Synthesis of ecofriendly copper oxide nanoparticles for fabrication over textile fabrics: Characterization of antibacterial activity and dye degradation potential.

Growing concerns over the toxicity of metallic nanoparticles synthesized using physical and chemical techniques seems to be a major hurdle for researchers. Green synthesis of nanoparticles is one of the promising, ecofriendly and safer methods. Utilizing plant sources as reducing agents will replace the use of toxic chemicals for nanoparticle synthesis.

Positive effects of compost and vermicompost produced from tannery waste-animal fleshing on the growth and yield of commercial crop-tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum L.) plant.

Accumulation of solid waste has intensified with the increase in world population and industrialization. Most importantly, wastes of animal origin such as animal manures and tannery wastes are a major under-utilized resource in most countries with potential for utilization in crop production. This study evaluated the potential of solid state hydrolyzed tannery animal fleshing (SSF-ANFL) and submerged state hydrolyzed tannery ANFL (SmF-ANFL) vermicompost and compost amended soils on the growth, yield and chemical characteristics of tomatoes.

A facile method for high level dual expression of recombinant and congener protein in a single expression system.

Protein engineering is an emerging field for developing novel therapeutic proteins and commercial enzymes, along with a major impact on the global market. In recent decades, advanced methods employing protein modification through expansion of the genetic code have led to the development of proteins with new biochemical and physical properties. These techniques have produced engineered proteins with improved attribute comprising substrate relaxation, protein drug conjugation and high stability under extreme conditions of high temperatures, pH and organic solvents.

Biocytin-Based pH-Stimuli Responsive Supramolecular Multivariant Hydrogelator for Potential Applications.

Self-assembly is one of the important and fruitful methods to develop various biomaterials, especially hydrogels, from biologically important small molecules. Two such molecules are d-biotin (B-vitamin), which plays several vital roles in biology and is used in the biomedical field, and biocytin, which is used as an intracellular marker and also to identify neurons. Despite the significance of these biomolecules, their usage in the form of hydrogel is very limited.

Facile synthesis, biofilm disruption properties and biocompatibility study of a poly-cationic peptide functionalized graphene-silver nanocomposite.

Bacterial colonization and biofilm formation is a growing challenge in the biomedical field. Although nanotechnology has emerged as an alternative strategy to combat biofilm formation, the toxicity of nanomaterials is a major concern. In this study, we report a safe-by-design strategy for the synthesis of a poly-cationic peptide functionalized graphene-silver nanocomposite (designated as GAPP) and its enhanced biofilm inhibition and disruption properties to eliminate the biofilm development of Gram-negative bacteria.

Role of (single/double chain surfactant) micelles on the protein aggregation.

To investigate the interaction between the bovine serum albumin (BSA) and cationic surfactants (monomeric, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, CTAB) and dimeric/gemini, 1, 6 bis (N, N-hexadecyl dimethyl ammonium bromide, 16-6-16) and to find out the role of micelles in the aggregation of the protein using spectroscopic (UV-visible, fluorescence, fluorescence lifetime measurements, circular dichroism (CD), etc.) and microscopic (atomic force microscope (AFM)) techniques. The different surfactant has an effect on the polarity of the microenvironment of the protein shows in all the spectroscopic technique at below and above the critical micelle concentration (CMC).

Genomic insights of Vibrio harveyi RT-6 strain, from infected "Whiteleg shrimp" (Litopenaeus vannamei) using Illumina platform.

The pathogenicity of "Vibriosis" in shrimps imposes prominent menace to the sustainable growth of mariculture economy. Often the disease outbreak is associated speciously with Vibrio harveyi and its closely related species. The present study investigated the complete genome of the strain V.

Biomimetic strategies to design metallic proteins for detoxification of hazardous heavy metal.

Discharge of hazardous heavy metals in to the environment poses a serious threat to the ecosystem owing to its non-degradability and indestructability. Physical and chemical techniques for the removal of heavy metals from industrial effluent is expensive and causes secondary pollution. On the other hand, biological processes using microorganisms play a vital role due to their large surface area to volume ratio, which increases the interactions with metal ions present in the environment.

