Discovery of novel 1,2,4-triazole tethered ß-hydroxy sulfides as bacterial tyrosinase inhibitors: synthesis and biophysical evaluation through in vitro and in silico approaches.

In this study, a series of 1,2,4-triazole-tethered ß-hydroxy sulfide scaffolds 11a-h was synthesized in good to remarkable yields (69-90%) through the thiolysis of oxiranes by the thiols in aqueous basic catalytic conditions. The synthesized 1,2,4-triazole-tethered ß-hydroxy sulfides were screened against bacterial tyrosinase enzyme, and Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacterial cultures i.e., (S. aureus) Staphylococcus aureus & (E. coli) Escherichia coli. Among the synthesized derivatives, the molecules 11a (IC50 = 7.67 ± 1.00 µM), 11c (IC50 = 4.52 ± 0.09 µM), 11d (IC50 = 6.60 ± 1.25 µM), and 11f (IC50 = 5.93 ± 0.50 µM) displayed the better tyrosinase inhibitory activity in comparison to reference drugs ascorbic acid (IC50 = 11.5 ± 1.00 µM) and kojic acid (IC50 = 30.34 ± 0.75 µM). The molecule benzofuran-triazol-propan-2-ol 11c proved to be the most potent bacterial tyrosinase inhibitory agent with a minimum IC50 of 4.52 ± 0.09 µM, as compared to other synthesized counterparts and both standards (kojic acid and ascorbic acid). The compound diphenyl-triazol-propan-2-ol 11a and benzofuran-triazole-propan-2-ol 11c showed comparable anti-bacterial chemotherapeutic efficacy with minimum inhibitory concentrations (MIC = 2.0 ± 2.25 mg mL-1 and 2.5 ± 0.00 mg mL-1, respectively) against S. aureus bacterial strain in comparison with standard antibiotic penicillin (MIC = 2.2 ± 1.15 mg mL-1). Furthermore, among the synthesized derivatives, only compound 11c demonstrated better anti-bacterial activity (MIC = 10 ± 0.40 mg mL-1) against E. coli, which was slightly less than the standard antibiotic i.e., penicillin (MIC = 2.4 ± 1.00 mg mL-1). The compound 11c demonstrated a better binding score (-7.08 kcal mol-1) than ascorbic acid (-5.59 kcal mol-1) and kojic acid (-5.78 kcal mol-1). Molecular docking studies also validate the in vitro anti-tyrosinase assay results; therefore, the molecule 11c can be the lead bacterial tyrosinase inhibitor as well as the antibacterial agent against both types of bacterial strains after suitable structural modifications.

A Comprehensive Review on Benzofuran Synthesis Featuring Innovative and Catalytic Strategies.

Benzofurans have intrigued both pharmaceutical researchers and chemists owing to the medicinal usage of their derivatives against copious disease-causing agents (i.e., bacteria, viruses, and tumors). These heterocyclic scaffolds are pervasively encountered in a number of natural products and drugs. The ever-increasing utilization of benzofuran derivatives as pharmaceutical agents persuaded the chemists to devise novel and facile methodological approaches to assemble the biologically potent benzofuran nucleus. This review summarizes the current developments regarding the innovative synthetic routes and catalytic strategies to procure the synthesis of benzofuran heterocycles with their corresponding mechanistic details, reported by several research groups during 2021-2023.

Ocular Myasthenia Gravis As Unilateral Ptosis and External Ophthalmoplegia: A Case Report.

Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disorder characterized by fluctuating weakness and fatigue in ocular, bulbar, limb, or respiratory muscles. Initially, more than half of MG patients experience isolated ocular symptoms, such as ptosis, diplopia, or muscle paresis. This case report presents a unique occurrence of MG in a four-year-old female, showcasing a two-year history of sudden onset, persistent yet fluctuating unilateral ptosis accompanied by exo-deviation and adduction deficit in the right eye. No diplopia or systemic features were observed. Positive findings in tests, including the ice pack test, Cogan twitch sign, fatiguability, and neostigmine test, indicated ocular myasthenia. Electromyography revealed a decremental response, while anti-acetylcholine antibodies showed borderline results. Computed tomography of the brain ruled out central causes, and routine laboratory testing yielded normal results. Treatment with pyridostigmine and corticosteroids led to significant improvement in symptoms. This case emphasizes the diverse presentation of MG in ophthalmology, with ocular signs serving as indicators in approximately half of the cases. Early diagnosis and prompt treatment are crucial for enhancing long-term prognosis. Emergency physicians should consider MG as a potential cause for unilateral ocular symptoms after excluding central causes. Accurate diagnosis and comprehensive management of MG are complex yet essential for ensuring optimal patient health.

