, we are witnessing "a sign of profoundly sexualized, socially deviant intimacy that binds Macbeth and Lady Macbeth" (3). He also says the "the extreme high/low shots. . .mark King Macbeth's social deviance" (5).

Drawing my students' attention to the various possibilities of how one scene can be filmed would be fertile territory for interpreting a filmmaker's intent. We can look at camera angles, such as high and low shots, as well as how often a director has placed cuts in his scenes. For instance, if the director uses quick cuts, as opposed to Welles' famous long shots, what mood does it create? What meaning, if any, can we infer?

The witches in this screen adaptation are kept at a distance from the viewer. We are not able to see their faces clearly, nor can we see whether or not they possess the beards mentioned by Banquo. They have long, wild hair and are holding what appear to be large pitchforks. Sarah Hatchuel says, "The forked staffs they hold connote evil and demonism, and are directly opposed to the Christian crosses carried by the Scotsman (who are recent converts from Paganism) throughout the film" (3). She also believes that by making it impossible to see the faces of the witches " through numerous out-of-focus shots, fading in/out and dissolves, creates a world in which certainty is lost and the instability of form and meaning reigns" (4). In fact, Welles has inserted a scene with soldiers in prayer on their knees that was not written by Shakespeare. I would ask students to consider reasons for Welles to have inserted this religious motif. Welles takes a definite stand on who is at fault for the tragedy. The witches "pour ingredients and shape, out of clay, a voodoo doll representing Macbeth. As J. Lawrence Guntner notices, Macbeth is therefore presented as 'their creation and their toy'" (Hatchuel 3).

Roman Polanski's Macbeth

Polanski directed the most bloody version of Macbeth shortly after the Manson murders of Sharon Tate, his wife, and the other unfortunate visitors in his home. Anyone watching in 1971 would have been thinking about these much publicized brutal murders. Several very violent scenes, in fact, have been added to the film that do not appear in Shakespeare's original play. For instance, we not only hear about the murder of Lady Macduff and family. We see the murderers enter her private accommodations, finger and break her belongings (much as the Manson murderers may have done at Polanski's own home), and we are also "treated" to the brutal rape of a servant in the background. It is also interesting to note that the executive producer of the film is Hugh Hefner. Students may want to speculate what influence someone like Hugh Hefner may have had on the production. Of all the film adaptations of Macbeth using Shakespeare's original language, this Lady Macbeth is the most young, beautiful, and sexual. Was it really necessary for the witches to appear naked in the cave when Macbeth returns to question them? Francesca Annis as Lady Macbeth is shown naked as well once she has lost her mind, (her long hair covers all frontal nudity). Do these choices have a valid reason that adds to our understanding of the play?

Polanski's three witches are strange in appearance, though none have beards. He begins the film with a strong hint that the witches are responsible for what happens when he shows them on a beach digging a hole, and in that hole they place a dismembered hand holding a dagger. In this adaptation, women appear to be more powerful, and they are more brutally treated. Is there a connection?

Men of Respect

This film stars John Turturro, Stanley Tucci, Rod Steiger, Peter Boyle and other stars that students are bound to recognize. It was released in 1990, but does not seem at all dated to students in 2007. I love showing this film after we read Macbeth because it takes not only the spirit of Shakespeare's play, but imitates nearly every nuance and event while updating the language and setting. Macbeth is now Mikey Battaligia, Banquo becomes Bankie Cuomo, Donalbain becomes Donny, etc. Instead of witches, Mikey and Bankie suddenly find themselves in the strange parlor of an old woman (with two male companions) who goes into a trance and tells them their fortune. Instead of thanes of Scotland, the characters are members of the mob, pledging total loyalty to the "Padrino." An excellent way to review the reading of Macbeth is to ask students to point out all of the counterparts and related sequences from Men of Respect that are in the original Shakespeare.

The close connection between Mikey and his wife is made quite apparent in the scene where he lies naked in bed next to his clothed wife while she massages his neck. (It is still possible to show older high school students because his leg is strategically crossed. You do see John Turturro's backside, however. The movie is "R" rated, I believe, mainly for its violence.) "Why is he naked in this scene?" I would ask my students. Is it merely to demonstrate the sexual relationship, or is it there to add to the sense of Mikey's vulnerability?

How is this modern-day woman, this mob wife, portrayed? Is she as strong or as weak as we imagine Shakespeare's Lady Macbeth to be? One would imagine that a powerful woman today would be more acceptable, but yet she is still the woman behind the man urging him on to take his rightful place at the top. Is the powerful woman of today real, or does her position in the world of organized crime change her circumstances? I look forward to hearing the opinions of my students.

I love teaching Shakespeare's plays to high school students. The plots are exciting, and I get to see my students progress from needing every single line explained in detail to being able to get the gist of the play on their own by the time we are half way through. This is exciting to me. In the past, when we finished reading the play, as a reward and as a method of reviewing, we would watch at least one screen adaptation in full. This curriculum unit is intended to try another approach. It would never be possible to show more than two films in class in their entirety. With all there is to accomplish, even that much is most likely too much. With the use of film clips that focus the attention of students on particular elements of study, we have a case of "less is more."

I have several specific objectives for this unit. All of them involve increasing students' critical thinking and skills of analysis in one way or another. It has been my experience that by asking students to compare two things - two characters, two stories, two poems, two styles of writing, or in this case, two versions of the same work of literature (one a play, the other a film), more becomes apparent in each. Someone once said that to know happiness, one must also know sadness. It is through comparison only that each is knowable. When Lady Asaji is as still as marble, Washizu looks that much more anxious. When we look at a picture of Dame Judith Anderson as Lady Macbeth, Francesca Annis's beauty, youth and sexuality become that much more apparent.

The primary objective of this curriculum unit is to provide a means of further analyzing the characters of Shakespeare's Macbeth through the use of comparison. We will have already read a good portion of Macbeth . Watching, analyzing, and comparing clips of four film adaptations will enhance my students' ability to listen, and to think critically about what they are watching. Students will be asked to attend to details beyond their usual practice, so an additional objective is to make more informed and active moviegoers of a previously passive audience. As part of the follow-up to the unit, students will have an opportunity to enhance their analytical writing skills.

This unit is designed to develop students' skills in "reading, analyzing, and interpreting literature" as stated in Pennsylvania State Standard 1.3. In particular, State Standard 1.3.E. is to "analyze drama to determine the reasons for a character's action taking into account the situation and basic motivation of the character."

The particular objective of Lesson Plan One is to prepare students to begin thinking about gender issues. Just what does it mean to be a man or a woman? In Lesson Plan Two, it is my objective to consider gender issues, but also to give my students perhaps their first experience of a close reading of a film. Students will be introduced to a new vocabulary of film techniques. Then they will be asked to apply these definitions and point out how the director has placed the camera, used the lighting, decorated the stage, etc. to portray his vision of the play. In Lesson Plan Three, prior to viewing Throne of Blood , I believe it is important to acquaint students a bit with Noh Theater and the Samurai Warrior tradition. We will then slowly watch a clip of the film and do a close reading of a scene between Lady Asaji and Washizu. How has Kurosawa skillfully used the techniques of film to express his point of view? In what ways do we see Lady Macbeth anew after watching Kurosawa's version? In Lesson Plans not fully elaborated in this unit, I would continue the process with Men of Respect and Polanski's Macbeth . We would also consider how the time period of each film has impacted the director's vision.

Brainstorming

Brainstorming, often used as a prewriting activity, is a technique to get out as many ideas as possible without any editing. This way, ideas are more likely to flow. This is the opposite of sitting in front of a blank page saying, "Oh, that's not a good idea. I can't use that one either, " and before you know it, you have writer's block. Brainstorming sessions can free one's mind from these self-critical and restricting thought processes.

Storyboarding

A storyboard is a term taken from filmmaking. Directors such as Hitchcock sometimes created storyboards prior to filming. These are drawings of scenes, frame by frame, as the camera will later film them. In the storyboards, camera angles, long shots, close-ups, etc. would all be evident. In the classroom, this technique allows students to, in a sense, make their own film. Students would draw a scene frame by frame as they imagine it.

Role Playing

Role Playing allows students the opportunity to take on the persona of a character, or to improvise the reactions of one character in a given scenario. These are done like mini-plays or skits. I ask students to volunteer to do these in front of the class. Often, once things get rolling, and some students think they can do better than what they've seen, even more reluctant students will volunteer to participate.

Character Mapping and Graphic Organizers

Character Maps are one form of many types of graphic organizers. A chart or other form of visual representation can help students who have difficulty conceptualizing ideas, or who are reluctant writers. The web has numerous examples of character maps and other graphic organizers that teachers can download for free, but I find it best to create my own so that it is more specifically addressing the concepts on which I want my students to focus. One example is on the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) web site at http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/ lit-elements/. At this site, you can create your own character map with blanks to be filled in by students at a later time, or have students complete one online themselves. At http://www.readwritethink.org/materials/ plot-diagram/, there is a cool graphic organizer that students can complete on the structure of a story.

Classroom Activities

Lesson plan one.

Introduction

To prepare students to consider the theme of gender stereotyping, I would begin by place the word "Men" on one blackboard and "Women" on another. I would ask students to name all of the adjectives, feelings, or any other words that come to mind as they think of each of those words. I will write the words on the blackboard as they brainstorm their ideas.

Another possible technique would be to divide the class into several groups and the give each of them chart paper and markers to brainstorm these ideas within their own groups. This would be followed by taping the responses to the walls of the room to discuss the results and to compare the ideas of the various groups. We would then discuss what the class saw as similarities and differences.

To have students begin to think about Lady Macbeth's tactics, I would ask volunteers to role-play a scenario where they get to try their hand at persuasion. One example might be the following:

To the girls: Pretend your boyfriend has sent you a text message asking you to see Fifty Cent, Ludicrous, or another popular Hip Hop artist in concert. You are thrilled! Then you see him the next day and he has changed his mind. Say everything you can think of to persuade him to change his mind.

To further explore issues of gender, I would now ask the boys and girls to switch places, substituting Beyonce for Fifty Cent, where the boy is attempting to persuade the girl. I would follow this with a discussion of what it felt like to do this. Was it different to watch a girl trying to persuade a boy than the other way around? What does this tell us about how we see the roles of men and women, and what it is okay for them to do in our eyes?

As this one-period introductory lesson is ending, I would then explain to my students that we will be watching film clips from four different screen adaptations of Macbeth of corresponding scenes. I would direct my students to watch the film clips keeping in mind what ideas they currently have about what is a man or a woman. We would consider questions such as: In what ways do you believe Shakespeare followed or differed from those concepts? How, in particular, is Macbeth and Lady Macbeth presented in each of the films we are about to see? How does each of the characters either fulfill or contrast with what you expect from a man or a woman?

Lesson Plan Two

Prior to viewing Orson Welles' Macbeth , it is important to provide my students with background information about possible film techniques. A list of terms that I would use is located in the Appendix.

Next, I would ask my students to discuss their personal views and images of witches. I would ask them to draw a storyboard of the scene on the heath where Macbeth and Banquo first encounter the witches.

Once students are familiar with these terms, we will do a close reading of two scenes. The first scene would be the opening scene with the witches. I would give students a copy of the statement made by Michael Anderegg located in the earlier section on Welles' Macbeth . I would ask students to watch for the elements noted by Anderegg, and to see if they agree with his opinion. Also, we would compare this very brief section with the many pages in Shakespeare's text. Some questions for discussion would include:

hy did Welles omit so much from the original text? (I would mention that Welles was pressured to cut much from his original film due to poor reviews and pressure from his studio.)
hat meaning could be gleaned from "voodoo" doll of Macbeth on which the witches place a crown?
here in the original text do we find the line, "Something wicked this way comes," and why might Welles have placed it here?
hy is there so much fog? Does it appear to be realistic? How would it help the director who has a small budget? Could there be any other meaning?
hat effect does the insertion of a man with a cross aimed at the witches have on the viewer at this point?
escribe Welles as Macbeth. What adjectives would you use to describe him just based on his appearance in this first scene?

The next scene we would consider is the scene between Macbeth and Lady Macbeth, beginning with her reading the letter informing her of the predictions of the witches. I would play the scene slowly, stopping after each few frames of film so that we may examine just what Orson Welles has done to create his intended mood. I would prepare a script of the scene (also located in the Appendix) so that students can concentrate on those techniques, as well as to provide them with a place to take notes. I would ask students to fill in the camera angles, to describe the mise-en-scene as the scenes change, to comment on the lighting with each frame, etc. These would be presented in the form of a chart or graphic organizer.

Questions to consider after completion of the chart:

What feeling do you get when the camera looks up at a character versus when the camera is aimed downward? What interpretation do you associate with these camera angels? Do they always mean the same thing? Does the high or low camera angle meaning something different in one scene versus another? Give some examples.

Lesson Plan Three

Background material for viewing Kurosawa's Throne of Blood

Kurosawa's Macbeth is an undisputed masterpiece. It is also a wonderful stepping off point for a discussion of Shakespeare's characters. However, it is essentially Japanese and will not be easily understood by my students in two main areas. Those are characteristics of Noh Theater and the principles of a Japanese Samari. I plan to avoid dwelling on either concept, but to give just enough background information so that students are able to understand what they are watching.

Characteristics of Noh Theater

It would be important to explain just a few basic elements of NOH Theater to my students - just enough so that they understand what Lady Asaji's strange make-up is all about. I would present the following information to my students, and ask them to look for any of these characteristics in Kurosawa's Throne of Blood as we watch portions of that film. We would also discuss the effect on our emotions as we see Lady Asaji in her white mask-like face. Does it increase emotion, or does it just distract from the intended emotion? The information below is borrowed (though excerpted and reorganized) from Ishii Mikko's article "The Noh theater: Mirror, Mask, and Madness." I would give this list to my students on a handout for us to read together and discuss:

Characters wear masks.
Stories are often of historical events known by the audience, and involve life's primary emotions: love, hatred, sorrow, vengeance, and jealousy.
Stories are told in a highly stylized form expressing feelings and ideas using poses and gestures that everyone in the audience would recognize. For example:
For Deep Sorrow: lowering the head and raising both hand to eye level.
For Even Deeper Sorrow: repeating this gesture. No tears are shed. The character represents the sorrow quietly but profoundly.
A journey of a hundred miles to a distant mountain or shore: a few steps on stage.
The consummation of love between a man and woman: a light brushing together of their sleeves.
The sequence of events follows a traditional formula. For instance the play begins with. . .a traveling monk or a courtier, announcing his intention of making a journey to a faraway place. He takes a few steps upon the stage and then announces that he has reached his destination. . .
A chorus, which is seated throughout the play at one side of the stage, comments on. . .the events; accompanied by instrument music. It also sings some part of his emotional speech to enhance the tension.

To further assist my students to understand enough about Noh Theater to be prepared for the film, I would show them images of masks. I would project images from the following web sites to the class for them to see prior to viewing the film. First we would look at a series of masks at a site called the "Noh Theater Page," which shows many of the masks worn in performances. The address is: http://www.artsci.wustl.edu/~rlneblet/noh/. I would ask students to comment on the various emotions these masks might represent. Next we would visit http://www.artelino.com/articles/noh_theater.asp, an art auction site, to see several fully costumed characters.

I would share the following quote with my students. Michea Carter, in her 2006 Yale National Initiative curriculum unit entitled "The Delicate Marriage of Theater and Film," quotes the actress who played Lady Asaji in Throne of Blood :

In Kurosawa: A Documentary on the Acclaimed Director (2000), Isuzu Yamada is interviewed on her experience being directed by Kurosawa during the filming of Throne of Blood . Speaking extremely highly of the respect and warm regard she holds for Kurosawa, Yamada remembers the struggle she endured mastering the techniques of Noh theatre for her performance. She says that Kurosawa was adamant that her face remain stiff and unmoving as a mask. Her eyes were not to blink and her head was not allowed to make sudden movements of any kind. She was literally directed to control her physical and emotional self as if she were wearing a heavy mask on her face; thereby she forced all emotion to be displaced through her subtle body language and intense vocal variations. Yamada remembers a moment when after tapping a scene; Kurosawa made her tape the scene again because she blinked her eyes. (Carter 10).