Removal of Fat Components in High TDS Leather Wastewater by Saline-Tolerant Lipase-Assisted Nanoporous-Activated Carbon.

The present investigation was carried out for the degradation of fatty components in high TDS containing wastewater (soak liquor) discharged from leather industry, and the degradation was achieved by saline-tolerant lipase-immobilized functionalized nanoporous-activated carbon (STLNPAC). The lipase was extracted from the halophilic organism, Bacillus cereus. The optimum conditions for lipase production such as time, 60 h; temperature, 50 °C; pH, 10; and substrate concentration, 2.

An innovative approach to minimize excess sludge production in sewage treatment using integrated bioreactors.

The present investigation deals with an application of integrated sequential oxic and anoxic bioreactor (SOABR) and fluidized immobilized cell carbon oxidation (FICCO) reactor for the treatment of domestic wastewater with minimum sludge generation. The performance of integrated SOABR-FICCO system was evaluated on treating the domestic wastewater at hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 3hr and 6hr for 120days at organic loading rate (OLR) of 191±31mg/(L·hr). The influent wastewater was characterized by chemical oxygen demand (COD) 573±93mg/L; biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) 197±35mg/L and total suspended solids (TSS) 450±136mg/L.

Ferulic acid, a natural phenolic compound, as a potential inhibitor for collagen fibril formation and its propagation.

Excess accumulation of collagen (fibrosis) is the hallmark of many fibrotic diseases such as keloids, hypertrophic scars, etc. The inhibition of collagen fibrillation during its accumulation is a therapeutic way to limit the fibrosis. Herein, the effect of Ferulic acid (FA), a natural phenolic acid compound, on collagen fibrillation is studied using biophysical methods.

Anaerobic digestion of sulphate-rich post-tanning wastewater at different COD/sulphate and F/M ratios.

Anaerobic digestion of post-tanning wastewater was performed in batch anaerobic digester to evaluate the effect of COD/sulphate ratio [0.62, 0.69, and 1.

Synthesis of Fluorophore Decorated Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes for Cytocompatibility.

We report rhodamine based fluorophore derivative for the stable dispersion of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), which can afford better fluorescent label to carbon nanotubes (CNTs). The nanotubes-fluorophore conjugates are helpful in achieving stable dispersion in polar and non-polar solvents with intense fluorescence. The product was characterized through NMR, Mass spectrometry, Raman, XPS, SEM, AFM and Fluorescence measurements.

Surface active gold nanoparticles biosynthesis by new approach for bionanocatalytic activity.

In the present day, nanotechnology is one of the most promising leading scientific and potentials areas in modern key technology development toward to the humankind. The synthesis of noble metal nanoparticles (NPs) is an expanding research area due to the possible applications for the development of bio-medical applications. Eco-friendly approach for the biosynthesis of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) using the aqueous extract from Ruellia tuberosa and Phyllanthus acidus (leaf and twig) for the first time.

Is Cr(III) toxic to bacteria: toxicity studies using Bacillus subtilis and Escherichia coli as model organism.

The objective of this work is to detect the mode of damage caused by Cr(III), one of the widely used industrial pollutant on Bacillus subtilis-industrial strain 168 and Escherichia coli MTCC 40. Bioassays are very sensitive, precise, economical and rapid for detecting early stages of pollution. The detrimental effect of trivalent chromium becomes clear from the growth profile and growth inhibition studies.

Gallic Acid and Gallates in Human Health and Disease: Do Mitochondria Hold the Key to Success?

Gallic acid and gallate esters are widely used as dietary supplements or additives with clinical significances. Over the last few decades, a large number of publications have been reported stating the antioxidative, antiapoptotic, cardioprotective, neuroprotective, and anticancer properties of gallic acid and gallates, and mostly demonstrated their antioxidative or prooxidative properties influencing the reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling networks. However, very little focus has been paid to clinical trials, and this restricted their use as a prescribed preventative supplement.

Effect of pH and surfactant on the protein: A perspective from theory and experiments.

In the present study, we are aimed to explore the bovine serum albumin (BSA) and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) the interaction that can readily show the consequence of the change in concentration of protein with surfactants' various concentration and the different pH's, 4.0, 4.7, 7.