Oral carcinogenesis and non-invasive biomarkers for the diagnosis of oral squamous cell carcinoma.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is the most prevalent cancer in Pakistani population because of consumption of different tobacco-containing products whether smoked or chewed. These patients commonly report at a late stage of the disease. The patient's survival only depends upon early-stage diagnosis. Literature has reported that there is an increased tendency of transformation of oral potentially malignant disorder (OPMD) into OSCC. Biopsy is the gold standard measure for diagnosis but for OPMD cases biopsy was not recommended and most of the times the patients were also not willing to have a biopsy done. So, along with the biopsy there is a need for non-invasive protein biomarker that might aid in the early detection of oral cancer as well as highlight the high-risk individuals. This short communication focuses on the role of early diagnostic biomarkers present in literature, such as synuclein-γ (SNCG), Squamous cell carcinoma antigen (SCCAg), p53, MMPs-12, and IL-6. Furthermore, application of these biomarkers in multi-centre longitudinal studies is needed to establish their role as a non-invasive diagnostic biomarker for OSCC.

Exploration of nonlinear optical properties of 4-methyl-4H-1,2,4-triazol-3-yl)thio)-N-phenylpropanamide based derivatives: experimental and DFT approach.

Triazoles, nitrogen-containing heterocycles, have gained attention for their applications in medicinal chemistry, drug discovery, agrochemicals, and material sciences. In the current study, we synthesized novel derivatives of N-substituted 2-((5-(3-bromophenyl)-4-methyl-4H-1,2,4-triazol-3-yl)thio)-N-phenylpropanamide and conducted a comprehensive investigation using density functional theory (DFT). These novel structural hybrids of 1,2,4-triazole were synthesized through the multi-step chemical modifications of 3-bromobenzoic acid (1). Initially, compound 1 was converted into its methyl-3-bromobenzoate (2) which was then transformed into 3-bromobenzohydrazide (3). The final step involved the cyclization of compound 3, producing its 1,2,4-triazole derivative (4). This intermediate was then coupled with different electrophiles, resulting in the formation of the final derivatives (7a-7c). Additionally, the characterization of these triazole-based compounds (7a, 7b, and 7c) were carried out using techniques such as IR, HNMR, and UV-visible spectroscopy to understand their structural and spectroscopic properties. The DFT study utilized M06/6-311G(d,p) functional to investigate geometrical parameters, HOMO-LUMO energies, natural bond orbital analyses, transition density matrix (TDM), density of states, and nonlinear optical (NLO) properties. The FMO analysis revealed that compound 7c exhibited the lowest band gap value (4.618 eV). Notably, compound 7c exhibited significant linear polarizability (4.195 > × 10-23) and first and second hyperpolarizabilities (6.317 > × 10-30, 4.314 × 10-35), signifying its potential for nonlinear optical applications. These NLO characteristics imply that each of our compounds, especially 7c, plays a crucial part in fabricating materials showing promising NLO properties for optoelectronic applications.

An Exploration of the Inhibitory Mechanism of Rationally Screened Benzofuran-1,3,4-Oxadiazoles and-1,2,4-Triazoles as Inhibitors of NS5B RdRp Hepatitis C Virus through Pharmacoinformatic Approaches.