Clearly, Kurosawa wanted that extreme mask-like appearance for Lady Asaji.

To demonstrate how Lady Asaji's stillness makes Washizu appear even more tense and nervous, I would ask my students to conduct a role-play where one person kneels while speaking, remaining as still as humanly possible (including not blinking) while the other responds to what is being said with facial expressions, grunts, and body movement, such as sitting down, standing up, and walking. We would try this with several different pairs of students and several different scenarios.

The Samurai Tradition

Instead of handing students my own distillation of the meaning and traditions of the Samurai, I would assign them in-class group work to examine the following web sites: http://www.britannica.com/eb/ article-9065252>, http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2127.html, and http://cjj2004.tripod.com/budoryu/id60.html. I would give students these suggested web sites rather than just allow them to do their own search because most of what they would find concerns games rather than actual history. I would ask each group of students to write their findings on chart paper in list form so these can be easily read and posted in front of the classroom. I would suggest to students that they focus on what appear to be the primary principles of a Samurai Warrior. These sites also offer illustrations of Samurai that I will download and copy for display during our discussion. Once these have been posted, I will ask students to keep these in mind as we watch Macbeth's counterpart in the Japanese film Throne of Blood so that we can make comparisons.

Viewing Throne of Blood

I would begin the scene in which Lady Asaji is trying to convince her husband, Washizu, to murder His Lordship. Before any words are spoken, I would ask students to describe the mis-en-scene. Describe the room. Who is there? What are they wearing? Describe Lady Asaji's make-up. What is the lighting? What is the camera angle (in other words, does it come from straight ahead, from above, or from below)? As the scene begins, how are the characters positioned in relation to one another? How would you describe the mood the director is trying to create?

Prior to viewing the rest of the scene from Throne of Blood , I would distribute a worksheet containing all of the lines spoken by Lady Asaji and Macbeth's counterpart, Washizu. This script (see below) will enable my students to have a place to comment on specific elements of action and filmmaking while they watch. While viewing the clip, students will be instructed to fill in comments and observations about each of the following:

What is the expression on the character's face?
What is the character doing physically (merely sitting still, pacing, standing, etc.)? What sounds do you hear in the background? Is there any music, sounds of nature like wind or birds, or silence?
With what intensity are the words on the script spoken? Are they said softly, loudly, yelled, grunted, or what?
What is the tone of voice?
What movements did either character make? (Note: remember that in Noh Theater, just a slight movement can mean a great deal.)
Who is higher in connection to the other character when this spoken?
What do you believe the character is thinking or feeling at that moment?
Is this line in keeping with Shakespeare's original idea or does it differ? How much does it differ?
Copy any lines of Shakespeare next to the lines in the script that seem to be paraphrased from the original Macbeth .

The script would be typed with columns and plenty of space to allow students to comment liberally. We would stop along the way to allow for students to answer the questions and for discussion. Also, I would show the clip a second time, allowing students to comment as each several lines has been spoken. This would give me the opportunity to point out camera angles and other things that they may have missed on the first viewing.

I have written down all of the subtitles and will present this to my students in the form of a graphic organizer so that they can conveniently address the issues in the listed above as they watch. This script can be found in the Appendix of this unit.

After watching the scene, on a graphic organizer, I would ask students to compare the reasons Lady Asaji gives for the killing with those of Lady Macbeth. Who is more convincing to you? Compare the reasons Washizu gives for not killing the Lord. Compare these to those given by Macbeth. Who is more convincing? I would also ask students to complete Character Maps for each of the primary characters (see strategies).

This curriculum unit is aimed for an advanced twelfth-grade class where writing is an essential component. I would ask my students to write an essay in which they discuss three groups: Organized Crime, Samurai Warriors, and Thanes of Scotland in Macbeth's era. What is similar about the underlying principles in each of these groups? How would each in its own way make them a perfect environment for a character like Macbeth?

Annotated Resources

Recommended for teachers.

Anderegg, Michael. "Shakespeare Rides Again: The Republic Macbeth ." Orson Welles, Shakespeare and Popular Culture. Columbia University Press: New York. 1999.

This chapter, from a book by the same author, reports on the struggles faced by Welles in the production and the response to his Macbeth . Anderegg provides an excellent and very detailed description of the particulars of Welles' images that produce his desired atmosphere, tone, and characterization.

Anderson, Alan and Raymond Gordon. "Witchcraft and the Status of Women — the Case of England." British Journal of Sociology . June, 1978. This article notes that the vast majority of accused witches were women, a fact deserving of study. The use of women as scapegoats, they state, would not have been possible except for a prior belief in the inferiority of women - that they were weak and therefore more easily swayed by the devil.

Asp, Carolyn. "'Be bloody, bold and resolute:' Tragic Action and Sexual Stereotyping in Macbeth." Studies in Philology . Spring 1981. This does an excellent job of tracing the stereotypes throughout Macbeth , while also showing us that these were Shakespeare's creation for personal exploration and not historically correct. Ms. Asp also makes the interesting point that a society that reverses the "manly" quality of violence also suffers for it.

Bever, Edward. "Witchcraft, Female Aggression, and Power in the Early Modern Community." Journal of Social History . 2002. pp. 955-988. This chapter, while quite long, is worthwhile. It details many reasons for the scapegoating of women, but it also outlines ways women did indeed act aggressively in a society that allowed them few outlets.

Biggins, Dennis. "Sexuality, Witchcraft, and Violence in Macbeth ." Shakespeare Studies . Volume 8. 1975. pp. 255 - 273. Biggins argues that the violence in Macbeth has a sexual component, as do the actions of the witches. I find his argument, detailed as it is, that the actions of the witches are sexual, unconvincing.

Carter, Michea. "The Delicate Marriage of Theater and Film." Yale National Initiative. 2007. http://teachers.yale.edu/ curriculum/search/viewer.php?skin=h &id=initiative_06.01.05_u#b This excellent curriculum gives extensive information about various types of Japanese theater that might be of use in preparing students for viewing Throne of Blood .

Chamberlain, Stephanie. "Fantasizing Infanticide: Lady Macbeth and the Murdering Mother in Early Modern England." College Literature . West Chester University, PA. Summer 2005. The thesis of this article is that women were feared in early modern England for their power over patrilineage by means of infidelity, by infanticide, or by what is passed on by nursing and rearing of children. The idea of women as dangerous is then carried into the play Macbeth .

Cohen, Derek. Shakespeare's Culture of Violence . St. Martin's Press: NewYork. 1993.

This text examines the use of violence in a number of Shakespeare's history plays as well as Othello , King Lear , and Macbeth . I found his explanation of different categories of violence to be quite interesting and useful.

Coursen, Herbert R., Jr. "In Deepest Consequence: Macbeth." Shakespeare Quarterly. Autumn, 1967. pp. 375 -388. The author suggests that the true power of Shakespeare's Macbeth is its connections to the story of the Garden of Eden and Adam's fall from Grace after being lured by Eve to eat the apple.

Dawson, Anthony. "Reading Kurosawa Reading Shakespeare ." A Concise Companion to Shakespeare on Screen. Diana E. Henderson, editor. Blackwell Publishing: Malden, MA. 2006. This is an excellent, well-written, clear chapter explaining ways in which Kurosawa "reads" Shakespeare - sometimes exactly capturing the intent of the Bards scenes, sometimes going a different direction. Exact movements of the characters, the sounds effects, the images, the music are all outlined I detail to make his point. This was all very useful as a preview of what I would like my students to do when they watch the films.

Gil, Daniel Juan. "Avant-garde Technique and the Visual Grammar of Sexuality in Orson Welles' Shakespeare Film." Borrowers and Lenders: The Journal of Shakespeare and Appropriation. 2005-2006. http://klotho.english.uga.edu/cocoon/ borrowers/request?id=251798. Photographs are included.

Kimbrough, Robert. "Macbeth: The Prisoner of Gender." Shakespeare Studies . Volume 16. 1983. pp 175 - 190. Kimbrough makes a very convincing case that Shakespeare is playing with gender roles that were firmly ensconced in England of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

Hatchuel, Sarah, "Prithee, see there! Behold! Look! (3.4.69): The Gift of the Denial of Sight in Screen Adaptations of Shakespeare's Macbeth." Borrowers and Lenders: The Journal of Shakespeare and Appropriation. 2005-2006. http://klotho.english.uga.edu/cocoon/borrowers/ request?id=250387 This excellent article discusses visual strategies in several adaptations of Macbeth: the theater production in1979 by Trevor Nunn starring Ian McKellen, the version by Orson Welles, Jeremy Freeston's 1997 Macbeth , and Roman Polanksi's screen adaptation. Photographs are included.

Mikiko, Ishii . "The Noh theater: Mirror, mask, and madness ." http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl? ctx_ver=Z39.882003&res_dat=xri:pqil:res_ver=0.1& rft_val_fmt=ori:format:pl:ebnf:fulltext&res_id=xri:iimp& rft_id=xri:iipaft:aarticle:fulltext:00323688 This is an extremely long article on Noh Theater (34 pages), and includes far more information than is needed to give students a quick introduction on the subject.

Reynolds, Bryan. "Untimely Ripped: Mediating Witchcraft in Polanski and Shakespeare." The Reel Shakespeare: Alternative Cinema and Theory . Lisa S. Starks and Courtney Lehmann, editors. Fairleigh Dickinson University Press: Madison. 2002. This chapter establishes the links between the violence in Polanski's Macbeth and the tragic and brutal murders of his wife, Sharon Tate.

Recommended for teachers and students

"Basic Information." Japan-guide.com. January 14, 2004. http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2127.html

Best, Michael. Shakespeare's Life and Times . Internet Shakespeare Editions, University of Victoria: Victoria, BC, 2001-2005. http://ise.uvic.ca/Library/SLT/>. Not only does this web site give extensive information about Shakespeare, his work, his life, and other related topics, but also it does so in an attractive, easily searchable manner, and even tells students how to cite it as a resource. I wish all web sites did that.

Binnie, Paul. "Japanese Noh Theater." artelino - Art Auctions. 2001 - 2007.

http://www.artelino.com/articles/ noh_theater.asp While the purpose of this web site is to auction art, it nonetheless provides a clear explanation of Noh Theater and gives a few dramatic illustrations.

Corrigan, Timothy. A Short Guide to Writing About Film, Fifth Edition . Pearson Longman: New York. 2004. This would be primarily a resource for teachers, but it may also be of interest to advanced students who are especially interested in film analysis. I like the tips on writing for my Advanced Placement students. More than anything else, it is a useful source of definitions about filmmaking for the novice.

Shakespeare, William. Macbeth with Reader's Guide with guide edited by Solomon Schlakman. Amsco Literature Publications, Inc.: New York. 1972. The print is large and clear, and the definitions are all on the left-hand page directly across from the corresponding line. However, there are no illustrations, no color, and no photographs - just the text followed by questions for further study in the back of the book. I use this text because we have sufficient copies for my students to take home, but we use the large, more attractive version in class.

"Samurai." EncyclopÃ¦dia Britannica. 2007. EncyclopÃ¦dia Britannica Online. 6July2007. http://www.britannica.com/ eb/article-9065252

This site provides some basic information on the Samurai. I love that they give the citation format.

"History of the Samurai." Budo Ryu Ninjutsu.Com . 2004.

http://cjj2004.tripod.com/budoryu/id60.html This site gives the history of the Samurai in a brief few paragraphs, and lists the basic principles of a Samurai Warrior.

Swerzenski, Jared. "National Immigration: Excerpts from "The Japanese Experience" Visual Culture Project." Clark University. http://www.clarku.edu/activelearning/ courseroadmap/nationalimagination/jared.cfm This web site contains some beautiful images plus a few pertinent facts concerning Samurai. Students may enjoy seeing the images. It is not sufficient information to provide background for what are the samurai.

Akira Kurosawa's Throne of Blood . VHS. The Japanese Classic Collection: Home Vision Cinema. Toho Company, Limited and Brandon Films. 1957.

Men of Respect . RCA/Columbia Pictures Home Video. VHS. Central City Film Company, Inc.: Grandview Avenue Pictures, Inc. 1990.

Roman Polanski's Film of Macbeth . DVD. Columbia Tristar Home Entertainment. 2002.

Orson Welles' Macbeth . Republic Pictures. 1948.

Appendix A: Film Terms and Techniques

The following definitions are taken from Tim Corrigan's book entitled A Short Guide to Writing About Film that I think will assist my students in thinking, writing, and talking about film. I would give these out on a handout, and we could refer to it as we discuss the films we will be watching.

Angle - The position of the camera or point of view in relation to the subject being shown. Seen from above, the subject would be shot from a "high angle"; from below, it would be depicted from a "low angle."

Close-up - An image in which the distance between the subject and the point of view is very short, as in a 'close-up of a person's face.

Composition - The arrangement and relationship of the visual elements within a frame.

Cutting - Changing from one image to another.

Frame - The borders of the image within which the subject is composed.

Long shot - An image in which the distance between the camera and the subject is great.

Medium shot - A shot that shows an individual from the waist up.

Mise-en-sce?ne - "a French term roughly translated as 'what is put into the scene' (put before the camera), refers to all those properties of a cinematic image that exist independently of camera position, camera movement, and editing. . . Mise-en-sce?ne includes lighting, costumes, sets, the quality of acting, and other shapes and characters in the scene" (46).

Point of view - The position from which an action or subject is seen, often determining its significance.

Shot/reverse shot - An editing pattern that cuts between individuals according to the logic of their conversation.

Voice-over - The voice of someone not seen in the narrative image who describes or comments on that image.

Appendix B: Script from a scene in Orson Welles' Macbeth

Glamis thou art, and Cawdor, and shalt be

What thou art promised.

Come you spirits

That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,

And fill me, from the crown to the toe, top-full

Of direst cruelty! Make thick my blood,

Stop up th' access and passage to remorse,

That no compunctious visitings of nature

Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between

Th' effect and it! Come to my woman's breasts,

And take my milk for gall, you murd'ring ministers,

And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell,

That my keen knife see not the wound it makes,

Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark,

To cry, "Hold, hold!"

Great Glamis! Worthy Cawdor!

Greater than both, by the all-hail hereafter!

Thy letters have transported me beyond this ignorant present, and I feel now

The future in the instant.

My dearest love, Duncan comes here tonight.

And when goes hence?

Tomorrow, as he purposes.

He that's coming must be provided for!

We will speak further.

Put this night's business into my dispatch.

Your face, my thane, is as a book where men

May read strange matters. To beguile the time,

Look like the time; bear welcome in your eye,

Your hand, your tongue: look like the innocent flower,

But be the serpent under 't.

Chants in Latin.

When Duncan is asleep -

Whereto the rather shall his day's hard journey

Soundly invite him - I'll drug his servants' wine.

King Duncan is my kinsman

Hath borne his faculties so meek, hath been

So clear in his great office, that his virtues

Will plead like angel trumpet tongues against

The deep damnation of his taking-off;

And pity, like a naked new-born babe,

Striding the blast, or heaven's cherubin hors'd

Upon the sightless couriers of the air,

Shall blow the horrid deed in every eye,

That tears shall drown the wind.

Appendix C: Script from a Scene in Throne of Blood

Have you made up your mind, my Lord?

It has all been a bad dream. I have been haunted by an evil spirit.

No more of this!

Take over the Cobweb Castle?

I cannot dream of such a. . .

Why not, my lord?

It is not beyond your reach.

As a samari. . .

Who does not want to be the lord of a castle?

I am satisfied with the way things are.

I will keep this castle and remain loyal to his Lordship.

I want to live in peace.

But there cannot be peace.

If Captain Miki tells His Lordship of what happened in the forest. . .

Then, there would be no peace here.

His Lordship would regard you as a usurper.

He would most certainly have his men besiege the castle immediately.

You have only two ways to choose.

Stay here and wait for your own destruction

Or kill His Lordship. . .