Metabolic pathway and role of individual species in the bacterial consortium for biodegradation of azo dye: A biocalorimetric investigation.

In this study, an attempt was made to investigate the functional role and metabolic behaviour of the monoculture (Staphylococcus lentus (SL), Bacillus flexus (BF) and Pseudomonas aeruginosa (PA)) in the bacterial biocenosis for biotransformation of an azo dye. The power-time profile obtained from consortia depicted three distinct peaks, which correlated well with the individual bacterial growth (PA > SL > BF), indicating the synergistic relation and division of labour in the biocenosis. The heat release pattern was used to identify the sequential behaviour of microbial consortia in real time.

Disintegration of collagen fibrils by Glucono-δ-lactone: An implied lead for disintegration of fibrosis.

Excess accumulation of collagen (fibrosis) undergoes self-aggregation, which leads to fibrillar collagen, on the extracellular matrix is the hallmark of a number of diseases such as keloids, hypertrophic scars, and systemic scleroderma. Direct inhibition or disintegration of collagen fibrils by small molecules offer a therapeutic approach to prevent or treat the diseases related to fibrosis. Herein, the anti-fibrotic property of Glucono-δ-lactone (GdL), known as acidifier, on the fibrillation and its disintegration of collagen was investigated.

Carbon Nanotube Reinforced Polymer-Stabilized Liquid Crystal Device: Lowered and Thermally Invariant Threshold with Accelerated Dynamics.

Polymer-stabilized liquid crystal (PSLC) devices comprise a polymer matrix in an otherwise continuous phase of liquid crystal. The fibrils of the polymer provide, even in the bulk, virtual surfaces with finite anchoring energy resulting in attractive electro-optic properties. Here, we describe a novel variation of the PSLC device fabricated by reinforcing the polymer matrix with polymer-capped single-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs).

Synergistic effect of spice extracts and modified atmospheric packaging towards non-thermal preservation of chicken meat under refrigerated storage.

This study investigates the integrated approach of spice extracts and modified atmospheric packaging (MAP) chicken meat preservation. Specifically, extracts from clove (CL), cinnamon (CI) individually and in combination (3% w/w) along with MAP (30% CO2/70% N2 and 10% O2/30% CO2/60% N2) were used to increase the shelf life of fresh chicken meat stored at 4°C. The parameters evaluated as shelf life indications are microbiological (total viable count, Pseudomonas spp.

Differential behavior of native and denatured collagen in the presence of alcoholic solvents: A gateway to instant structural analysis.

We report a novel method that exploits the differential solubility properties of native and denatured proteins to distinguish between them. We chose to study this using collagen because its unique native triple helical structure is critical for the desired properties of collagen-based biomaterials. We found that native and denatured collagen separate out from solution in alcohols(methanol, ethanol, n-propanol and isopropanol), but as different phases.

Effect of gemini surfactant (16-6-16) on the synthesis of silver nanoparticles: A facile approach for antibacterial application.

In this report, we describe the effect of Gemini surfactants1, 6-Bis (N, N-hexadecyldimethylammonium) adipate (16-6-16) on synthesis, stability and antibacterial activity of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). The stabilizing effect of Gemini surfactant and aggregation behavior of AgNPs was evaluated by plasmonic property and morphology of the AgNPs were characterized by UV-vis spectroscopy, Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and Energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) techniques. Interestingly, the formation of quite mono-dispersed spherical particles was found.

Macrophages mediated diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis using fibrin based magnetic nanoparticles as MRI contrast agents.

Background: A variety of bioimaging tools assists in the diagnosis and evaluation of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other osteoarthritis. However, detection of RA in the early stages by targeting its macrophages with suitable contrast agents will help in arresting the progression of the disease.

Methods: In the present study, we investigated the effectiveness of using magnetic fibrin nanoparticles (MFNPs) conjugated with folic acid (FA-MFNPs) as a specific contrast agent to target the activated macrophages, which overexpress the folate receptors (FR) in the knee joints of rats with antigen-induced arthritis (AIA).