Benzofuran, 1,3,4-oxadiazole, and 1,2,4-triazole are privileged heterocyclic moieties that display the most promising and wide spectrum of biological activities against a wide variety of diseases. In the current study, benzofuran-1,3,4-oxadiazole BF1-BF7 and benzofuran-1,2,4-triazole compounds BF8-BF15 were tested against HCV NS5B RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) utilizing structure-based screening via a computer-aided drug design (CADD) approach. A molecular docking approach was applied to evaluate the binding potential of benzofuran-appended 1,3,4-oxadiazole and 1,2,4-triazole BF1-BF15 molecules. Benzofuran-1,3,4-oxadiazole scaffolds BF1-BF7 showed lesser binding affinities (-12.63 to -14.04 Kcal/mol) than benzofuran-1,2,4-triazole scaffolds BF8-BF15 (-14.11 to -16.09 Kcal/mol) against the HCV NS5B enzyme. Molecular docking studies revealed the excellent binding affinity scores exhibited by benzofuran-1,2,4-triazole structural motifs BF-9 (-16.09 Kcal/mol), BF-12 (-15.75 Kcal/mol), and BF-13 (-15.82 Kcal/mol), respectively, which were comparatively better than benzofuran-based HCV NS5B inhibitors' standard reference drug Nesbuvir (-15.42 Kcal/mol). A molecular dynamics simulation assay was also conducted to obtain valuable insights about the enzyme-compounds interaction profile and structural stability, which indicated the strong intermolecular energies of the BF-9+NS5B complex and the BF-12+NS5B complex as per the MM-PBSA method, while the BF-12+NS5B complex was the most stable system as per the MM-GBSA calculation. The drug-likeness and ADMET studies of all the benzofuran-1,2,4-triazole derivatives BF8-BF15 revealed that these compounds possessed good medicinal chemistry profiles in agreement with all the evaluated parameters for being drugs. The molecular docking affinity scores, MM-PBSA/MM-GBSA and MD-simulation stability analysis, drug-likeness profiling, and ADMET study assessment indicated that N-4-fluorophenyl-S-linked benzofuran-1,2,4-triazole BF-12 could be a future promising anti-HCV NS5B RdRp inhibitor therapeutic drug candidate that has a structural agreement with the Nesbuvir standard reference drug.

Rapid metabolic fingerprinting with the aid of chemometric models to identify authenticity of natural medicines: Turmeric, Ocimum, and Withania somnifera study.

Herbal medicines are popular natural medicines that have been used for decades. The use of alternative medicines continues to expand rapidly across the world. The World Health Organization suggests that quality assessment of natural medicines is essential for any therapeutic or health care applications, as their therapeutic potential varies between different geographic origins, plant species, and varieties. Classification of herbal medicines based on a limited number of secondary metabolites is not an ideal approach. Their quality should be considered based on a complete metabolic profile, as their pharmacological activity is not due to a few specific secondary metabolites but rather a larger group of bioactive compounds. A holistic and integrative approach using rapid and nondestructive analytical strategies for the screening of herbal medicines is required for robust characterization. In this study, a rapid and effective quality assessment system for geographical traceability, species, and variety-specific authenticity of the widely used natural medicines turmeric, Ocimum, and Withania somnifera was investigated using Fourier transform near-infrared (FT-NIR) spectroscopy-based metabolic fingerprinting. Four different geographical origins of turmeric, five different Ocimum species, and three different varieties of roots and leaves of Withania somnifera were studied with the aid of machine learning approaches. Extremely good discrimination (R2 > 0.98, Q2 > 0.97, and accuracy = 1.0) with sensitivity and specificity of 100% was achieved using this metabolic fingerprinting strategy. Our study demonstrated that FT-NIR-based rapid metabolic fingerprinting can be used as a robust analytical method to authenticate several important medicinal herbs.

Bacterial Tyrosinase Inhibition, Hemolytic and Thrombolytic Screening, and In Silico Modeling of Rationally Designed Tosyl Piperazine-Engrafted Dithiocarbamate Derivatives.