And take over the Cobweb Castle.

But, that is high treason!

Did you forget. . .

His Lordship killed his own master. . .

To become what he is now.

He was compelled to preserve his own life.

His Lordship trusts me.

I would give my heart for him.

Does he know what lies deep in your heart?

In my heart? There is nothing.

I know otherwise.

I have no such ambition.

That may be so. . .

But will His Lordship still believe it?

Even after he learns from Miki about the prediction?

Miki. Miki will never mention such a thing.

He is my best friend.

He is ambitious.

Children kill for less.

In this world you must strike first. . .

If you do not want to be killed.

It is possible that Miki has already betrayed you.

I am worried.

Asaji! You must stop doubting my friends.

About 300 men from the castle are hiding on the hill at the rear.

Appendix D: Pennsylvania State Standards

1.2.B. Use and understand a variety of media and evaluate the quality of material produced:

Compare, analyze and classify how different media offer a unique perspective on the information presented.
Categorize and analyze the techniques of particular media messages and their effect on a targeted audience.

1.3.A. Read and understand works of literature.

1.3. B. Analyze the use of literary elements by an author including characterization, setting, plot, theme, point of view, tone and style.

1.3.E. Analyze drama to determine the reasons for a character's actions taking into account the situation and basic motivation of the character.

1.3.F. Read and respond to nonfiction and fiction including poetry and drama.

1.5.C. Write with controlled and/or subtle organization.

1.5.E. Revise writing after rethinking logic of organization and rechecking central idea, content, paragraph development, level of detail, style, tone, and word choice.

1.5.F. Edit writing using the conventions of language.

1.6.B. Listen to selections of literature (fiction and/or nonfiction).

1.6.D. Contribute to discussions.

1.6.F. Use media for learning processes.

1.8.A. Select and refine a topic for research.

1.8.B. Locate information using appropriate sources and strategies.

1.8.C. Organize, summarize and present the main ideas from research.

Comments (2)

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Int J Mol Sci

Benefits of Argan Oil on Human Health—May 4–6 2017, Errachidia, Morocco

Gérard lizard.

1 University Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Lab. Bio-PeroxIL (EA7270) ‘Biochemistry of the Peroxisome, inflammation and lipid metabolism’, Inserm, Faculté des Sciences Gabriel 6, Bd Gabriel, 21000 Dijon, France; [email protected]

Younes Filali-Zegzouti

2 University Moulay Ismaïl, Research Team: ‘Biology, Environment & Health’ Department Biology, FSTE, Boutalamine, BP 509, Errachidia, Morocco; [email protected]

Adil El Midaoui

3 Department Biology, FSTE–Univ. Moulay Ismaïl, BP 509 Errachidia, Morocco; [email protected]

4 Department Molecular and Integrative Physiology, Fac. Medicine, Univ. Montréal, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4 Canada

1. Aim and Scope of the Meeting

The First International Symposium “ The beneficial effects of argan oil on human health ” is part of the dynamics of research and development programs on argan oil, which prompts Morocco to deploy various strategies, programs and plans for the protection and preservation of the argan tree and of its know-how that is linked to the production of argan oil. The economy associated with Argan oil concerns different sectors: agriculture, agro-industry, health and wellbeing.

The first international symposium was organized on 4, 5 and 6 May in Errachidia (Tafilalet, Morocco) on the theme “The beneficial effects of argan oil on human health” by the Research Team ‘Biology, Environment and Health’ (Univ. Moulay Ismaïl, FSTE) in partnership with the Moroccan Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Its objective was to allow researchers and experts, farmers/producers, technical institutes, decision-makers and elected representatives, to exchange about the results of research on argan oil, in the valorisation of its substances and on their chemical and biological properties.

A large call for contributions helped to harvest about a hundred contributions presented in the form of lectures (10), oral communications (22) or posters (66). The various contributions, resulting from research and R & D projects, from actions of institutions, laboratories, non-governmental organizations, international and national projects, were entirely or partially dedicated to the importance of argan oil as food with benefits to human health. People from Morocco, and North Africa (Tunisia, Algeria), Europa (France, Spain) and USA attended the meeting.

The holding of this congress in the city of Errachidia, capital of the Tafilalet region, was an opportunity for exchanges and contacts between Moroccan researchers and the international scientific community. The presence of renowned speakers nationally and internationally recognized honored and enriched this event.

The purpose of this meeting was to provide a valuable opportunity for participants to exhibit and discuss their research and introduce new technologies. The themes addressed current international issues and raise awareness of the uses and perspectives of research on the beneficial effects of argan oil.

Below, you will find the abstracts grouped as invited presentations, oral presentations and poster presentations

2. Invited Presentations

Argan oil-enriched nanomedicines to enhance both the efficacy and safety of cancer therapy.

The unique quality of poly-unsaturated fatty acids contained in argan oil (Argania spinosa), in addition to the abundance of active compounds (e.g., sterols, carotenoids, xanthophyls, and potent antioxidants) in the un-saponifiable fraction indicate marked potential nutritional benefits for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases and cancer. As poly-unsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) have demonstrated synergism with both radio- and chemo-therapy, in solid and haematological tumors, tocopherols and saponins derived from A. spinosa exerted evident anti-proliferative effect, both in vitro and in vivo. Within past few years, the succinate ester form of α-tocopherol, d -α-tocopheryl polyethylene glycol 1000 succinate (TPGS), a common surfactant in various nanocarriers, has received notable attention for its pro-apoptotic activity against cancer, not normal, cells.

Our recent preclinical cancer data indicate that active argan oil composition displayed cytotoxic activity, when optimally formulated in a pharmaceutical nanoemulsion (NE) platform. Enhanced inhibitory effect on the proliferation of model cancer cell lines was achieved via the incorporation of active TPGS in the emulsification of argan oil NE, suggesting a cooperative role of tocopherols along with other core active oil compounds, contributing to augmented inhibition of cancer growth.

Additionally, utilizing antioxidant argan oil NE formulations—further enriched with oxygen—radical scavengers/anti-inflammatory molecules—demonstrated superior in vitro cardio-protective activities, as well as marked reduction of H 2 O 2 —and adriamycin-induced apoptotic effects. Hence, our enriched argan NEs effectively diminished oxidative and non-oxidative damage of cardiomyocytes and aortic medial cell cultures.

Collectively, optimized nano-formulations of the unique components of argan oil (PUFAs, sterols, polyphenols, tocopherols and saponins) offers not only superior pharmaceutical properties but can also enhance its pharmacological activity profiles in both cancer and cardio-protective therapies.

Beneficial Effects of Argan Oil on Cardiovascular Risk Factors

Objective: The present study was designed to examine the effects of argan oil on two cardiovascular risk factors notably arterial hypertension and insulin resistance as well as on the aortic basal superoxide anion production and NADPH oxidase activity in one nutritional model of hypertensive and insulinoresistant rat.

Methods: Sprague-Dawley rats had free access to a drinking solution containing 10% D-glucose or tap water (control) for 5 weeks. The impact of argan oil was compared to that of corn oil given daily by gavage (5 mL/kg) during 5 weeks in glucose-fed rats. Oxidative stress was evaluated by measuring the superoxide anion production and the NADPH oxidase activity using the lucigenin method.

Results: Five weeks treatment with glucose led to increases in systolic blood pressure, plasma glucose and insulin levels and insulin resistance index in association with a rise in superoxide anion production and NADPH oxidase activity (sensitive to diphenyleneiodonium) in the aorta. The simultaneous treatment with argan oil prevented or significantly reduced all those effects, yet the same treatment with corn oil had a positive impact only on hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance.

Conclusions: These findings demonstrate that argan oil treatment reduced the elevation in blood pressure, hyperglycemia and insulin resistance through its anti-oxidative properties in glucose-fed rats. Hence argan oil which is now available in the market as consumable food may be of potential therapeutic value in the treatment of arterial hypertension and insulin resistance.

Efficacy of Argan Oil on Pain, Metabolic Syndrome and Oxidative Stress in Rheumatology and Nephrology Patients

Argan Oil is produced from kernel fruit of argan tree that is endemic in Morocco. The oil is used in traditional cuisine and also in traditional medicine to treat some skin and joint pain issues. 99% of argan oil composition is made of triglycerides (45% of oleic acid and 34% of linoleic acid), whereas the remaining 1% contains very active biological compounds such as Vitamine E, Carotenoïds, Sterols and Polyphenols. The above composition of argan oil is behind the many health benefits that are described in the literature, mainly on the cardiovascular system, pain-associated osteoarthritis and other metabolic parameters. In the present work, we report data on the improvement of clinical and metabolic parameters in patients upon argan oil consumption.

Introduction: (1) Argan oil consumption is known to have the following properties: Lipid lowering effect in dyslipidemic patients; (2) Prevents prothrombotic complications in patients; Antidiabetic and antihypertensive effect in animal models; (3) Modulate insulin resistance and glucose intolerance in animal models

Aim of the study: To investigate the effects of argan oil consumption on pain and metabolic syndrome in knee osteoarthritis patients, and to check its effects on oxidative stress and lipid profile in hemodialysis patients.

Results: As reported in the published articles below in reference’s section, consumption of argan oil during 5 to 8 weeks, resulted in:

- an improvement of metabolic syndrome parameters, pain score and walking difficulties in rheumatology patients.
- Improvement of blood lipids and atherogenic lipid ratios, as well as oxidative stress parameters in hemodialysis patients.

Conclusions: (1) Argan Oil can be used as a therapeutic «green medicine» in various health issues. (2) Promotion of clinical studies on Argan Oil should help understanding more of its health benefits in other pathologies. (3) Medical investigations on Argan Oil health benefits should boost all Argan oil-related activities such as women cooperatives associations, organic farmers, and Argan Oil quality assurance.

Efficacy of a New Pharmaceutical Formulation of Melatonin in Preventing Aging Skin Damage

Melatonin, a hormone produced by the pineal gland, has been detected in multiple extrapineal organ tissues at much higher concentrations than in the pineal gland. It is a potent free radical scavenger with anti-oxidant properties, which increases the expression and activity of endogenous antioxidant. This special class of antioxidant generates a series of metabolites that are also free radical scavengers when scavenging free radicals. Capable of crossing cell membranes and of easily reaching all cell compartments, it is taken up by mitochondria and can maintain mitochondrial homeostasis in different experimental models. Melatonin has also important anti-inflammatory effects.

Recently, we have developed a pharmaceutical preparation of melatonin plus other molecules for the treatment and prevention of skin aging. The success of this preparation is that the composition facilitates their transdermal adsorption, reaching both molecules all skin’s layers. Moreover, the combination of both molecules increases their take up by the mitochondria in all skin cells. The advantage of our product is that not only reverse the mitochondrial damage produced during cellular aging but also in many pathologies coursing with mitochondrial impairment.

Interest of Argan Oil for The Prevention of Neurodegenerative Diseases: In Vitro and In Vivo Proofs of Concept

In major age-related diseases such as cardiovascular diseases, certain ocular diseases (cataract, age-related macular degeneration) and neurodegenerative diseases (particularly Alzheimer’s disease), a rupture of the RedOx equilibrium is observed. This enhances the lipid peroxidation associated with aging and increases the formation of certain oxidized cholesterol derivatives, called oxysterols, especially those formed by auto-oxidation such as 7-ketocholesterol (7KC). This lipid peroxidation is also accompanied by a degradation of the unsaturated fatty acids which generate highly reactive aldehydes which can lead to the formation of carbonylated proteins whose activities are modified compared to those of the native proteins from which they are derived. This results in perturbations of cell signaling leading to several cellular dysfunctions. Furthermore, the ability of molecules derived from lipid peroxidation to stimulate oxidative stress and/or inflammation, alter cell metabolism and induce changes in DNA may result in cell death. 7KC is the oxysterol preferentially formed by auto-oxidation of cholesterol. Since 7KC is weakly metabolized (at the exception of its degradation in bile acids by liver cells), it accumulates progressively, mainly in brain cells, and may induce cytotoxic effects: oxidative stress, inflammation and cell death. Its contribution to age-related diseases is therefore widely suspected. In order to prevent the cytotoxic effects of 7KC on the nerve cells of the central nervous system, one of the possibilities is to identify cytoprotective agents in order to reduce or inhibit its harmful activities. The cytoprotective agents may be either natural or synthetic molecules or mixtures of molecules such as oils. In this context, the cytoprotective properties of argan oils (Agadir, Berkane) and some of their major compounds (especially α-tocopherol) have been studied. To this end, complementary techniques of microscopy, flow cytometry and biochemistry were used. The composition of Argan oils has also been determined by different chromatography techniques. Argan oils have highly antioxidant properties even in vivo when given per os in the rat. On 158N murine oligodendrocytes, these oils are capable of attenuating the cytotoxicity of 7KC: loss of cellular adhesion, alteration of the plasma membrane, mitochondrial and lysosomal dysfunctions, overproduction of oxygen radicals, induction of apoptosis and autophagy. Overall, our findings provide several in vitro and in vivo proofs of concept that suggest that Argan oils could prevent and mitigate severe age related pathologies especially neurodegenerative diseases.

The following abstracts were submitted in French and only displayed by Title, Authors and Affiliations.

Mediterranean diet and coronary disease: potential beneficial effects of argan oil, the neuro-cardiovascular and androgenic benefits of argan oil in humans, the aqueous extract of argania spinosa attenuates streptozotocin-induced diabetes mellitus in rats, chemical characterization and description of new aminophenolic compounds of the fruit of the moroccan argan tree, neuroprotective activities of argan oil against pathologies of the nervous system, 3. oral presentations theme: chemical structures, properties and additional value of argan., comparison of the contents of the main biochemical compounds and the antioxidant activity of argan oil, olive oil, silybum marianum seed oil, nigella seed oil and colza oil.

1 Laboratoire ‘Nutrition, Aliments Fonctionnels et Santé Vasculaire’, UR12ES05 Université de Monastir, Monastir, Tunisia

2 Equipe ‘Biochimie du Peroxysome, Inflammation et Métabolisme Lipidique’ EA 7270/Université de Bourgogne Franche-Comté/Inserm, Dijon, France

3 Laboratoire de Biochimie, Faculté de Médecine, Sousse, Tunisia

4 Eye and Nutrition Research Group, Centre des Sciences du Goût et de l’Alimentation, UMR 1324 INRA, 6265 CNRS, University of Bourgogne Franche-Comté, Dijon, France

S. Grégoire

5 Laboratoire LARA-SPIRAL, Couternon, France

6 Institut Supérieur de Biotechnologie, Béja, Tunisia

E.-M. Karym

7 Laboratory of ‘Biochemistry of Neuroscience’, University Hassan I, Settat, Morocco

A. Badreddine

A. harzallah, s. hadj ahmed, m. cherkaoui-malki, l. bretillon.

The beneficial activities of vegetable oils results from their components. Thus, we intended to compare phytosterols, fatty acids, tocopherols, and polyphenols contents of dietary and cosmetic argan oil (AO), olive oil (OO; Tunisia, Morocco and Spain), silybum marianum seed oils (SMSO; Zaghouane, Bizerte, Sousse), nigella seed oil (NSO) and colza oil (CO), using analytical methods. The antioxidant potential of the oils was evaluated with KRL test. Oils had high C18:2 contents, with highest amounts in SMSO and NSO. CO had the highest amount of C18:3. Its level was eight to ten folds higher in NSO compared to the AO and SMSO. OO and AO had the highest level of C18:1. OO had the highest level of C16:0. C22:0 and C24:0 were found with elevated amounts in SMSO. CO and Berkane AO were rich in γ-tocopherol. Agadir AO contained the highest amount of α-tocopherol, which was present in an appreciable level in SMSO Zaghouan and Tunisian OO. Phytosterols profile showed that β-sitosterol was the major sterol in all the oils in the exception of AO. Spinasterol and schotenol were present in an important amounts in AO. Schotenol was also detected with highest level in SMSO. Stigmasterol, ∆7 campesterol, β amyrine were detected especially, in SMSO. Polyphenol profile showed the presence of homovanillic acid, vanillin, p-Coumaric acid, quercetine-3β-glucoside, quercetin and apigenin in SMSO. In AO, only protocatechic acid and tyrosol were identified. In NSO, 2.6-dihydroxybenzoïc acid, thymoquinone homovanillic acid, vanillin were detected. The antioxidant ability of the oils showed that CO, Sousse SMSO and dietary Agadir AO had the highest Red blood cells half-hemolysis time in min, which reflect their ability to increase resistance of the cells to hemolysis. The antioxidant ability of dietary and cosmetic Berkane AO was positively correlated to procatechic acid and compestanol levels. The above-mentioned makes AO and SMSO preferable choice for diseases preventing diets.

