Olive mill wastewater treatment using vertical flow constructed wetlands (VFCWs).

The study explores a synergistic two-phase system to treat olive mill wastewater (OMW), comprising a multilayer adsorbent filter (pretreatment) and a vertical flow constructed wetland (VFCW). The pretreatment phase includes layers of commercial granular activated carbon (CGAC) and volcanic tuff (VT), while the VFCW phase consists of planted tank with Phragmites australis reeds and unplanted tanks. Initially, municipal wastewater is introduced into the VFCW to establish the required microbial community.

The Recovery of Vanadium Pentoxide (VO) from Spent Catalyst Utilized in a Sulfuric Acid Production Plant in Jordan.

Vanadium is a significant metal, and its derivatives are widely employed in industry. One of the essential vanadium compounds is vanadium pentoxide (VO), which is mostly recovered from titanomagnetite, uranium-vanadium deposits, phosphate rocks, and spent catalysts. A smart method for the characterization and recovery of vanadium pentoxide (VO) was investigated and implemented as a small-scale benchtop model.

Phenolic Compounds Removal from Olive Mill Wastewater Using the Composite of Activated Carbon and Copper-Based Metal-Organic Framework.

As the industry of olive oil continues to grow, the management of olive mill wastewater (OMW) by-products has become an area of great interest. While many strategies for processing OMW have been established, more studies are still required to find an effective adsorbent for total phenolic content uptake. Here, we present a composite of a Cu 1,4-benzene dicarboxylate metal-organic framework (Cu (BDC) MOF) and granular activated carbon (GAC) as an adsorbent for total phenolic content removal from OMW.

Liposomes: structure, composition, types, and clinical applications.

Liposomes are now considered the most commonly used nanocarriers for various potentially active hydrophobic and hydrophilic molecules due to their high biocompatibility, biodegradability, and low immunogenicity. Liposomes also proved to enhance drug solubility and controlled distribution, as well as their capacity for surface modifications for targeted, prolonged, and sustained release. Based on the composition, liposomes can be considered to have evolved from conventional, long-circulating, targeted, and immune-liposomes to stimuli-responsive and actively targeted liposomes.

Cinnamaldehyde-cucurbituril complex: investigation of loading efficiency and its role in enhancing cinnamaldehyde anti-tumor activity.

This study aimed to clarify the physico-chemical properties of cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) and cinnamaldehyde (Cinn) inclusion complexes (CB[7]-Cinn) and their resulting antitumor activity. CB[7]-Cinn inclusion complexes were prepared by a simple experimental approach and fully characterized for their stoichiometry, formation constant, particle size and morphology. Quantum chemical calculations were performed to elucidate the stable molecular structures of the inclusion complexes and their precursors and to investigate the probable stoichiometry and direction of interaction using three different DFT functionals at the 6-31G(d,p) basis set.

Synthesis of Mono-Amino Substituted γ-CD: Host-Guest Complexation and In Vitro Cytotoxicity Investigation.

Cyclodextrins (CDs) are cyclic oligosaccharides which can trap hydrophobic molecules and improve their chemical, physical, and biological properties. γ-CD showed the highest aqueous solubility with the largest cavity diameter among other CD types. The current study describes a direct and easy method for nucleophilic mono-aminos to be substituted with γ-CD and tested for their ability to host the guest curcumin (CUR) as a hydrophobic drug model.

Preparation of Activated Carbon Derived from Jordanian Olive Cake and Functionalized with Cu/CuO/CuO for Adsorption of Phenolic Compounds from Olive Mill Wastewater.

Olive oil production generates solid and liquid wastes that cause various environmental problems due to their high phenols and polyphenols load. Although many treatment methods were investigated to manage these wastes, more research is still needed to identify simple and cost-effective approaches. In this study, activated carbon (AC) was prepared from olive cake waste and functionalized with Cu/CuO/CuO for efficient and selective removal of phenolic content from olive mill wastewater (OMW).

Green Synthesis of Silver Nanoparticles as an Effective Antibiofouling Material for Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF) Ultrafiltration Membrane.

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were successfully synthesized using the aqueous extract of the Lam () wild plant. The results showed that the conversion of Ag to Ag nanoparticles ratio reached 96.5% as determined by Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-AES), with a negative zeta potential (ζ) of -21.

Lipid nanostructures for targeting brain cancer.

Advancements in both material science and bionanotechnology are transforming the health care sector. To this end, nanoparticles are increasingly used to improve diagnosis, monitoring, and therapy. Huge research is being carried out to improve the design, efficiency, and performance of these nanoparticles.

Grafting of anti-nucleolin aptamer into preformed and remotely loaded liposomes through aptamer-cholesterol post-insertion.

A new combination strategy of an active loading and active targeting approach was applied in this work. The liposomes actively loaded with Curcumin (CRM) (Lip) were decorated with cholesterol tagged-anti-nucleolin AS1411 aptamer (NCL) a new post-insertion approach, utilizing the cholesterol as a wedge to incorporate aptamer into the surface of the liposome bilayer. A successful NCL post-insertion was verified by agarose gel electrophoresis and dynamic light scattering (DLS).

Decolourization of crystal violet using nano-sized novel fluorite structure GaZr W O photocatalyst under visible light irradiation.

Fluorite-type Zr-based oxides with the composition GaZr W O ( = 0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.

Photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue dye by fluorite type FeZr-WO system under visible light irradiation.