Piperazine is a privileged moiety that is a structural part of many clinical drugs. Piperazine-based scaffolds have attracted the attention of pharmaceutical and medicinal scientists to develop novel, efficient therapeutic agents owing to their significant and promising biological profile. In the current study, an ecofriendly ultrasonic-assisted synthetic approach was applied to achieve a novel series of 1-tosyl piperazine dithiocarbamate acetamide hybrids 4a-4j, which was evaluated for in vitro tyrosinase inhibition and thrombolytic and hemolytic cytotoxic activities. Among all the piperazine-based dithiocarbamate acetamide target molecules 4a-4j, the structural analogs 4d displayed excellent tyrosinase inhibition efficacy (IC50 = 6.88 ± 0.11 µM) which was better than the reference standard drugs kojic acid (30.34 ± 0.75 µM) and ascorbic acid (11.5 ± 1.00 µM), respectively, which was further confirmed by in silico induced-fit docking (IFD) simulation Good tyrosinase activities were exhibited by 4g (IC50 = 7.24 ± 0.15 µM), 4b (IC50 = 8.01 ± 0.11 µM) and 4c (IC50 = 8.1 ± 0.30 µM) dithiocarbamate acetamides, which were also better tyrosinase inhibitors than the reference drugs but were less active than the 4d structural hybrid. All the derivatives are less toxic, having values in the 0.29 ± 0.01% to 15.6 ± 0.5% range. The scaffold 4b demonstrated better hemolytic potential (0.29 ± 0.01%), while a remarkably high thrombolytic chemotherapeutic potential was displayed by analog 4e (67.3 ± 0.2%).

Simmons-Smith Cyclopropanation: A Multifaceted Synthetic Protocol toward the Synthesis of Natural Products and Drugs: A Review.

Simmons-Smith cyclopropanation is a widely used reaction in organic synthesis for stereospecific conversion of alkenes into cyclopropane. The utility of this reaction can be realized by the fact that the cyclopropane motif is a privileged synthetic intermediate and a core structural unit of many biologically active natural compounds such as terpenoids, alkaloids, nucleosides, amino acids, fatty acids, polyketides and drugs. The modified form of Simmons-Smith cyclopropanation involves the employment of Et2Zn and CH2I2 (Furukawa reagent) toward the total synthesis of a variety of structurally complex natural products that possess broad range of biological activities including anticancer, antimicrobial and antiviral activities. This review aims to provide an intriguing glimpse of the Furukawa-modified Simmons-Smith cyclopropanation, within the year range of 2005 to 2022.

Bio-Oriented Synthesis and Molecular Docking Studies of 1,2,4-Triazole Based Derivatives as Potential Anti-Cancer Agents against HepG2 Cell Line.

Triazole-based acetamides serve as important scaffolds for various pharmacologically active drugs. In the present work, structural hybrids of 1,2,4-triazole and acetamides were furnished by chemically modifying 2-(4-isobutylphenyl) propanoic acid (1). Target compounds 7a-f were produced in considerable yields (70-76%) by coupling the triazole of compound 1 with different electrophiles under different reaction conditions. These triazole-coupled acetamide derivatives were verified by physiochemical and spectroscopic (HRMS, FTIR, 13CNMR, and 1HNMR,) methods. The anti-liver carcinoma effects of all of the derivatives against a HepG2 cell line were investigated. Compound 7f, with two methyl moieties at the ortho-position, exhibited the highest anti-proliferative activity among all of the compounds with an IC50 value of 16.782 µg/mL. 7f, the most effective anti-cancer molecule, also had a very low toxicity of 1.190.02%. Molecular docking demonstrates that all of the compounds, especially 7f, have exhibited excellent binding affinities of -176.749 kcal/mol and -170.066 kcal/mol to c-kit tyrosine kinase and protein kinase B, respectively. Compound 7f is recognized as the most suitable drug pharmacophore for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Synthetic Potential of Regio- and Stereoselective Ring Expansion Reactions of Six-Membered Carbo- and Heterocyclic Ring Systems: A Review.

Ring expansion reactions fascinate synthetic chemists owing to their importance in synthesizing biologically active compounds and their efficacy in medicinal chemistry. The present review summarizes a number of synthetic methodologies, including stereoselective and regioselective pathways adopted by scientists, for framing medium- to large-size carbo- and heterocycles involving lactams, lactone, azepine and azulene derivatives via ring expansion of six-membered carbo- and heterocycles that have been reported from 2007-2022. Numerous rearrangement and cycloaddition reactions involving Tiffeneau-Demjanov rearrangement, Aza-Claisen rearrangement, Schmidt rearrangement, Beckmann rearrangement, etc., have been described in this regard.

Protease inhibition, in vitro antibacterial and IFD/MM-GBSA studies of ciprofloxacin-based acetanilides.