Keywords: Phytosterols; fatty acids; tocopherols; polyphenols; antioxidant activity

The Antioxidant Properties of Phenolic Compounds Found in Argan Oil. DFT/QSAR Results and Molecular Docking

1 Research Team Biology, Environment & Health, FSTE, Moulay Ismail University, Meknes, Morocco

2 Research Team Materials, Environment & Modeling. ESTM, Moulay Ismail University, Meknes, Morocco

* Correspondence:

Y. Filali Zegzouti

M. benlyass, m. bouachrine.

The argan oil has been known for its various pharmacological properties and used as a natural remedy since several centuries. Argan oil is rich in oleic acid and linoleic acid. Interestingly, the unsaponifiable fraction of this oil is mainly rich in antioxidant compounds such as sterols, saponin and phenolic compounds, principally α-tocopherol isoform Considering its rich composition in antioxidant compounds and unsaturated fat, argan oil can be used as a nutritional intervention in the CVD and cancer disease prevention.

In this work we attempt to establish a quantitative structure-activity relationship for antioxidant activity by studying a series of flavonoid compounds. We accordingly propose a quantitative model, and we try to interpret the activity of the compounds and predict the antioxidant activities of the phenolic compounds present in argan oil such us alpha tochoferol, gamma tochoferol and delta tochoferole relying on the multivariate statistical analyses. Also we attempt to validate the antioxidant activity of these compounds by docking study against cyclooxygenase-2 target (4COX) to predict and compare the conformations of ligands and orientations of binding properties of compounds.

MLR has served to select the descriptors used as the input parameters the MNLR and ANN.the topological descriptors and the electronic descriptors were computed with ACD/ChemSketch and Gaussian 03W program, respectively and the Docking Study performed With Autodock Vina Programm.

Keywords: Argan oil; QSAR, Docking; Phenolic compounds; antioxidant activity

Theme: Argan and Environment

Modeling spatial distribution of argania spinosa under a changing climate.

1 Mohammed V University in Rabat, Faculty of Sciences, Laboratory of Botany, Mycology and Environment, Avenue Ibn-Battouta B.P. 1014 RP, Rabat, Morocco

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@mirkuomedliam

S. Lahssini

2 National School of Forest Engineer, BP 511, Tabriket-Sale, Morocco

Argan trees ( Argania spinosa ) provide many functions and ecosystem services and are an important source of income for local people. The main source of income results from fruit production from which a highly valuable oil is extracted. Current production of oil exceeds 4000 T/year. Most of the Argan populations are located in regions characterized by water scarcity and vulnerability to desertification and that will strongly be impacted by climate change. As a result, the impact on the future Argan distribution in response to climate change should be assessed. Such understanding is valuable for prioritizing short and long-term management efforts, and is very useful for supporting decisions in order to ensure a sustainable production of Argan oil.

To examine the relation between bioclimatic variables and changes in Argan distribution, species distribution models (SDM) were used. A Maximum Entropy Modeling (MaxEnt) algorithm was chosen to link species locations with environmental characteristics in order to predict species occurrence likelihood and to assess the contribution of each environmental variable.

The output from this study is a continuous probability map showing the current and predicted areas suitable for Argan trees in Morocco under different climate change scenarios. The relative contribution of each covariate to the model showed that the coldest quarter and wettest month, in addition to temperature seasonality, contribute significantly to explain the spatial distribution of Argan trees.

Using a predefined threshold, the area suitable for Argan trees distribution seems to be highly dependent on climate change with a considerable decrease in extent. Some new areas may become suitable for Argan trees in the north of the current area. However, these gains are projected to be small, since larger regions located in the southern part of the country will become less suitable.

The conclusions from this analysis may contribute to improve management strategies in order to conserve the valuable ecosystem and to improve the production of Argan oil. We suggest conservation actions in the impacted areas and tree planting in regions that may become highly suitable in the future.

Keywords: Argan; SDM; Morocco; Climate change; MaxEnt

Geoclimatic Influences on Antioxidant Activity, Polyphenolic and Flavonoids Content of the Argania spinosa Pulp

F. z. zouhair.

1 Laboratory of Agroresources and Process Engineering, Faculty of Sciences, University Ibn Tofail, B, P14000 Kenitra, Morocco

2 Laboratory of Food Technology URPAF, National Institute for Agricultural Research, Rabat, Morocco

* Correspondence: [email protected]

M. Bouksaim

Argania spinosa (L.) Skeels is a tropical plant, which belongs to the Sapotaceae family. In Morocco this tree is considered an important forest species due to its botanical, social and economical interest as well as its environmental value.

Recently, many beneficial bio-molecules compounds have been identified from various parts of the A. spinosa , which can play a beneficial role in fighting disease and could be used in pharmaceutical and personal care product industries.

Phenolic and flavonoids compounds, as secondary metabolites, are a large group of molecules widely distributed in plants. Phenolic compounds can play the role of antioxidants through different mechanisms; Previous research has reported that phenolic composition is vastly influenced by biotic and abiotic factors.

The present study was conducted on the A. spinosa pulp to show the antioxidants levels, polyphenolic and flavonoids contents in this pulp, coming from different areas of Morocco, and compared them with each other, beside of showing the geoclimatic influences on the composition.

Keywords: Argania spinosa pulp; antioxidant; polyphenolic compound; flavonoids; Comparative study

Theme: The Role of Argan Oil in the Prevention and Treatment of Cardiovascular Diseases

Anti-inflamatory effects of polyphenol fractions purified from argan oils.

1 Department of Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology of Plants, Estación Experimental del Zaidín (CSIC), Profesor Albareda 1, 18008 Granada, Spain

M. Mrani Alaoui

2 Département de Biologie, Faculté des Sciences, Université Abdelmalek Essaâdi, Tétouan, Morocco

V. Alché

3 Andalusian Health Service. Granada, Spain

J.C. Jimenez-Lopez

* Correspondence: [email protected]

Argan oils are becoming widely used within the complex international oils market, due to their unique organoleptic properties together with their health-promoting characteristics and their expansive dermocosmetic uses.

Polyphenols are present in argan oils in noticeable amounts, and pioneer determinations of their composition have been recently released into the literature. Such components have been claimed as putatively responsible for pharmacological properties of virgin argan oil, mainly through their action preventing the damaging effects of reactive oxygen species (ROS), involved in the pathology of numerous diseases.

We have tested here the effects of the addition of polyphenols extracted from argan oils from different uses (edible oil, cosmetic oil and beauty oil), to whole blood cultures where an inflammatory response was triggered by means of chemical inductors. Two types of patients were assayed: healthy patients and diabetics, as the later group has been described to develop subclinical inflammatory reactions. Three key markers were analysed in plasma samples after culture by using Western blotting approaches: presence of iNOS and IL-1β, and finally the plasma SDS-PAGE profiles relatives to protein-bound 3-nitrotyrosine, as a marker of inflammation and NO production.

The three markers were enhanced in inflammation-induced samples in comparison with controls. Challenge with argan oil polyphenols together with the induction resulted in significantly lower enhancement for both diabetic and healthy patients. Finally, the argan oil polyphenols themselves did not have inflammatory effects.

The described effects are promising for the definition of health-promoting effects of argan oil, and the development of new therapeutically valuable tools. However, much progress is needed in order to dissect the precise causes of the described effects.

Keywords: argan; anti-inflammatory; cytokines; oil; polyphenols

This work was supported by ERDF-cofinanced research grants BFU2016-77243-P, P2011-CVI7487, 201540E065, RTC-2015-4181-2 and RTC2016-4824-2.

Theme: Implications of Argan Oil in the Prevention and Treatment of Different Pathologies

Potential application of calcium-binding protein of argane seed in pharmacology.

1 UR Amélioration des Plantes Conservation et Valorisation des Ressources Phytogénétiques -Centre Régional de la Recherche Agronomique de Rabat

2 Université. Hassan II-Casablanca. FSAC, Laboratoire Microbiologie, Pharmacologie, Biotechnologie et Environnement

3 Laboratoire Biotechnologie, Centre Régional de la Recherche Agronomique de Rabat

4 Ecole Normale Supérieur de l’enseignement technique Université Mohammed V Rabat

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@uobraks

Y. El Bahloul

M. taghouti.

The oleaginous seed as Argane seed constitutes the source of many interesting components having great nutritional, cosmic and medical values.

It is noticed that the Argane oil is known already plays a beneficial role to prevent human health against many diseases as cardiovascular diseases. Also, the qualified antistress molecules may be playing an important role in medical field, as Calcium-binding proteins, which we have recently highlighted in Argane seed.

Our recent biochemical analysis of Argane seed proteins, showed that a protein type Calcium-binding present the instantaneous function to solubilize calcium phosphate microgranules by surrounding them in a micellar structure as other proteins types binding calcium such as caseins protein (Holt C et al., 2013).

At all, according to our result, a potential application of calcium binding protein from Argane seed may be used against crystals Calcium phosphate formation that can cause many diseases as severe inflammation and Osteoarthritis.

Keywords: Argane seed; Calcium-binding protein; Calcium phosphate; diseases

Protective Effect of Argan Virgin Oil on Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles Induced Toxicity and Oxidative Stress in Wistar Rats

* Correspondence: [email protected]

Dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2NPs) are used in widespread applications, such as, drug additives, cosmetics, paints, paper, inks, sun-screens, electronics and food. The main factor in the toxicity of nanoparticles is its size which is very small and which makes it capable of inducing damage even at the level of the DNA. Thus, the aim of the present study was to investigate the protective effect of argan virgin oil on titanium dioxide nanoparticles toxicity.

Rats were randomly divided into four groups ( n = 5), tree groups are controls the first one received (10 mL/kg b.w) of distilled water , the second exposed to (TiO2NPs) (200 mg/kg b.w) by gavage and the third received (10 mL/kg b.w) of argan oil (10 mL/kg b.w), whereas the last group is the group which is treated by the co-administration of argan oil (10 mL/kg b.w) and (TiO2NPs) (200 mg/kg b.w) for 3 weeks. Serum protein, albumin levels and transaminases (AST, ALT), ALP activities were determined, Lipid profile, urea, Creatinine, and histological changes was investigated. The obtained results indicate that the majority of the analyzed parameters were protected against the toxicity of (TiO2NPs) in the group treated with argan oil (10 mL/kg b.w).

In conclusion, our findings show that the consumption of virgin argan oil has a protective effect against the toxicity induced by titanium dioxide nanoparticles.

Keywords: Argan virgin oil; TiO2NPs; Toxicity

Physical Properties of Wood Swelling Composite Deriving from Argan Nut Shells (CNAR)

Application of argan oil as a biodegradable inhibitor against corrosion of carbon steel in an acid medium and improvement of its anti-corrosive power by enrichment in essential oil.

1 Laboratoire de Génie des Procédés, Faculté des Sciences d’Agadir, Université Ibn Zohr, B.P 28/S, Agadir, Maroc.

* Correspondence: [email protected]

2 Equipe de Génie de l’Environnement et de Biotechnologie, ENSA, Université Ibn Zohr, BP 1136, Agadir, Maroc

A. Hamdouch

3 Laboratoire de Biotechnologies Végétales, Equipe Planta Sud, Faculté des Sciences d’Agadir, Université Ibn Zohr, B.P 28/S, Agadir, Maroc

M. EL Hadek

L. m. idrissi, effects of drought on the productivity of argan trees in the rural municipality of imin'tlit (province of essaouira), h. abdouroihamane.

1 Université Cadi Ayyad, Faculté des Sciences Semlalia Marrakech

O. Said Ali

S. el messoussi.

2 Centre Régional de Recherche Forestière, Marrakech

A. Lahrouni

T. belghazi, s. el mercht, e.-h. chakib, contribution of argan trees in carbon sequestration in the face of global warming, demonstration of the effect of the argan tree on the physicochemical and microbiological quality of camelin milk.

1 Laboratoire de Virologie, Microbiologie & Qualité/Eco-toxicologie & Biodiversité, Université Hassan II, Faculté des sciences et techniques de Mohammedia, BP 146 Mohammadia 20650 Maroc

2 INRA, CRRA-Rabat, P.O. Box 6570, Institut Rabat, 10101, Rabat Maroc

* Correspondence: [email protected]

E. H. El Maadoudi

Effect of the incorporation of argan tree by-products on dairy performance of sardi breed.

1 Laboratoire de chimie organique et étude physico-chimique, Ecole Normale Supérieure, Université Mohammed V, Avenue Mohamed Ben Hassan El OuazzaniaB.P5118 Rabat, Maroc

* Correspondence: [email protected]

2 Laboratoire de technologie alimentaire URPAF, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Rabat, Maroc

A. El Housni

Alcalin detoxification of the argan tree meal and impact on its nutritional quality.

1 Laboratoire de Zoologie et Biologie Générale, Université Mohammed ᴠ, Faculté Des Sciences Rabat, Avenu Iben Btouta B.P. 1014, Rabat Maroc

2 INRA, CRRA-Rabat, P.O. Box 6570, Institut Rabat 10101, Rabat Maroc

* Correspondence: [email protected]

Impact of the Origin of the Argan Tree Fruit on the Composition and Quality of Edible Oil

1 Laboratory of Food Technology URPAF, National Institute for Agricultural Research, Rabat, Morocco

S. Mehjoubi

F.z. zouhair.

2 Laboratory of Agroresources and Process Engineering, Faculty of Sciences, University Ibn Tofail, B, P14000 Kenitra, Morocco

Measurement of Antioxidant and Anti-Glycation Capacities of Argania spinosa Oil

* Correspondence: moc.liamtoh@anima_narkama

Argan Oil and Thrombosis: Experimental Study in Animals

* Correspondence: rf.oohay@ifhkemh

Effect of Argan Oil on Cardiovascular and Hepatic Complications of Metabolic Syndrome

1 Unité de Pathologie Métabolique et Immunitaire, Laboratoire de Biologie et Sante, Faculté des Sciences Ben Msik, Université Hassan II, Casablanca

A. Benhilal

2 Département de Cardiologie, CHU Ibn Rochd, Casablanca

M. El Messal

3 Laboratoire de Biochimie, Faculté des sciences Ain Chock, Casablanca, Université Hassan II, Casablanca

* Correspondence: rf.oohay@ainuolda

Molecular Bases of the Lightening Effect of Argan Oil and of Some by-Products of the Argan Tree on the Skin

1 Faculty of Sciences Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, Avenue Prince Moulay Abdellah, BP 2390, 40000 Marrakesh, Morocco

M. Villareal

2 Faculty of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Tsukuba, Tennodai 1-1-1, Tsukuba City, Ibaraki 305-8572, Japan

* Correspondence: am.ca.acu@ihdagd ; [email protected] ;

Acute Alcoholism and Anxiety-Depressive Disorders in the Wistar Rat: Neuroprotective Role of Argan Oil

El mostafi hicham.