Nano-sized FeZrWO system was prepared using the Pacini method where x = 0, 0.05, 0.1 and 0.

Aptamers Chemistry: Chemical Modifications and Conjugation Strategies.

Soon after they were first described in 1990, aptamers were largely recognized as a new class of biological ligands that can rival antibodies in various analytical, diagnostic, and therapeutic applications. Aptamers are short single-stranded RNA or DNA oligonucleotides capable of folding into complex 3D structures, enabling them to bind to a large variety of targets ranging from small ions to an entire organism. Their high binding specificity and affinity make them comparable to antibodies, but they are superior regarding a longer shelf life, simple production and chemical modification, in addition to low toxicity and immunogenicity.

Co-encapsulation of thymoquinone with docetaxel enhances the encapsulation efficiency into PEGylated liposomes and the chemosensitivity of MCF7 breast cancer cells to docetaxel.

Combinatorial therapeutic strategies to eradicate tumors can be superior to a single therapeutic modality. Docetaxel (DT) has been approved for the treatment of local or metastasized breast cancer alone or in combination with other chemotherapeutic agents. Thymoquinone (TQ) originated from the seeds of plant has been reported to possess and antitumor activity against variety of tumors.

Remote loading of curcumin-in-modified β-cyclodextrins into liposomes using a transmembrane pH gradient.

Curcumin (CRM) is a natural polyphenol with antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, and anticancer therapeutic properties. However, CRM therapeutic potential is limited by low water solubility and bioavailability. Intraliposomal remote loading describes the retention of drugs in liposome cores in response to transmembrane pH gradient.

Correction: Selection and targeting of EpCAM protein by ssDNA aptamer.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.

Selection and targeting of EpCAM protein by ssDNA aptamer.

Aptamers are molecules that reveal highly complex and refined molecular recognition properties. These molecules are capable of binding with high affinity and selectivity to targets, ranging from small molecules to whole living cells. Several aptamers have been selected for targeting cellular proteins and they have also used in developing therapeutics and diagnostic strategies.

Thymoquinone in liposomes: a study of loading efficiency and biological activity towards breast cancer.

Thymoquinone (2-isopropyl-5-methyl-1,4-benzoquinone) is a herbal-derived drug with potential chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic activity. However, thymoquinone suffers from high hydrophobicity causing poor solubility which limits its bioavailability and high lipophilicity causing poor formulation characteristics. Liposomes are versatile drug carriers that can be used to solve problems of drug solubility, instability, and bio-distribution.

Geranyl acetate emulsions: surfactant association structures and emulsion inversion.

Three emulsions of geranyl acetate (GA)-in-water (W) with identical GA/W ratios and varying surfactant (S), Laureth 4, a commercial C(12)EO (4) compound, fractions were investigated for nature and stability. The emulsions with up to 6% surfactant were W/O, as expected with respect to the solubility of the surfactant in the oil. At 10% surfactant, the aqueous phase became the continuous one and the apparent stability of the emulsion was significantly enhanced.

Some non-equilibrium phenomena in the malic acid/water/Polysorbate 81 system.

Topical formulations undergo radical structural changes after application and the action on the skin is not directly related to the original structure of the formulation. This fact has been well established in the scientific literature. However, and more essential, is the fact that these changes in the formulation structure are not equilibrium ones.

Some pertinent factors in skin care emulsion.

Emulsion structures are reviewed with special consideration given to the conditions in emulsions for topical applications with more phases than the traditional two liquids. The fundamentals of emulsions containing liquid crystals and vesicles are described, focussing on the dependence of the volume ratios of liquid crystals and vesicles on the surfactant content.

Phase behavior of beta hydroxy-acids with laureth 4.

The colloidal structures of beta carboxylic acid topical vesicle formulations were determined and the changes during evaporation after applications were estimated from phase diagrams. The results showed significant difference during evaporation between salicylic acid on one hand and three water soluble acids; malic, tartaric, and citric acid, on the other. The water soluble acids showed an increase in the acid concentration in the aqueous solution to levels that must be considered harmful, while salicylic acid showed no increase in concentration in the individual phases even after 99% evaporation of water.

Analytical expressions to calculate relative amounts of phases in a three-component phase diagram.

The relative amounts of different phases in multiphase regions in the common three-component phase diagrams are usually estimated graphically using geometrical features of the diagram. The present contribution introduces algebraic expressions for the lines in the diagram, which allow these numbers to be calculated directly from the experimental results. The method is an extension of the classical methods, which were translated into convenient computer programs [Laughlin, R.

Investigation of the phase behavior and an evaporation study of systems of lavender oil, water, Laureth 4, and Tween 80.

Natural essential lavender oil was obtained by steam distillation from the flowering plants. The phase behavior of a system of natural lavender oil, distilled water, and two stabilizers was investigated. The stabilizers that were used were tetraethyleneglycol lauryl ether (Laureth 4) and polyoxyethylen (20) sorbitan mono-oleate (Tween 80).

Phase behavior of the alpha-hydroxyoctanoic acid/Laureth 4/white oil/water system and preliminary evaluation of the phase changes during evaporation of its emulsion.

The phase diagram was determined for the alpha-hydroxyoctanoic acid/Laureth 4/white oil/water system using visual observation with an optical microscope. Typical emulsions were evaporated to determine the structural changes. These were compared to those predicted from the phase diagram.