In this study, we have investigated ciprofloxacin-based acetanilides for their in-vitro inhibitory study against gram +ve, -ve bacteria and serine protease activity. The compounds 4e and 4g showed excellent antibacterial activity against Bacillus subtilis with a zone of inhibition (ZI) values of 40 ± 0.9 mm, 37 ± 1.4 mm and with MIC values of 4.0 ± 0.78 mg/mL, 3.0 ± 0.98 mg/ML respectively, while 4a and 4i were found most active against Escherichia coli, with ZI values 38 ± 0.1 mm, 46 ± 1.8 mm and with MIC values of 1.0 ± 0.25 mg/mL, 1.0 ± 0.23 mg/mL respectively. All derivatives (4a-j) significantly inhibited the catalytic activity of serine protease, while 4a exhibited a maximum (100%) inhibitory effect at 96 minutes having 22.50 minutes [Formula: see text], and non-competitive inhibition with 0.1±0.00µM Ki. The IFD/MM-GBSA studies highlighted the binding mode of 4a for protease inhibition and indicated improved binding affinity with -107.62 kcal/mol of ΔGbind.

Comprehensive Metabolomic Fingerprinting Combined with Chemometrics Identifies Species- and Variety-Specific Variation of Medicinal Herbs: An Ocimum Study.

Identification of plant species is a crucial process in natural products. Ocimum, often referred to as the queen of herbs, is one of the most versatile and globally used medicinal herbs for various health benefits due to it having a wide variety of pharmacological activities. Despite there being significant global demand for this medicinal herb, rapid and comprehensive metabolomic fingerprinting approaches for species- and variety-specific classification are limited. In this study, metabolomic fingerprinting of five Ocimum species (Ocimum basilicum L., Ocimum sanctum L., Ocimum africanum Lour., Ocimum kilimandscharicum Gurke., and Hybrid Tulsi) and their varieties was performed using LC-MS, GC-MS, and the rapid fingerprinting approach FT-NIR combined with chemometrics. The aim was to distinguish the species- and variety-specific variation with a view toward developing a quality assessment of Ocimum species. Discrimination of species and varieties was achieved using principal component analysis (PCA), partial least squares discriminate analysis (PLS-DA), data-driven soft independent modelling of class analogy (DD-SIMCA), random forest, and K-nearest neighbours with specificity of 98% and sensitivity of 99%. Phenolics and flavonoids were found to be major contributing markers for species-specific variation. The present study established comprehensive metabolomic fingerprinting consisting of rapid screening and confirmatory approaches as a highly efficient means to identify the species and variety of Ocimum, being able to be applied for the quality assessment of other natural medicinal herbs.

Ultrasound Assisted Synthesis and In Silico Modelling of 1,2,4-Triazole Coupled Acetamide Derivatives of 2-(4-Isobutyl phenyl)propanoic acid as Potential Anticancer Agents.

The development of an economical method for the synthesis of biologically active compounds was the major goal of this research. In the present study, we have reported the ultrasound-radiation-assisted synthesis of a series of novel N-substituted 1,2,4-triazole-2-thiol derivatives. The target compounds 6a−f were efficiently synthesized in significant yields (75−89%) by coupling 1,2,4-triazole of 2-(4-isobutylphenyl) propanoic acid 1 with different electrophiles using ultrasound radiation under different temperatures. The sonication process accelerated the rate of the reaction as well as yielded all derivatives compared to conventional methods. All derivatives were confirmed by spectroscopic (FTIR, 1HNMR, 13CNMR, HRMS) and physiochemical methods. All derivatives were further screened for their anticancer effects against the HepG2 cell line. Compound 6d containing two electron-donating methyl moieties demonstrated the most significant anti-proliferative activity with an IC50 value of 13.004 µg/mL, while compound 6e showed the lowest potency with an IC50 value of 28.399 µg/mL. The order of anticancer activity was found to be: 6d > 6b > 6f > 6a > 6c > 6e, respectively. The in silico modelling of all derivatives was performed against five different protein targets and the results were consistent with the biological activities. Ligand 6d showed the best binding affinity with the Protein Kinase B (Akt) pocket with the lowest ∆G value of −176.152 kcal/mol. Compound 6d has been identified as a promising candidate for treatment of liver cancer.