1 Laboratoire Génétique, Neuroendocrinologie et Biotechnologie -Faculté des Sciences, Ibn Tofail Université, Kenitra. Maroc

2 Institut Supérieur des Professions Infirmières et Techniques de Sante de Rabat, Maroc

Touil Tarik

Kaarouche bilal, laaziz abderrahim, ouichou ali, elhessni aboubaker, mesfioui abelhalim, preventive effect of a nutritional supplementation with argan oil against emotional and mnemonic disorders related to early and chronic stress, argon oil anticonvulsant roles against epileptic-evil state development in the pilocarpine model of temporal lobe epilepsy in the wistar rat, 4. poster presentations session: argan., does argan dietary uptake reverses memory impairment processes in wistar rats, s. boulbaroud.

a Polydisciplinary Faculty, Sultan Moulay Slimane University-Beni Mellal-Morocco

F-Z. Azzaoui

b Laboratory of Biology and Health, URAC 34, Faculty of Science Ben M’sik, Hassan II University, Casablanca-Morocco

D. Mamadou Cire

c Unit of Neurosciences and applied Nutrition, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra-Morocco

d Faculty of Sciences and Technology, Beni Mellal-Morocco

A.O.T. Ahami

Argania spinosa (Argan) and Baillonella toxisperma (Moabi) belong to the class of Sapotaceae. The entire tree is used in African traditional medicine, especially in the Moroccan and Cameroonian pharmacopeia. The fruits seeds of these trees are consumed as food or used as cosmetic products. Their oils are rich in Long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA), this component plays essential roles in brain functions, including brain plasticity and memory processes. In this context, the purpose of this work was to study the effect of PUFA supplementation on short and long term memory processes. The Acute oral toxicity studies were carried out according to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) guideline No. AOT-425 and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to evaluate toxicity and to determine the minimum lethal dose of the used oils. A total of 20 adult male rats, weighed (170 ± 6) g, were randomly divided into three groups: (1) T: control groups, (2) Moa 750: groups received Moabi oil at 750 mg/kg, (3) Arg 750: groups received Argan oil at 750 mg/kg. The animals were kept under treatment for 1 month. An object recognition task was used to evaluate the short and long term memory. The Time spent exploring each object was recorded. Intact memory for the familiar object was demonstrated if the rat exhibited a “preference” for the novel object in the choice phase. A preference was indicated if the rat spent more time than chance with the novel object. The results showed that, at a dose level of 2000 mg/kg, neither mortality nor any clinical signs of toxicity were observed. The Moa750 was associated with a significant alteration in short and long term memory tested in memory tasks compared to the control rat, in contrast the administration of Argan oil into rats improved their memory impairment.

Keywords: Argan oil; memory impairment; object recognition task; Moabi oil; wistar rat

Argan Oil and Clove Essential Oil Improves Biochemical and Histological Change by Reducing Oxidative Stress Induced by Hydrogen Peroxide in Wistar Rats

Oxidative stress is an imbalance between the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the antioxidant defenses of the organism, There is a very strong relation between the increase in oxidative stress and the appearance of diseases like cancer and diabetes .This study aims to evaluate the protective effect of argan oil and clove ( Syzygium aromaticum ) essential oil on oxidative stress induced by hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) in wistar rats, for these reasons the antioxidant content of argan oil and clove essential oil was studied. Rats were randomly divided into six groups ( n = 6), three groups were kept as control and received (10 mL/kg b.w) of distilled water or clove essential oil prepared in argan oil with the concentration of (100 mg/kg b.w), or argan oil (10 mL/kg b.w), the other three groups received daily by gavage 1% of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) (10 mL/kg b.w) and (10 mL/kg b.w) of distilled water or clove essential oil prepared in argan oil with the concentration of (100 mg/kg b.w), or argan oil (10 mL/kg b.w). At the end of the study Biochemical parameters and histological studies were performed. Results indicated that the group which is treated with argan oil supplemented with clove essential oil is the most protected group against oxidative stress induced by hydrogen peroxide.

Keywords: hydrogen peroxide; oxidative stress; argan oil; clove essential oil

Silicon Effect on the Improvement of Black Cumin (Nigella Sativa l.) TOTAL Phenols Content and Other Parameters under Salinity Conditions

1 Team of Materials, Catalysis and Natural Resources Development, Department of Chemistry, Ibn-Zohr University, FSA. Agadir

2 Agrophysiology & Post Harvest Laboratory Natural Resources and Local Product Research Unity (UR RN & PDT) INRA-CRRA-Agadir

Z. Bouzoubaâ

F. achemchem.

The silicon application is considered as an alternative approach to alleviate salinity stress and to improve yield and quality in plants. Thus, an experiment was conducted with Black cumin ( Nigella sativa L.) cultivar seeding in pots, under semi-controlled greenhouse conditions in order to determine the silicon effect on total phenols, leaf proline, relative water content (RWC), and dry matter accumulation. The experimental design was an aleatoire complete block (ACB) with three repetitions. Three salinity levels of water irrigation (0, 50 and 100 Mm) were applied. The Results of one way ANOVA test showed a significant increase of leaf proline content, Na+ concentration and a significant decrease of dry matter and RWC in salt conditions, whereas, the application of silicon increased the total phenols content as well as the biometric plants parameters in the same salt conditions. As a conclusion, application of silicon reduced the adverse effect of salinity of black cumin and gives more quality of the product.

Keywords: silicon; Nigella sativa (L). salinity; total phenol contents; quality

Nanoparticle-Based Assay for the Detection of Virgin Argan Oil Adulteration and Its Rapid Quality Evaluation

1 Equipe Chimie Appliquée & encvironnement, Ecole Nationale des sciences Appliquées d’Agadir, B.P: 1136 Maroc

2 Department of Analytical Chemistry and Food Technology, University of Castilla—La Mancha, 13004 Ciudad Real, Spain

Argan oil is produced from the fruits of the argan (Argania spinosa), a species of tree endemic to south-western Morocco and protected by UNESCO. The resulting oil is slightly darker than olive oil and has a reddish tinge. It is well known for its cosmetic, pharmaceutical and nutritional virtues. Of particular impor- tance are its rich aroma and nutty flavour, which make this oil an exotic ingredient around the world. Recently, it was shown that the geographical origin of the argan fruit and the extraction method used to produce the oil have a considerable influence on its physicochemical composition and characteristics. A new method, based on the formation of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and spectrophotometric analysis, is proposed to determine total phenolic acids in virgin argan oil samples. These compounds have reducibility due to the presence of the phenol group in their molecular structure, and a redox reaction occurs in the presence of HAuCl4. The formation of AuNPs as a result of the redox reaction leading to colour changes can be visually observed, resulting in strong light signals that show absorption at 555 nm. As ferulic acid represents more than 95% of the total phenolic acid content of virgin argan oil, this compound was used as an adulteration marker to carry out the screening of samples for the evaluation of the authenticity of virgin argan oils. The analytical features of this screening method also allowed a low precision quantization of the quality of the product. Then, a reference HPLC-DAD/FD method was used to confirm the potential adulterated samples, as well as to provide a detailed quantitative analysis of the most representative phenolic compounds in the samples. The overall screening-confirmation strategy was validated by analysing pure virgin argan oil samples and argan oil samples adulterated with other commercial vege- table oils, demonstrating the reliability of the results. This approach is characterised by its simplicity, low cost, rapid information and responded to practical laboratories needs.

Keywords: gold nanoparticles; liquid chromatography; virgin argan oil; adulteration

Fine-Tuning of Argan Oil Concentrations for a Better Liquid Storage of Boujaâd Ram Semen

Argan seed oil (ARO) is harvest from Argania spinosa (L.) known as an endemic tree to Morocco and known worldwide for its oil. This oil is extremely rich in unsaturated fatty acids, tocopherols (alpha, beta, gamma and delta) as well as in phenolic acids (vanillic acid, ferulic acid and syringic acid. With caracteristics). The two last components could give to this oil a beneficial role in liquid storage of ram semen. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate effects of different concentration of argan oil (ARO) on spermatologic parameters, lipid peroxidation and DNA fragmentation during ram semen liquid storage. Also, effects of extenders and temperature on the same parameters were assessed. Semen samples were collected from Boujaâd rams, extended with Tris egg yolk or skim milk extenders without (control) or supplemented with different concentrations of ARO (1, 2, 5 and 10% v / v ) at a final concentration of 0.8 × 10 9 sperm/mL and stored at 5 °C or 15 °C. The sperm quality assessments were performed at different intervals during storage (0, 8, 24 and 48 h). Sperm progressive motility started to decrease after 8 h of storage in all temperatures—extenders combinations and dropped steadily during the 8–48 h interval. However, sperm viability, progressive motility and membrane integrity were markedly higher in ARO groups (especially in 1% in Tris and 5% in skim milk) until 24 h and 48 h storage at both temperatures compared to controls. The argan oil also decreased the level of spontaneous and induced malondialdehyde (MDA) and the sperm DNA fragmentation until 48 h of storage. In conclusion, argan oil is able to maintain a better quality of ram semen during liquid storage. Moreover, depending on the extender and storage temperature the usage of precise concentrations of argan oil may last storage period. Future studies should aim at determining the exact component of argan oil which is responsible of all improvements recorded in this study.

Keywords: Boujaâd rams; argan oil; liquid storage; sperm parameter

Effect of Argan Oil on the Physicochemical and Microbiological Quality of Milk Camelin

Study of the antidiabetic effect of argan oil by molecular interaction, effects of argan oil on blood pressure and oxidative stress in chronically glucose-fed rats, a. el midaoui.

1 Équipe de Recherche: “Biologie, Environnement & Santé”, Département de Biologie; FSTE—Université Moulay Ismaïl; Errachidia—Maroc

2 Département de Physiologie Moléculaire et Intégrative, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Canada

Y. Filali-Zegrouti

A. el haidani, effects of argan oil on hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, insulin resistance, and nadph oxidase activity in chronically glucose-treated rats, molecular bases of the lightening effect of argan oil and some by-products of the argan tree on the skin, thouria bourhim.

1 Faculty of Sciences Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, Avenue Prince Moulay Abdellah, B P2390, 40000 Marrakesh, Morocco

Rachida Makbal

Myra villareal.

* Correspondence: ).V.M( am.ca.acu@ihdagd ; ).I.H( [email protected]

Abdellatif Hafidi

Chemseddoha gadhi, hiroko isoda, study swelling of samples of argan nut broye glue with polypropylene and water, alcalin detoxification of the argan tree meal and its impact on its nutritional quality, evidence of the effect of the argan tree on the physicochemical and microbiological quality of camelin milk, the impact of the origin of the argan tree fruit on the composition and the quality of edible oil, special session “benefits of natural plant extracts on human health”., antidiabetic effect of anabasis aretioides in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@ramodiraf

In this study the effect of Anabasis aretioides (A. aretioides) aerial part aqueous extract (A.P.A.E) at a dose of 5 mg/kg body weight on blood glucose levels and plasma lipid profile was investigated in normal and streptozotocin (STZ) diabetic rats. A preliminary screening for various bioactive constituents was realized and the antioxidant potential of the aqueous extract was also demonstrated. The histopathological changes in liver and pancreas have been evaluated both in normal and STZ diabetic rats. The ability of A. aretioides aqueous extract to improve glucose tolerance in normal rats was also determined. Furthermore, the relative organs weight (R.O.W) of liver, kidney, pancreas and brown adipose tissue were given.

In normal rats, a single administration of the A.P.A.E (5 mg/kg) has not shown a significant reduction in blood glucose levels. However, a significant reduction ( p < 0.0001) was observed in diabetic rats. Repeated oral administration of A. aretioides exerted a significant reduction in blood glucose levels both in normal ( p < 0.05) and STZ diabetics ( p < 0.0001) rats. The blood glucose lowering activity of A.P.A.E was comparable to vanadate treatment at a dose used. The oral glucose tolerance test demonstrated the ability of the aqueous extract of A.P.A.E (5 mg/kg) to improve the increase on blood glucose levels in normal treated rats. In this investigation no significant changes in body weight in normal and STZ rats were shown. According to the DPPH (1-1-diphenyl 2-picryl hydrazyl) radical scavenging activity, the aqueous extract has shown a not negligible antioxidant activity.

Keywords: Anabasis aretioides; aqueous extract; streptozotocin; lipid profiles; histopathological changes.

* This work was supported by the CNRST under the grant number PPR/2015/35.

Preliminary Phytochemical Screening and Evaluation of Hypolipidemic Activity of the Aerial Part of Aqueous Extract of Tamarix Articulata Vahl

The objective of this study was to evaluate the hypolipidemic activity of aqueous extract of T. articulata in normal and streptozotocin-induced rats. Phytochemical screening as well as polyphenol and flavonoid contents in aqueous extract of T. articulate were evaluated.

The plasma concentrations of Total cholesterol, Triglycerides and High-Density Lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-c) were measured in STZ-diabetic and normal rats previously treated by aqueous extract of T. articulata (5 mg/kg of body weight). Total phenolic content of the aqueous extract was determined by Folin Ciocalteu method. Concerning flavonoids content, the colorimetric AlCl3 method was used.

A single oral administration in diabetic rats showed a significant increase in the HDL-cholesterol after 6 hours of treatment with T. articulata (5 mg/kg). The results demonstrated also that the aqueous extract of T. articulata produced a significant decrease in serum total cholesterol on repeated oral administration in streptozotocin diabetic rats ( p < 0.001). In contrast, plasma HDL-cholesterol levels were increased significantly after 7 days of treatment with T. articulata ( p < 0.001). The total polyphenol and flavonoid contents of T. articulata aqueous extract were 102.5 mg EAG/g of extract and 54.83 mg EQ/g of extract, respectively. According to preliminary phytochemical screening of aerial part of T. articulata several classes of chemicals have been found such as polyphenols, flavonoids, tannins, cyanidins (flavones, catecols), mucilage, sesquiterpenes, terpenoids and carbohydrates.

We conclude that T. articulata aqueous extract exhibits hypolipidemic potential.

Keywords: hypolipidemic; streptozotocin; total cholesterol; triglycerides; High-Density Lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-c); polyphenols; flavonoids.

Funding: This work was supported by CNRST under grant number PPR/2015/35.

Study of Glucose and Lipid Lowering Activity of Mentha Suaveolens Ehrh. In Normal and Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats

* Correspondence: [email protected]

Mentha suaveolens Ehrh. is an aromatic and medicinal plant from Lamiacea family. This plant has many food and medicinal uses including diabetes management. The present work aimed to evaluate the effect of the aqueous extract of aerial part of Mentha suaveolens Ehrh (AEAPMS) on blood glucose levels and the plasma lipid profile. Blood glucose and plasma lipid levels were followed after both single and repeated (15 days of treatment) AEAPMS (20 mg/Kg) oral administration in normal and streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats.

Furthermore, preliminary phytochemical screening, quantification of phenolic and flavonoid contents as well as histopathological examination of pancreas and liver were carried out. The results showed that AEAPMS exhibited a significant glucose and lipid (Total cholesterol and triglycerides) lowering activity in both normal and diabetic rats. However, no significant effect was observed on serum lipoproteins (HDL and LDL). Moreover, AEAPMS seems to act positively on histopathological tissues of liver and pancreas. The phytochemical analysis of AEAPMS showed that the main phytochemical constituents of Mentha suaveolens are alkaloids, polyphenols, flavonoids, cyanidins, tannins, glucosides, saponins, quinones, anthraquinones, mucilage, sterols, sesquiterpenes, reducing sugars, carbohydrates and terpenoids. On another hand, a potential in vitro antioxidant of AEAPMS has been shown.

In conclusion, the study demonstrates that AEAPMS possesses a beneficial effect on glucose and lipid metabolism. This effect might be mediated through the amelioration of the liver and pancreas function.

Keywords: Antidiabetic; lipid profile; mentha suaveolens Ehrh; histopathology; antioxidant activity

Anti-inflammatory properties and phenolic profile of six moroccan date fruit (phoenix dactylifera) varieties

Eimad dine tariq bouhlali.

a Biology, Environment & Health Team, Faculty of Sciences and Techniques Errachidia

b Biochemistry of Natural Product Team, Faculty of Sciences and Techniques Errachidia

Jaouad EL HILALY

c Materials, Natural Substances, Environment and Modeling Laboratory, Multidisciplinary Faculty of Taza

d Regional institute of Education and Training Careers, Fez

Mhamed RAMCHOUN

e Faculty of medicine and pharmacy, Beni Mellal

Abdelbassat HMIDANI

Adil el midaoui, chakib alem, mohamed‑yassine amarouch, younes filali-zegzouti.