Antileishmanial Activities of (Z)-2-(Nitroimidazolylmethylene)-3(2H)-Benzofuranones: Synthesis, In Vitro Assessment, and Bioactivation by NTR 1 and 2.

The antileishmanial activity of a series of (Z)-2-(heteroarylmethylene)-3(2H)-benzofuranone derivatives, possessing 5-nitroimidazole or 4-nitroimidazole moieties, was investigated against Leishmania major promastigotes and some analogues exhibited prominent activities. Compounds with IC50 values lower than 20 µM were further examined against L. donovani axenic amastigotes. Evaluated analogues in 5-nitroimidazole subgroup demonstrated significantly superior activity (~17-88-folds) against L. donovani in comparison to L. major. (Z)-7-Methoxy-2-(1-methyl-5-nitroimidazole-2-ylmethylene)-3(2H)-benzofuranone (5n) showed the highest L. donovani anti-axenic amastigote activity with IC50 of 0.016 µM. The cytotoxicity of these analogues was determined using PMM peritoneal mouse macrophage and THP-1 human leukemia monocytic cell lines and high selectivity indices of 26 to 431 were obtained for their anti-axenic amastigote effect over the cytotoxicity on PMM cells. Further studies on their mode of action showed that 5-nitroimidazole compounds were bioactivated predominantly by nitroreductase 1 (NTR1) and 4-nitroimidazole analogues by both NTR1 and 2. It is likely that this bioactivation results in the production of nitroso and hydroxylamine metabolites that are cytotoxic for the Leishmania parasite.

Emerging Trends in the Remediation of Persistent Organic Pollutants Using Nanomaterials and Related Processes: A Review.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) have become a major global concern due to their large amount of utilization every year and their calcitrant nature. Due to their continuous utilization and calcitrant nature, it has led to several environmental hazards. The conventional approaches are expensive, less efficient, laborious, time-consuming, and expensive. Therefore, here in this review the authors suggest the shortcomings of conventional techniques by using nanoparticles and nanotechnology. Nanotechnology has shown immense potential for the remediation of such POPs within a short period of time with high efficiency. The present review highlights the use of nanoremediation technologies for the removal of POPs with a special focus on nanocatalysis, nanofiltration, and nanoadsorption processes. Nanoparticles such as clays, zinc oxide, iron oxide, aluminum oxide, and their composites have been used widely for the efficient remediation of POPs. Moreover, filtrations such as nanofiltration and ultrafiltration have also shown interest in the remediation of POPs from wastewater. From several pieces of literature, it has been found that nano-based techniques have shown complete removal of POPs from wastewater in comparison to conventional methods, but the cost is one of the major issues when it comes to nano- and ultrafiltration. Future research in nano-based techniques for POP remediation will solve the cost issue and will make it one of the most widely accepted and available techniques. Nano-based processes provide a sustainable solution to the problem of POPs.

In-vitro cytotoxic evaluation, hemolytic and thrombolytic potential of newly designed acefylline based hydrazones as potent anticancer agents against human lung cancer cell line (A549).

Hydrazones of theophylline-7-acetic acid 5a-g have been synthesized using ultrasonic irradiation as well as conventional heating system and analyzed for their anticancer characteristics against human lung cancer cell line (A549). Compound 5g with cell viability 33.19±0.49% (100 µg/µL) compared to the starting reference drug acefylline having cell viability 86.32±11.75% (100 µg/µL) was found to be the most active anticancer agent among all. The synthesized derivatives were also exposed to hemolytic and thrombolytic studies to determine their cytotoxic profile and results revealed their low toxicity and moderate clot lysis activity.

Properties for Thermally Conductive Interfaces with Wide Band Gap Materials.