Date fruit ( Phoenix dactylifera ) is traditionally used in Morocco to treat inflammatory diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, but this has not yet been studied at the scientific level. In this study, phenolic profile and anti-inflammatory activity of six date fruit varieties were assessed. The results showed that Gallic, Ferulic, Caffeic acids and Rutin were the most dominant among analysed polyphenolic compounds. Regarding the anti-inflammatory activity Bousrdoun possessed the highest nitric oxide scavenging ability (IC 50 = 531.34 μg/mL) and induced the highest protein denaturation inhibition (IC 50 = 408.64 μg/mL) as well as the highest membrane stabilizing effect (IC 50 = 483.61 μg/mL). Jihl exhibited the highest reduction of ear edema (74%) and the highest inhibition of paw oedema at 4th hour after carrageenan injection was found in Jihl and Bousrdoun with an average of paw swilling (40.35%). In conclusion, these results support the use of date fruit and its main compounds for their anti-inflammatory properties and antioxidant activity. The difference observed between analysed date fruit verities regarding their anti-inflammatory activiy may be due in part to the variations in the phenolic profile and total phenols and flavonoids content.

Keywords: Date fruit; phenolic profile; Anti-inflammatory activity

Functional Composition and Biological Activities of Six Moroccan Date Fruit Varieties Grown in Southeastern Morocco

E.d.t. bouhlali.

a Biology, Environment and Health Team, Faculty of sciences and Techniques Errachidia, Morocco

b Biochemistry of Natural Product Team, Faculty of sciences and Techniques Errachidia, Morocco

M. Ramchoun

c Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy Beni Mellal, Morocco;

M.Y. Amarouch

d Materials, Natural Substances, Environment and Modeling Laboratory, Multidisciplinary Faculty of Taza

A. EL Midaoui

Y. filali-zegzouti.

The aim of this study was to determine the functional composition and biological activities of some date fruit varieties that are unknown to the general public, but highly appreciated by the local populations of oases these varieties are locally known as Boufgous, Bouskri, Bousrdon, Bousthammi, Jihl and Majhoul . Sucrose was the main sugar in Bouskri unlike other varieties which contain fructose and glucose in high amount. Bouskri contains the highest amount of pyridoxine and Majhoul possesses the highest amount niacin and riboflavin. Among analyzed cultivars, Bousthammi contains the highest amount of magnesium and manganese and has iron seven times more than Jihl cultivars, which contains a high amount of calcium and copper. The highest amount of zinc was found in Najda while the highest amount of potassium was detected in Bouskri . Significant difference in antioxidant activity was observed between analyzed varieties. The highest antioxidant activity was observed in both Bousrdoun and Jihl which contained the highest amount of phenolic and flavonoids content. Gallic, Ferulic, Caffeic acids and Rutin were the most dominant among analysed polyphenolic compounds and the highest amount of these compounds were observed in Jihl and Bousrdoun. Regarding the anti-inflammatory activity and based on the results of three in vitro assays and two in vivo assays, Bousrdoun and Jihl exhibited the highest anti-inflammatory effect. Moderate antibacterial activity was observed in all studied varieties except Bouskri and Majhoul which didn’t show no antibacterial effect against the six bacterial strains. Bousrdon and Jihl were found to be more potent against these bacterial strains. These differences in chemical composition and biological activity suggest that date fruit is an extensive domain hence the size should not be the only character that should be used to choose the variety but also its composition and their biological activities.

Keywords: antioxidant; anti-inflammatory; antibacterial; date fruit functional composition

Ethnobotany Study of Medicinal Plants Used in the Treatment of Certain Diseases in the City of Errachdidia

A. el-haidani.

1 Biology department, Sciences and Technics Faculty of Errachidia, Errachidia, Morocco

E.-T. Bouhlali

Y. el achhab.

2 Regional Center for Careers Education and Training of Fez-Meknes, Taza, Morocco

3 Lab. of Environment & Health, Kénitra, Morocco

Y. Filali-Zegzouti

A large number of aromatic and medicinal plants have very interesting biological properties, which find applications in various fields such as medicine, pharmacy, cosmetology and agriculture. In order to know the medicinal plants traditionally by the population of the city of Errachidia, an ethnobotanical study was carried out in this city. The study of the medicinal flora made it possible to inventory 48 species belonging to 23 families. The ethnobotanical survey carried out by means of a questionnaire, made it possible to collect a certain number of information. Foliage is the most widely used part of medicinal plants. The method of preparation of the majority of remedies is the decoction. In all the diseases treated, digestive diseases represent the most cited diseases.

Keywords: medicinal plants; digestive diseases; City of Errachidia

Screening of Biological Activity of Polyphenol-Rich Extracts from South East Moroccan Thyme Varieties

1 Sultan Moulay Slimane University, 23000 Beni Mellal, Morocco

3 Laboratory of Biochemistry, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, 60000 Oujda, Morocco

2 Biochemistry of Naturel product Equipe, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences and Technology 52000 Errachidia, University Moulay Ismail, Morocco

Y. ilali Zegzouti

4 MMS2160 Laboratory of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Nantes, France

K. Ouguerram

5 Research Center in Humain Nutrition, INSERM U 915, CHU of Nantes, France

Cardiovascular disease is the most frequent cause of death in industrialized countries and hyperlipidemia represents a major risk factor for the premature development of atherosclerosis and its vascular complications. Despite, the availability of highly effective treatments, morbidity and mortality from atherosclerotic vascular diseases remain substantial. Therefore, novel therapies to improve cardiovascular outcomes are needed. Thus, natural compounds might represent an alternative therapeutic approach. Indeed, several epidemiological and experimental studies have shown that intake of a number of polyphenols from medicinal plants, which exert protective effects against oxidative stress, is inversely correlated with atherosclerosis development and cardiovascular events.

The genus Thymus L. (Lamiaceae), aromatic plants of the Mediterranean flora, economically important due to their use in folk medicine for their numerous medicinal and aromatic properties, have been reported to possess various biological effects including antioxidant and antimicrobial activities. Thymus satureioides ( T. satureioides ), Thymus atlanticus ( T. atlanticus ) and Thymus zygis ( T. zygis ) are an endemic species of Morocco used in the folk medicine in form of infuse and decoctions to treat whooping cough, bronchitis and rheumatism and, generally, for its anti-inflammatory properties after topical or oral administration. Many works showed that some Thymus species possess anti-inflammatory activity but to our knowledge, no study has investigated the effect of these plants on the coagulation and hypolipemiant activity.

In this study, we assessed the hypolipemic, anti-inflammatory, coagulation and antioxidant effects of polyphenol-rich extracts obtained from endemic Moroccan thyme varieties (Lamiaceae) collected in the Errachidia area (south east of Morocco).

Keywords: Thymus; polyphenol; antioxidant activity; hypolipemic activity; anti-inflammatory activity; anti-coagulation activity; cardiovascular disease

Evaluation of Medicago Sativa Growth Inoculated with Rhizobial Strain Rhol1 and/or Arbuscular-Mycorrhizal (AM) Fungi under Stress Conditions

R. ben laouane.

*1 LLaboratoire de Biotechnologie et Physiologie Végétale FSSM-Université Cadi Ayyad. Marrakech

*2 Laboratoire de Biologie et Biotechnologie des Microorganismes FSSM-Université Cadi Ayyad

*3 Laboratoire de Biotechnologie Végétale Faculté des Sciences Université Ibn Zohr Agadir

N. Bechtaoui

M. ait el mokhtar.

Alfalfa (Medicago sativa) , is a perennial flowering plant in the family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. This plant has been used as a common ingredient in south-west Moroccan (Tinghir) and South Indian cuisine. Alfalfa is rich in many essential vitamins and minerals, including A, D, E, K, and even the full family of B vitamins; biotin, calcium, folic acid, iron, magnesium, potassium …, as well as being very high in protein. This herb is believed to have a direct connection to lowering cholesterol. It is very good at detoxifying and better purifying the blood. It has also beneficial healing properties against bad breath, sore or achy joints, imbalanced skin conditions, and it even increases immune system functionality. This herb acts as an alternative to over the counter pain medicines for headaches or migraines. As a result, consuming alfalfa on a routine basis has an abundance of positive health results. Medicago sativa constitutes the first forage crop in Mediterranean area In Morocco, this crop occupies over 22% of the total area devoted to forage crops. It strongly contributes to socio-economic development of local families. However, water and soil salinity recorded in many world regions is a major environmental factor limiting plant growth and productivity and constitutes an important constraint to alfalfa. In this context, the present study aimed to evaluate the salinity tolerance of Midecago sativa inoculated with Rhizobial strain RhOL1 and/or arbuscular-mycorrhizal (AM) fungi (autochtonous mycorhizal).

Keywords: Medicago sativa; stress conditions; arbuscular-mycorrhizal; Rhizobial strain RhOL1; growth

Chemical Characterization and In Vitro Antimcrobial Activity of Carum Carvi Essential Oil

Yasmine ghouati.

1 Ecole Nationale d’Agriculture, Unité de Technologie Alimentaire et de Biochimie BP S/40 Meknès, Maroc

Touriya Belaiche

Ali amechrouq.

2 Faculté des Sciences de Meknès, Département de Chimie, BP: 11021, Zitoune, Meknès, Maroc

Saadia Belmalha

3 Ecole Nationale d’Agriculture, Département de Protection des Plantes et de l’Environnement BP S/40 Meknès, Maroc

Mohammed Boukili

4 Faculté des Sciences de Meknès, Département de Biologie, BP: 11021, Zitoune, Meknès, Maroc

Zoubida Haloui

Said chakir.

Recently, many antibiotics have been ineffective due to the rapid development of microbial resistance wich led to the emrgency of new infection diseases. Therefore, to overcome this problem the use of essential oil is one of the promising strategies.

The present study was firstly undertaken to determine the chemical composition of Carum carvi essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation and to evaluate its antimicrobial effect. The chemical composition was analyzed by a GC/MS system and a total of constituents were identified representing about 86.80% of total oil. The antimicrobial activity of Carum carvi essential oil against microbial strains was qualitatively and quantitatively assessed by the presence or absence of inhibition, and MIC values. The studied essential oil exhibited an inhibition against the majority of tested bacteria and was found to be more active against Gram-positive bacteria ( Bacillus cereus and Staphylococcus aureus ) than Gram-negative ones ( Escherichia coli and Salmonella Typhi ).

The results demonstrate that Carum carvi essential oil have an antimicrobial effect. These findings are very promising and suggest that essential oil isolated from Carum carvi can be considered as new and potential source of natural antimicrobial agents.

Keywords: chemical composition; essential oil; Carum carvi; antimicrobial activity; Gram-positive bacteria; Gram-negative bacteria

Chemical Composition, Antioxidant and Antibacterial Activities of Essential Oil of the Leaves of Tetraclinis Articulate (Vahl) MASTERS from Morocco

F.z. sadiki.

1 Laboratory of Molecular Chemistry and Natural Substances , Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences of Meknes, Moulay Ismail University, Bp. 11201, Zitoune, Meknès, Morocco

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@dasarhazitaf

M. El Idrissi

2 Department of Biology, Faculty of Biology, Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi, Bv. Carol I, no. 11, 700505 Iasi, Romania

3 Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy “Gr. T. Popa”, Iasi,Str. Universitatii no. 16, 700115 Iasi, Romania

4 Laboratory of microbiology, Ismail Military Hospital, Meknes, Morocco

Medicinal and aromatic plants have been used for a long time in the process of oxidative stress and the fight against infectious diseases. But the discovery of synthetic antioxidants and antibiotics caused the decline of herbal medicine and relegated it to a secondary rank. In effect, the secondary effects of these synthetic products and the appearance of resistant bacteria led us to study the antioxidant and antibacterial activities of the essential oil of leaves of Tetraclinis articulata (vahl) Masters . Extraction of the essential oils was carried out by hydrodistillation. The composition of the essential oil was analyzed by GC/MS. We used to evaluate the antioxidant activity of the essential oil the radical ABTS and the radical DPPH. While the antibacterial activity was determinate by paper disc diffusion method and the liquid dilution method. The test microorganisms include Gram-positive bacteria and Gram-negative bacteria which are clinical isolates. The main constituents of the essential oil were Camphor (24.21%), α-Pinene (23.77%), Bornyl Acetate (17.37%) and Borneol (10.32%). The results of the biological tests show that the essential oil of the leaves of Tetraclinis articulata has interesting antibacterial and antioxidant properties. This study confirms scientifically the traditional use of this plant and reveals its interest in the context of exploitation in biotechnology.

Keywords: Tetraclinis articulata ; antioxidant; antibacterial; essential oil

Phytochemistry of the Essential Oil of Cymbopogon Nardus Growing in Morocco: Preventive Approach Against Nosocomial Infections

This paper describes chemical composition, and antimicrobial activity of Cymbopogon nardus citronella essential oil against bacteria responsible for nosocomial infections. Due to the ban of antibiotics, this study was carried out to evaluate the potential of citronella essential oil as alternative to commercial antibiotics use against nosocomial bacteria.

The phytochemical characterization of essential oil was evaluated using gas chromatography-flame ionization detector and gas chromatography-mass spectrometer analysis. Antibacterial activity of the oil was tested against six bacterial strains responsible for nosocomial infections: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus, Proteus mirabilis, Escherichia coli and Acinetobacter baumannii using disc diffusion method.

Eight components were identified, the predominant components were Geraniol, trans-citral and cis-citral. The study of the antibacterial power showed an important antibacterial activity of the essential oil tested against all the bacterial strains.

These results suggest that the essential oil extracted from Cymbopogon nardus can be used to clean the environment of reanimation polyvalent and anesthesia service.

Phytochemical Screening, Quantitative Analysis and Antioxidant Activity of Vitex Agnus Castus. L. (lamiaceae) from South-East of Morocco

Hamdouch aicha.

1 Laboratory of Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Science, University Ibn Zohr, Agadir, Morocco

Fatima Taoufik

2 Laboratory of Chemical Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, University IBN ZOHRAgadir, Morocco

Bouchra Chebli

3 Laboratory of Biology, School of Applied Sciences, University Ibn Zohr Agadir, Morocco

Lalla Mina Idrissi Hassani

This study was designed to assess the phytochemical screening of leaves and seeds of Vitex agnus castus harvested in a marginalized oasis of south-East of Morocco and to evaluate their potential antioxydante activity properties using 2,2 diphenyl-1-picrylehydrazil (DPPH) radical scavenging. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of alkaloids, terpenes and catechic tannins in the different samples, anthraquinones in seeds and saponins in leaves. Methanol 80% extract of seeds and leaves of Vitex agnus castus was obtained and subjected to a quantitative determination of total polyphenols and total flavonoids content. Leaves and seeds showed a high content of total polyphenols; Total flavonoids content was high in leaves Quantification of aglycones in the two parts of Vitex agnus castus revealed and important amount of aglycones in leaves. The thin layer chromatography of methanol 80% extracts revealed a wide variety of flavonoids and the presence of kaempferol in the seeds of Vitex agnus castus.