The goal of this study is to determine how bulk vibrational properties and interfacial structure affect thermal transport at interfaces in wide band gap semiconductor systems. Time-domain thermoreflectance measurements of thermal conductance G are reported for interfaces between nitride metals and group IV (diamond, SiC, Si, and Ge) and group III-V (AlN, GaN, and cubic BN) materials. Group IV and group III-V semiconductors have systematic differences in vibrational properties. Similarly, HfN and TiN are also vibrationally distinct from each other. Therefore, comparing G of interfaces formed from these materials provides a systematic test of how vibrational similarity between two materials affects interfacial transport. For HfN interfaces, we observe conductances between 140 and 300 MW m-2 K-1, whereas conductances between 200 and 800 MW m-2 K-1 are observed for TiN interfaces. TiN forms exceptionally conductive interfaces with GaN, AlN, and diamond, that is, G > 400 MW m-2 K-1. Surprisingly, interfaces formed between vibrationally similar and dissimilar materials are similarly conductive. Thus, vibrational similarity between two materials is not a necessary requirement for high G. Instead, the time-domain thermoreflectance experiment (TDTR) data, an analysis of bulk vibrational properties, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) suggest that G depends on two other material properties, namely, the bulk phonon properties of the vibrationally softer of the two materials and the interfacial structure. To determine how G depends on interfacial structure, TDTR and TEM measurements were conducted on a series of TiN/AlN samples prepared in different ways. Interfacial disorder at a TiN/AlN interface adds a thermal resistance equivalent to ∼1 nm of amorphous material. Our findings improve fundamental understanding of what material properties are most important for thermally conductive interfaces. They also provide benchmarks for the thermal conductance of interfaces with wide band gap semiconductors.

Health and Environmental Risks of Incense Smoke: Mechanistic Insights and Cumulative Evidence.

Incense burning is practiced alongside many sacred rituals across different regions of the world. Invariable constituents of incense brands are 21% (by weight) herbal and wood powder, 33% bamboo stick, 35% fragrance material, and 11% adhesive powder. Major incense-combustion outputs include particulate matter (PM), volatile organic content, and polyaromatic hydrocarbons. The relative toxicity of these products is an implicit function of particle size and incomplete combustion, which in turn vary for a specific incense brand. Lately, the attention given to the Air Quality Index by international regulatory bodies has created concern about mounting PM toxicity. The uncharacteristically small physical dimensions of these entities complicates their detection, and with no effect of gravity PM fractions rapidly contribute to oxidative stress, enhancing random biochemical reactions upon being inhaled. Incense burning generates four times the PM extent (45 mg•g-1) of cigarettes (~10 mg•g-1). Several poisonous gases, such as CO, CO2, NO2, and SO2, and the unavoidable challenge of disposing of the burnt incense ash further add to the toxicity. Taken together, these issues demonstrate that incense burning warrants prompt attention. The aim of this article is to highlight the toxicity of incense-combustion materials on the environment and human health. This discussion could be significant in framing future policy regarding ecofriendly incense manufacture and reduced usage.

Onion Peel Waste Mediated-Green Synthesis of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles and Their Phytotoxicity on Mung Bean and Wheat Plant Growth.

Nanoparticles and nanomaterials have gained a huge amount of attention in the last decade due to their unique and remarkable properties. Metallic nanoparticles like zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) have been used very widely as plant nutrients and in wastewater treatment. Here, ZnONPs were synthesized by using onion peel and characterized by various sophisticated instruments like Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), dynamic light scattering (DLS), and field emission scanning electron microscopes (FESEM). FTIR confirmed ZnONPs synthesis due to the formation of the band in the region of 400-800 cm-1, while FESEM confirmed the spherical shape of the particles whose size varies in the range of 20-80 nm. FTIR revealed several bands from 1000-1800 cm-1 which indicates the capping by the organic molecules on the ZnONPs, which came from onion peel. It also has carbonyl and hydroxyl groups, due to the organic molecules present in the Allium cepa peel waste. The average hydrodynamic size of ZnONPs was 500 nm as confirmed by DLS. The synthesized ZnONPs were then used as a plant nutrient where their effect was evaluated on the growth of Vigna radiate (mung bean) and Triticum aestivum (wheat seeds). The results revealed that the germination and seedling of mung and wheat seeds with ZnONPs were grown better than the control seed. However, seeds of mung and wheat with ZnONPs at median concentration exposure showed an enhancement in percent germination, root, and shoot length in comparison to control. Thus, the effect of ZnONPs has been proved as a nano-based nutrient source for agricultural purposes.