Keywords: phytochemical screening; total polyphenols content; total flavonoids content; Aglycons content; antioxidant activity; Vitex agnus castus

In Vitro Antifungal and Antioxidant Activities of Essential Oil, Polar and Apolar Extracts of Pulicaria Mauritanica from South-East of Morocco

1 Faculty of science, University Ibnou Zohr, Agadir, Morocco

2 School of applied sciences, University Ibnou Zohr Agadir, Morocco

L.M. Idrissi

In vitro antifungal and antioxidant activities of essential oil, methanol and ether extracts and anticorrosive activity of essential oil of Pulicaria mauritanica (Asteraceae) harvested in the oasis of Tata of south-East of Morocco were investigated. Essential oil was extracted using hydrodistillation method; methanol and ether extracts were obtained using soxhlet apparatus. Essential oil showed a strong inhibition of Penicillium digitatum mycelium growth (100% at 700 ppm); ether extract gave 46.212 ± 1.543% of inhibition at 30,000 ppm, while methanol extract exhibited no activity against P. digitatum . Methanol extract showed a strong reduction of DPPH (IC 50 = 0.027 ± 0.004 mg/mL), while essential oil and ether extract exhibited median reduction of DPPH, IC 50 are successively 0.080 ± 0.005 mg/mL and 0.123 ± 0.0006 mg/mL. Phytochemical investigation of studied organic extracts showed that polyphenolic compounds constitute the major compounds of it. Linear correlation between total polyphenols and total flavonoids contents and antioxidant capacity was obtained; the correlation was positive

Keywords: Pulicaria mauritanica ; antifuangal activity; antioxidant activity; IC 50 ; insecticidal activity; phytochemical analyses

Phytochemical Screening, Quantitative Analysis and Antioxidant Activity of Pulicaria Inuloides (Poiret) DC. (Asteraceae) from South-East of Morocco

Aicha hamdouch.

1 Laboratory of plant biotechnology, faculty of science, University Ibn Zohr, Agadir, Morocco

* Correspondence: [email protected]

Abderrahman Aajmi

2 Laboratory of Process Engineering, University Ibn Zohr Agadir, Morocco

This study was designed to assess the phytochemical screening of leaves of Pulicaria inuloides (Poiret) DC. harvested in a marginalized oasis of south-East of Morocco and to evaluate their potential antioxydante activity properties using 2,2 diphenyl-1-picrylehydrazil (DPPH) radical scavenging. The phytochemical screening revealed the presence of terpenes, catechic tannins, anthraquinones, free quinons, in methanol and petroleum ether extracts of leaves of P. inuloides , alkaloids and saponins are present only in methanol extract. Methanol and petroleum extracts of leaves of P. inuloides were subjected to a quantitative determination of total polyphenols and total flavonoids content. Methanol extract showed a high content of total polyphenols and total flavonoids content (32.75 ± 0.0066 mg GAE/g dried extract and 11.025 ± 0.003 mg QE/g dried extract respectively). Quantification of aglycones revealed an important content in leaves of P. inuloides (0.210 ± 0.023 mg QE/ g dried plant material). Test of antioxidant activity revealed an important scavenging effect of methanol extract compared to petroleum ether extract (IC 50 = 0.05 ± 0.01 mg/mL and IC 50 = 0.14 ± 0.026 mg/mL respectively).

Keywords: phytochemical screening; total polyphenols content; total flavonoids content; antioxidant activity; Pulicaria inuloides

In vitro Investigation of the Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Activities of Three Thymus Species Grown in Southeastern Morocco

Abdelbassat hmidani, eimad dine tariq bouhlali, tarik khouya, mhamed ramchoun.

c Faculty of Medicine and Pharmacy Beni Mellal, Morocco

Younes filali zegzoutI

Chakib alem, mohamed benlyas.

The aim of the present study is to examine the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activities of three thyme varieties grown in southeastern Morocco. The antioxidant activity was performed using ABTS assay. In vitro anti-inflammatory assay was also studied through the evaluation of membrane stabilization effect, inhibition of protein denaturation and inhibition of protease activity. The result showed that all varieties possess three important antioxidant activities: Thymus Atlanticus (IC 50 = 16.59 ± 0.32 μg/mL), Thymus Zygis (IC 50 = 15.65 ± 0.74 μg/mL), and Thymus Satureioides (IC 50 = 15, 48 ± 0.35 μg/mL). Concerning the anti-inflammatory activity and based on the results of the in vitro assays used in this study, the highest anti-inflammatory effect was depicted in Thymus atlanticus followed by Thymus zygis and Thymus satureioides. The findings of this survey may partly explain the use of those plants in the Moroccan traditional medicine for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.

Keywords: antioxidant; anti-inflammatory; Thymus atlanticus ; Thymus zygis ; Thymus satureioides

Thin Layer Chromatography Fingerprinting of Thymelaea Lythroides Extracts for Pharmacological Screening

1 Laboratory of Biochemistry, Environment & Agro Alimentary. Team of Pharmacochemistry. URAC 36. Faculty of Sciences and Techniques. University Hassan II, Casablanca

B. El Bouhali

3 Team of nutritional physiology and endocrine pharmacology, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, University Moulay Ismail, Errachidia. This work was supported by the CNRST under grant number PPR/2015/35

S. Boughribil

2 Laboratory of Virology, Microbiology and Quality. Faculty of Sciences and Techniques. University Hassan II, Casablanca

Medicinal plants constitute an important reservoir of active and new biomolecules and wide variety of secondary metabolites. The obtaining of reproducible and reliable extracts ensures the reproducibility of the pharmacological activity. Chromatography fingerprinting is an elegant approach to monitoring the compounds involved.We develop TLC fingerprint to evaluate the chemical stability and identifies biomolecules of the extract before screening pharmacological activity. The TLC fingerprint is constructed from the spots and the area of the compounds by software.

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Thymelaea L. is an endemic plant known for its ethno-pharmacological use in several pathologies in Morocco. After extraction by several solvents and evaporation, the residues were subjected to TLC on silica gel. The chemical reagents in solution, sprayed on TLC chromatograms, are used to complement the visual observations under sunlight and for a specific revelation.

In our previous studies differential extraction shows four stable compounds. Three flavonoids (Mtb1, Mtb2 Mtb3) were identified and Tpn is probably a terpene. In this research we are focused on polar fraction for antibacterial and antihypertensive screening. This TLC fingerprint is used in first step for preparative chromatography of polar fraction. The first results show promising pharmacological activity.

TLC fingerprinting localizes easily the secondary metabolites and optimizes the fractions for preparative chromatography. It also provides a simple and fast method to monitor a particular component in the mixture. The demonstration of pharmacological activity of family or single molecule becomes more rational.

Keywords: TLC fingerprints; Thymelaea L.; antihypertensive; antibacterial activity

Phytochemistry of the Essential oil of Melissa Officinalis l. Growing Wild in Morocco

To determine the phytochemical characterization and antibacterial activity of Melissa officinalis essential oil against bacteria responsible for nosocomial infections.

The phytochemical characterization of essential oil was evaluated using gaschromatography-flame ionization detector and gas chromatography-mass spectrometeranalysis. Antibacterial activity of the oil was tested against four bacterial strainsresponsible for nosocomial infections: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus and Citrobacter koseri using disc diffusion method.

Thirty three components were identified representing 89.30% of the total oilcomposition. The yield of essential oil was 0.4% and the predominant components were citronellal (14.40%), isogeraniol (6.40%), geraniol acetate (10.20%), nerol acetate (5.10%), caryophyllene (8.10%) and b-caryophyllene oxide (11.00%).

Antibacterial activity of the oil showed the higher activity against all bacterial strains tested. The essential oil extracted from lemon balm can be used to clean theenvironment of reanimation polyvalent and anaesthesia service.

Keywords: Melissa officinalis; essential oils; antibacterial activity; nosocomial infections

Evaluation of the Antioxidant Activity and Nephroprotective Effect of Propolis in Wistar Rats

For a long time, the plant kingdom has provided man with the essential resources for his food, his hygiene and health. Propolis is a natural product derived from plant resins and collected by honeybees (workers) to be used as glue and as draught-extruder for bee hives. It is currently used as an ingredient of biopharmaceuticals, candies and as aconstituent of cosmetics, or as a popular alternative medicine for self-treatment of various diseases.

The aim of this work was to determine the antioxydant activity and the nefroprotective effect of ethanolic extract of propolis following treatment with ultravist. To do so, 30 adult male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 6 groups of 5 rats: group I received orally distilled water at a dose of 1 mL/100 g body weight. This group served as a control. Group II received orally 250 mg/Kg /bodyweight of EEP. Group III received intravenous injection of a single dose of D1 ultravist the 8th day (2 mL/Kg/ bodyweight). Group IV received intravenous injection of a single dose D2 ultravist the 8th day (4 mL/Kg/ bodyweight). Group V was pre-treated with EEP (250 mg/kg PO) 7 days prior to exposure to ultravist (2 mg/kg of bodyweight) and 3 days after. Group VI was pre-treated with EEP (250 mg/kg) 7 days prior to exposure to ultravist (4 mg/kg body weight) and 3 days after.

We found that pretreatment with ethanolic extract of propolis leads to a recovery of the basal levels of the key enzymes of the liver function. This result suggests that EEP pretreatment prevents the nephrotoxic effect induced by ultravist. Hence it is proposed to adopt a preventive strategy in the hospital setting.

Keywords: resin; propolis; antioxidant activity; nephrotoxicity; nephroprotective effect

Hepatoprotective Effect of Ethanolic Extract of Propolis in Wistar Rats

Natural substances are becoming increasingly important in therapeutics, propolis constitutes a real chemical plant from which the maximum profit must be taken for the well-being of the population. Has wide range of biological activities which include antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer properties and hepatorenale protective effect.

In the present study we were interested in elucidating the hepatoprotective effect of the ethanol extract of propolis following treatment with ultravist contrast agent. 20 rats were used in this experiment, Towards the end of the surgical stage, the rats receive via the jugular vein an infusion with a physiological solution (0.9% NaCl), with a constant flow rate of 25 uL/min/100 g BW. Administrations were performed in all groups as follows : group I received the same perfusion (physiological saline) from start to end of experiment ; group II received during the experimental period (E) the solution of ultravist with a dose of 2 mL/1000 g BW ; group III received during the period (E) extracted from propolis solubilized in physiological water at the dose of 250 mg/10 mL of physiological water ; group IV received EE (250 mg/10 mL) for one hour followed by ULT at the dose of 2 mL/1 Kg PC during the experimental phase (E).

The Intravenous infusion of rats during the experimental phase by ultravist at a dose of 2 mL/kg BW resulted in a net and significant increase in ALAT, ASAT, LDH and PAL at the plasma level (65.55 ± 3.75 (u/L), 70.33 ± 5.10 (u/L), 698.23 ± 11.09 (u/L), 360.67 ± 11.12 (u/L) respectively, whereas the group of rats pretreated with EEP subsequently perfused by ultravist at the Same dose, almost restored the normal plasma levels of these key enzymes of liver function.

In conclusion, the bolus injected EEP has a remarkable hepatoprotective effect, in addition the extract of this product attenuates the toxicity induced by the contrast products, including ultravist.

Keywords: propolis; hepatotoxicity; hepatoprotective; contrast products; ultravist

Assessment of Antimicrobial Activity of Essential Oil of Pulicaria Mauritanica from Morocco against Some Infectious Pathogens

Mohamed znini.

* Correspondence: [email protected]

The objective of this study is to evaluate in vitro the antimicrobial activity of Pulicaria mauritanica essential oil (EO) against three referenced pathogenic bacteria Escherichia coli (ATCC 25922), Staphylococcus aureus (ATCC 25923) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (ATCC 27853) and a yeast Candida albicans using the paper disc diffusion and the macro-dillution in liquid medium methods. The results obtained by the first method indicate that this EO showed a strong antimicrobial activity against three strains tested, which S. aureus was found to be the most sensitive while P. aeruginosa is the most resistant. Furthermore, the results of the second technique reveal that the Minimum Inhibitory Concentrations (MICs) of this EO are on the order of 0.3 and 0.6 mg.mℓ −1 . Moreover, the results of the report CMB/CMI show that the EO has a bactericidal effect on S. aureus and a bacteriostatic and fungistatic effect on E. coli and C. albicans , respectively.

Keywords: Pulicaria mauritanica; Essential oil; carvotanacetone; antimicrobial activity; microbial strains

Alfalfa ( Medicago sativa ), is a perennial flowering plant in the family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. This plant has been used as a common ingredient in south-west Moroccan (Tinghir) and South Indian cuisine. Alfalfa is rich in many essential vitamins and minerals, including A, D, E, K, and even the full family of B vitamins; biotin, calcium, folic acid, iron, magnesium, potassium …, as well as being very high in protein. This herb is believed to have a direct connection to lowering cholesterol. It is very good at detoxifying and better purifying the blood. It has also beneficial healing properties against bad breath, sore or achy joints, imbalanced skin conditions, and it even increases immune system functionality. This herb acts as an alternative to over the counter pain medicines for headaches or migraines. As a result, consuming alfalfa on a routine basis has an abundance of positive health results. Medicago sativa constitutes the first forage crop in Mediterranean area In Morocco, this crop occupies over 22% of the total area devoted to forage crops. It strongly contributes to socio-economic development of local families. However, water and soil salinity recorded in many world regions is a major environmental factor limiting plant growth and productivity and constitutes an important constraint to alfalfa. In this context, the present study aimed to evaluate the salinity tolerance of Midecago sativa inoculated with Rhizobial strain RhOL1 and/or arbuscular-mycorrhizal (AM) fungi (autochtonous mycorhizal).

Keywords: Medicago sativa ; stress conditions; arbuscular-mycorrhizal; Rhizobial strain RhOL1; Growth

The Cytotoxic Activities of Salvia Officinalis l. and Osmarinus Officinalis l. Leaves Extracts on Human Glioblastoma and Human Neuroblastoma Cell Lines May Be Linked to Their Antioxidant Effects

Zineb choukairi.

1 Laboratory of Biosciences, Functional, integrated and molecular exploration. Scool of Sciences and Technology-Mohammedia, Hassan II University of Casablanca

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@beniziriakuohc

Laila LAMRI

José manuel ferrandez.

2 Laboratory of “Inteligencia Ambiental”, Polytechnic University of Cartagena, Spain

Taoufiq FECHTALI

Salvia officinalis L. (sage) and Rosmarinus officinalis L. (rosemary) are two plants that grow spontaneously in some area of morocco, they are used in folk medicine for the treatment of different disorders specially ulcer, diarrhea, rheumatism and inflammation. The objective of this study was to investigate the in vitro anti-tumoral and cytotoxic activities of the methanolic extract prepared from S. Officinalis and R. Officinalis leaves on human glioblastoma and human neuroblastoma cell lines. as well as their antioxidant activity.

The accelerated solvent extract technique was used to obtain the total extract of the plants; then the microculture tetrazolium (MTT) cytotoxic assay was used to evaluate their anti-tumoral activities. the antioxidant potency was evaluated employing various established in vitro systems such as the 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging and the ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) assay. This activity was correlated with the phenolic content and the concentration of flavonoids in the plants using spectrophotometric methods.

Ours preliminary results show that methanolic extract of Salvia and rosemary inhibit the glioblastoma cell proliferation; however the plants has no effect on neuroblastoma cell line. In the other hand, the DPPH scavenging assay and the FRAP assay results showed a dose-dependent antioxidant activity of the plants extracts, with an elevated contents of phenols and Flavonoids. The Salvia officinalis L. and Rosemarinus Officinalis L . total extract was found to have an anticancer activity which may be linked, probably, to an antioxidant process. In conclusion, our study show interesting results of a potential role of these two plants on the cancer palliation that must be more explored.

Keywords: Salvia officinalis L; Rosmarinus officinalis ; cancer; anti-oxydant; therapeutic effect

Ethnobotanical Study of Two Medicinal Plants: Vitex Agnus Castus and Anabasis Aretioïdes

Berrani assia.

1 Laboratory laboratory biochemistry, biotechnology, health and the environment, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra, Morocco

* Correspondence: [email protected]

L. Aicha LRHORFI

Ouahidi my larbi.

2 Laboatory of genetics neuroendocrinology and biotechnology, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra, Morocco

Meryem ZOUARHI

3 Laboratory of Electrochemistry and Materials Environment (LMEE), Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra, Morocco

Moncef BOUFELLOUS

Ould abdellahi lella, rachid bengueddour.

In the aim of the valorization of medicinal and aromatic plants of the Moroccan and Saharein flora, we interested in this ethnobotanical study to two species frequently used by the population local for their virtues: Vitex agnus castus of the verbenaceae family, commonly called kharwaâ and the other spéce was Anabasis aretioids of the chenopodeaceae family, knowed as Shejra li maidihach errih name.

For this reason, a series of ethnobotanical surveys was carried out in 2015, using a questionnaire, in three regions (Meknes Tafilalet, Gharb Chrarda Bni Hssen, and Rabat Sale Zemmour Zaer). Traditional herbalists and druggists in order to give the information about the medicinal virtues of these plants.

The results obtained shown that the leaves are the most used part of the both plants, moreover the majority of the remedies are prepared in the form of decoction for Anabasis and in powder form for Vitex .

The diseases treated by these plants were diseases of the digestive tract occupied the first place for Anabasis with a rate of 27.67%, followed by use as poison antidotes with a rate of 20.67%. Fur ther more, for Vitex the genitourinary affections occupied the first place with a rate of 46.67% followed by dermatological affections with a rate of 20%.

Keywords: vitex agnus castus; Anabasis aretioïdes; ethnobotanical; survey; traditional medicine

Phytochemical Screening and Antioxidant Activity of Celery Seed Essential Oils

This study was conceived to determine the phytochemical characterization, and antioxidant activity of celery (Apium graveolens) seed essential oils.

The essential oils (EO) of celery seed were isolated by hydrodistillation technique, using a Clevenger-type apparatus. The phytochemical characterization was investigated using gas chromatography-mass spectrometer analysis. The antioxidant activity was evaluated in vitro by two assays namely Free radical scavenging activity against 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and Fe2 + chelating activity.

The obtained results showed that the main components detected in celery seed oils were Citronellol (β-sélinène) (35.93%), Epiglobulol (31.36%) and Limonene (7.55%). The two antioxidant assays showed that these oils have a very important antioxidant power confirmed by its richness in polyphenols and flavonoids. Our study suggests that celery seed essential oils have the potential to be used as a natural food preservative.

Keywords: essential oils; celery; antioxidant activity; polyphenols; flavonoids

Overview on the Consumers of Dietetic and Cosmetic Argan Oil

The consumption of argan oil beyond the Moroccan grounds is notable in dietetics and cosmetic. The question remains to know if the users have a real knowledge of the benefits of this oil on the health and how they reach related information. Curious to know which would be the social and economic challenges of argan oil benefits on health according to the French populations, we questioned 403 people of «Drôme-Ardèche» in Rhône-Alpes area in France; this includes 142 faithful customers of “stores organic” and “rays organic” in (8) supermarkets, 6 dieticians, 2 nutritionists, 3 estheticians, 100 customers of (15) dietetics offices and 150 customers of (6) wellness centers. This reveals that 65% of the consumers are women (any sector confused). 80% of surveyed consume argan oil in alternation with olive oil according to their dietician recommendations. Among 80%, the rate of the diabetics ones is 40% with 5% of children and 5% of teenagers, 14% of women and 16% of men; 25%, fight obesity and 15% have or tend towards an overload ponderal. The 40% others are in diet because suffer from cancer, 20% suffer celiac diseases, 10% suffer from the gastric diseases and 10% have a structured lifestyle and intended to say “good” of argan oil. The dieticians and nutritionists note the contribution of this oil on health: “anti-oxidant”, “cholesterol fights”, etc except that they do not express themselves on the uses of this oil in curative or preventive therapies. In cosmetic, the users and estheticians note the concrete results on the skin and the hairs. In centers of wellness, argan oil is used as an oil of massage. In conclusion, argan oil is often considered as miracle oil able to do everything. A collaboration between scientists, communicating researchers and professionals would help to collect information on the benefits of this oil.

Keywords: argan oil; economic challenges; social challenges; dietetic; cosmetic; wellness; health; marketing investigations

Antioxidant Activities and Variations in the Content of Polyphenol and Total Flavonoids of the Essential Oil of Laurus Nobilisl

* Correspondence: [email protected]

Phytochemical Screening and Antibacterial Activity of Rosmarinus Officinalis Essential Oil

Content of polyphenols and flavonoids and antioxidant activity of odorous and non-odorous aqueous extracts of an asteraceae: asteriscus graveolens (forssk) less, el mustapha chibane.

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@enabihcahpatsumle

Evaluation of the In Vitro Antifungal Activity of Essential Oil and Extracts of Cistus ladaniferus L. Var. Maculatus Dun

1 Laboratoire de l’environnement et santé, Université Moulay Ismail Faculté des Sciences, B.P. 11201 Zitoune Meknès, Maroc

* Correspondence: [email protected]

2 Laboratoire de biotechnologie microbienne, Faculté des Sciences et Technique, Université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdallah, B.P 2202 Fès, Maroc

K. Fikri Benbrahim

3 Centre de laboratoire et pharmacie, Laboratoire de Microbiologie, Hôpital Militaire Moulay Ismail, Meknès, Maroc

G. Echchgadda

4 Département de Protection des Plantes et de l’Environnement, Ecole Nationale d’Agriculture, Meknès, 50001, Maroc

Synthetic Approach of the Bicycle ab Present in Taxol

1 FST, Errachidia, Maroc

2 ESTM, Université Moulay Ismaïl, Meknès, Maroc

3 LMNE, Faculté des Sciences de Rabat, Maroc

M. Tabyaoui

4 Mohammed V University of Rabat , Rabat, Maroc

Composition in Saturated and Transfatty Acids in Fast-Food Restaurants in Casablanca

Contribution to the study of the conservative effect of certain aromatic plants used as an additive in the paste of dates, contribution to the study of the antioxidant and antibacterial activity of traditional midelt’s vinegar, driss ousaaid.

1 Laboratoire de Pharmacologie Physiologie et Santé Environnementale. Faculté des sciences Dhar El Mahraz, Université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc

Ismail Mansouri

2 Laboratoire d’écologie fonctionnelle et Environnement. Faculté des Sciences et Techniques, Université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc

Mouad Rochdi

Hassan laaroussi, badiaa lyoussi, hayat ennaji.

3 Laboratoire de sécurité alimentaire et environnemental, Institut pasteur Casablanca, Maroc

Ilham El Arabi

Efficacy of essential oils of origanum compactum to control callosobruchus maculatus (coleoptera, bruchinae), lalla fatima douiri.

1 (Départment de Biologie Faculté des Sciences, /Université Moulay Ismail, PB 11201, Meknès, Maroc)

* Correspondence: rf.oohay@iriuodamitaf

Hayat Bouhareb

Nada lafkih.

2 (Unité de Technologie Alimentaire et Biochimie/National school of Agriculture, B P S/40 50000 Meknès Maroc)

Chakir Meryem

3 (Départment de Biologie Faculté des Sciences, /Université Ibn Tofail, BP: 14000, Kenitra, Maroc)

Mohieddine Moumni

Study of the insecticidal activity of taxus baccata of the val d'ifrane on sitophilus oryzae (coleoptera: curculionidae), mohammed elhourri.

1 Laboratoire de Chimie Moléculaire et Substances Naturelles, Université Moulay Ismail, Faculté des Sciences, B.P. 11201, (Zitoune), Meknès, Maroc

Mostafa El idrissi

Adrae lemrhari.

2 Laboratoire de Biotechnologie des Plantes et de Biologie Moléculaire, Université Moulay Ismail, Faculté des Sciences, B.P. 11201, (Zitoune), Meknès, Maroc

3 Ecole Nationale d’Agriculture, Unité de Technologie Alimentaire et de Biochimie BP S/40 Meknès. Maroc. [email protected]

Chemical Composition and Antibacterial Activity of Essential Oils of Rosmarinus Officinalis

Imane aouam.

* Correspondence: moc.liamtoh@mauoaenami

Use of Essential oils in the Treatment of Post-Traumatic Tendon-Muscular and Ligamentous Lesions in Athletes

Evaluation of the therapeutic and toxicological knowledge of 20 herbalists in the rabat area of morocco on the top 5 plants most reported to the national center for pharmacovigilance in morocco, antioxidant and antiinflammatory activities of thymelaea lythroides, inssaf berkiks.

1 Laboratory of Genetic, Neuroendocrinology and Biotechnology—Faculty of Sciences, University Ibn Tofail, Kenitra, Morocco

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@fassniskikreb

A. El hessni

Protective effect of rosmarinus officinalis and eucalyptus globulus on the protozoan tetrahymena thermophila, el khalfi bouchra.

1 Laboratoire de Physiopathologie Génétique Moléculaire & Biotechnologie, Faculté des Sciences Ain Chock de Casablanca, Maroc

Mar Papa Daouda

* Correspondence: [email protected]

Soukri Abdelaziz

Study of the effect of organic walnut fractions (juglans regia) on platelet aggregation and in vitro plasma coagulation in rats, abdelkhaleq legssyer et hassane mekhfi, synthesis of new r - (+) - pulegone derivatives and study of their impact on fungi penicillium expansum, rhizopus stolonifer and alternaria sp, study of the insecticidal activity of taxus baccata of the val d'ifrane on sitophilus oryzae (coleoptera: curculionidae).

* Correspondence: [email protected]

3 Ecole Nationale d’Agriculture, Unité de Technologie Alimentaire et de Biochimie BP S/40 Meknès. Maroc

Evaluation of the Consumption of Olive Oil in an Infantile Population, Province of Errachidia

Study of the healing properties of the micocoulier seeds (celtis australis), place of medicinal plants in the treatment of diabetes in the middle sebou region (atlantic morocco).

1 Laboratoire de Biodiversité et Ressources Naturelles, Faculté des Sciences de Kénitra

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@dauosihlas

F. Ben Akka

2 Équipe de recherche : Biologie, Environnement & Santé, FST-Errachidia

L. et Zidane

Evaluation of the chemical composition and the antibacterial potential of some essential oils in biological control against pathogens agents responsible for human infections.

* Correspondence: moc.liamg@aamsaibas

Imane AOUAM

Antioxidant effect of essential oils of aromatic and medicinal plants in southern morocco.

1 Laboratoire de Génie des Procédés, Faculté des Sciences d’Agadir, Université Ibn Zohr, B.P 28/S, Agadir, Maroc

2 Laboratoire de Biotechnologies Végétales, Equipe Planta Sud, Faculté des Sciences d’Agadir, Université Ibn Zohr, B.P 28/S, Agadir, Maroc

Phytochemical Study and Evaluation of the Antihyperglycemic and Antihyperlipidemic Activity of the PISTACIA Atlantica Oil of the Region of Errachidia

1 Equipe de recherche Physiologie et Pharmacologie Endocrinienne FST Errachidia

F. Khallouki

2 Equipe de recherche Substances Naturelles & Agro-ressources FST Errachidia

M. Zemzoumi

F. el ouadi.

3 Equipe de recherche Biologie, Environnement & Santé FST Errachidia

4 Lab. Environnement & Santé, FS, Kénitra

M. et El Ghissassi

5 Equipe de recherche Neurosciences FS Kénitra

Contribution to the Study of the Antioxidant Activity of Beeswax

Consumption of dates versus obesity: a cross-sectional study among women from the south east of morocco, study of the effect of lavandula stoechas on neuropathic pain in laboratory animals, hind ferehan.

1 Laboratoire de Neurobiologie Pharmacologie et Comportement. Faculté des Sciences Semlalia. Université Cadi Ayyad

Rachida Aboufatima

2 Laboratory of Biological Engineering. Natural Substances, Cellular and Molecular Immuno-pharmacology Group.Sultan Moulay Slimane University; Faculty of Science and Technology, Béni-Mellal

Abderrahman Chait

5. conclusions.

This first meeting on argan oil brings several information on this oil which was often compared with olive oil. The composition of argan oil was presented as well as its biological properties on different cells and animal models. Clinical studies were also presented underlying the benefits of this oil mainly on the lipid and inflammatory status. Promising results on the benefits of argan oil on nerve cells and neurological diseases were also shown. Altogether, the data exposed supported the benefits of argan oil on human health. However, additional works are still required to clarify its properties and its benefits. The authors attending to the meeting or not have the opportunity to publish their work on argan oil or on other oils under the form of research papers or reviews in a special issue of IJMS entitled ‘The Beneficial Effects of Plant Oil on Human Health’.

6. Awards Winners

Dr. A. Zarrouk (Oral communication)

Comparison of the Contents of the Main Biochemical Compounds and the Antioxidant Activity of Argan Oil, Olive Oil, Silybum Marianum Seed Oil, Nigella Seed Oil and Colza Oil

Laboratoire ‘Nutrition, Aliments Fonctionnels et Santé Vasculaire’, UR12ES05 Université de Monastir, Monastir, Tunisia

Equipe ‘Biochimie du Peroxysome, Inflammation et Métabolisme Lipidique’ EA 7270/Université de Bourgogne Franche Comté/Inserm, Dijon, France

Laboratoire de Biochimie, Faculté de Médecine, Sousse, Tunisia.

Mlle. M. Bakour (Poster presentation)

Argan oil and Clove Essential Oil Improves Biochemical and Histological Change by Reducing Oxidative Stress Induced by Hydrogen Peroxide in Wistar Rats

Laboratory of Physiology-Pharmacology-Environmental Health, Faculty of Sciences Dhar El Mehraz, University Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdallah, Fez, Morocco

7. Conferences Photos of the Meeting

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Opening session of the 1st symposium on argan oil by the officials.

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Presentation of food products and cosmetics with bases of Argan oil.

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Award of the best oral presentation (Dr A. Zarrouk (3rd on the left), Ass. Prof, Univ. Monastir (LR NAFS-12ES05)/Univ. Sousse (Lab. Biochemistry), Tunisia and Univ. Bourgogne Franche-Comt? (Lab. Bio-PeroxIL/EA7270/Inserm, France) during the gala evening.

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Award of the best poster (Ms M. Bakour (1st on the right), Ph.D student, Laboratory of Physiology-Pharmacology-Environmental Health, Faculty of Sciences Dhar El Mehraz, University Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdallah, Fez, Morocco) during the gala evening. The award has been delivered by the members of the organizing committee: Prof Dr. A. El Midaoui, Pr. Y. Filali-Zegzouti and Pr. L. El Rhaffari.

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Object name is ijms-18-01383-g005.jpg

Symposium participants.

The Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute

Electricity

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Benefits of Argan Oil on Human Health—May 4-6 2017, Errachidia, Morocco
The first international symposium was organized on 4, 5 and 6 May in Errachidia (Tafilalet, Morocco) on the theme "The beneficial effects of argan oil on human health" by the Research Team 'Biology, Environment and Health' (Univ. Moulay Ismaïl, FSTE) in partnership with the Moroccan Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.
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Comments (2)

Benefits of Argan Oil on Human Health—May 4–6 2017, Errachidia, Morocco

Younes Filali-Zegzouti

Adil El Midaoui

1. Aim and Scope of the Meeting

2. Invited Presentations

Beneficial Effects of Argan Oil on Cardiovascular Risk Factors

Efficacy of Argan Oil on Pain, Metabolic Syndrome and Oxidative Stress in Rheumatology and Nephrology Patients

Efficacy of a New Pharmaceutical Formulation of Melatonin in Preventing Aging Skin Damage

Interest of Argan Oil for The Prevention of Neurodegenerative Diseases: In Vitro and In Vivo Proofs of Concept

The following abstracts were submitted in French and only displayed by Title, Authors and Affiliations.

S. Grégoire

E.-M. Karym

A. Badreddine

The Antioxidant Properties of Phenolic Compounds Found in Argan Oil. DFT/QSAR Results and Molecular Docking

Y. Filali Zegzouti

Theme: Argan and Environment

S. Lahssini

Geoclimatic Influences on Antioxidant Activity, Polyphenolic and Flavonoids Content of the Argania spinosa Pulp

M. Bouksaim

Theme: The Role of Argan Oil in the Prevention and Treatment of Cardiovascular Diseases

M. Mrani Alaoui

V. Alché

J.C. Jimenez-Lopez

Theme: Implications of Argan Oil in the Prevention and Treatment of Different Pathologies

Y. El Bahloul

Protective Effect of Argan Virgin Oil on Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles Induced Toxicity and Oxidative Stress in Wistar Rats

Physical Properties of Wood Swelling Composite Deriving from Argan Nut Shells (CNAR)

A. Hamdouch